Humanity in its long history has surely understood one thing: it is never really the duration or the quantity of something that matters, but it is always the quality. But we often tend to forget the wise lessons of the past. Hence, Netflix took the initiative to show us how impactful short stories can be. Forgive Us Our Trespasses on Netflix proves yet again that it is the quality that matters and not the duration.

The short film tells the story of a young boy living in Nazi Germany. Originating from the beautiful mind of Eakin, who was an assistant director for Jon M. Chu on Crazy Rich Asians. She knew what kind of impact a representation on screen can have on a group of people. This is why she wanted to create something for people who have any physical inability.

Eakin’s idea behind Forgive Us Our Trespasses on Netflix

“I never see people on screen with different bodies, and that was a huge issue for me growing up and dealing with internalized ableism,” said Ashley Eakin. She is a writer-director who tirelessly works towards projects that involve representation for people with disabilities. She herself is a person with a physical disability. Hence, she does it so beautifully.

Eakin wrote the story of the movie along with her husband Shawn Lovering during the starting months of the COVID-19 pandemic. The beautiful setting that we see in the movie is the cold winter land of Ontario, Canada. Even though the movie depicts the horrors of the past, one can draw striking parallels between it and the treatment of certain communities because of the pandemic.

Going into Netflix’s Emerging Filmmaker Initiative, Eakin had the opportunity to ask for a mentor from the industry. She made a request for Oscar winner Ron Howard, who made 2020’s “Hillbilly Elegy” for Netflix.

What did Ron Howard say about Eakin?

When connected with Eakin, Ron, of course, provided her with notes and help he had to offer. He even guided her with the script of Forgive Us Our Trespasses and how to direct young actors. But as he shared, “Ashley Eakin didn’t really need my, or any, mentoring.”

“From the first conversation, I felt like she had command of this subject. When I began seeing some dailies I felt like she was already a seasoned filmmaker,” said Howard. “She staged it beautifully but kept reaching for nuances, and also in a very concise, demanding format, because the short film format is like short story writing: Every second matters, just as every word choice or sentence matters in a short story.”

We hope to see more such amazing projects under the Netflix EFI program. You can stream Forgive Us Our Trespasses on Netflix now.