A 13 Khutz project
Recently dumped and desperate to reconnect with his ex, high school junior David throws himself into her world of competitive debate—only to find his irritable bowel syndrome has magically produced a volatile, fast-growing child that threatens to topple everything in his life.
Written & directed by Chris Merola
The film
David is brilliant, grieving, and desperate to win back Marcella. Competitive debate gives him a system for turning language into power: speak faster, overwhelm the opposition, never leave room for doubt.
But David’s repressed thoughts and desires take physical form as a fast-growing Child only he can see. The more he uses words to dominate, achieve, and avoid the truth, the larger and more violent the Child becomes.
The argument
David believes his body is betraying him. The deeper surprise is that it is trying to teach him. The Child makes his unspoken needs impossible to ignore, forcing him to separate affection from achievement and language from honest communication.
Visual approach
As David improves at debate and pushes the Child away, the visual language distorts with him—moving from grounded 50mm photography toward exaggerated 14mm lenses. Each debate receives its own coverage style so the film’s central engine keeps changing as the pressure rises.
Project team