52 Films by Women Vol 4. 45. JUSTINE (Director: Stephanie Turner)
Stephanie Turner did not originally intend to direct Justine . The actress wrote the screenplay, focusing on a grieving, traumatised widow who reluctantly takes a job looking after a young girl with special needs, to create a part that she could play. A number of producers helped her hone the script into something than could be produced on a lower budget. In the end, after the birth of her own child, she decided to ‘get it done’ on a budget of $750,000. The result, filmed in locations in Anaheim, is an absorbing drama about a woman who doesn’t find closure but who is on the road to re-engagement. Terrible events define us, but they don’t destroy us. The title doesn’t refer to the protagonist, Lisa Wade, played by Turner, a newly single mother with two young mixed race children, Drew (Ravi Cabot-Conyers) and Maya (Bridget Kallal) who has moved in with her father in law, Papa Don (Glynn Turman) in California to find work. It refers to Justine (Daisy Prescott), an eight year old g...