LOGLINE

A woman confronts the quiet forces that have shaped her identity - and dares to define herself on her own terms.

SYNOPSIS

SOVEREIGNTY is a short experimental film about the reclamation of self. Through poetic visuals and intimate storytelling, it follows a woman navigating the unspoken expectations placed upon her body, voice, and choices. As she begins to dismantle internalized limitations, she steps into a version of herself that is unapologetically whole.

This is not just a narrative of resistance—it’s one of emergence.

A meditation on autonomy, agency, and the often-invisible work of becoming.

CREDITS

Writer/Director: Serani

Cinematography/Editing: Serani

Cast: Iris Usha

DIRECTOR'S STATEMENT

SOVEREIGNTY was born from a deep desire to challenge the narratives women are handed about who they are allowed to be.

This film is personal - not because it tells my story, but because it echoes the silent negotiations so many of us make every day. The moments we shrink. The times we say yes when we mean no. The ways we contort ourselves to be more palatable, less threatening, more “appropriate.”

I wanted to make something that holds space for that complexity. That honors the quiet, often messy process of reclaiming one’s power. Not as a performance, but as a birthright.

My hope is that SOVEREIGNTY reminds viewers - especially women - that self-definition is radical, sacred, and necessary.

Film Stills

A few editorial-style images of Iris.

Behind-the-Scenes

A few screenshots of our film shoot - shot in Altafulla Old Town, Spain in July 2025

BTS Video

Some behind-the-scenes footage

Director Bio

Serani began her film career in 1991, working in production on international features alongside icons like Bruce Beresford, Sean Connery and Eric Roberts. From that high-octane start, she shifted into directing music videos for Sony BMG and EMI Records through the 90s, developing a sharp eye for visual storytelling.

In 2011, she won a Mofilm USA Super Bowl award for a Chevrolet commercial she directed - an audacious comedic piece that marked her as a director with both style and substance.
Her first narrative short, ICEVILLE, a black comedy-drama filmed in Bangkok, was a passion project that explored the absurdities of human behavior with dark humor and emotional nuance.
From there, she stepped into an executive producing role in Prague, leading the commercial division of Production Inc. - co-producers of Quinton Tarantino’s “Hostel” and “A League of Extraordinary Gentlemen”. It was nine months of high-stakes global production, expanding her creative and strategic range.

After a break from the industry, Serani re-emerged in 2025 with a new lens - this time as a photographer. Her work, often cinematic and emotionally charged, focuses on women but resists easy categorization. Beauty, editorial, raw portraiture - she moves between them with fluidity and intention.
Her latest short films, Rising to the Surface and SOVEREIGNTY, mark her return to directing. Rising to the Surface was shot entirely underwater. It’s a visceral, cathartic piece; a visual metaphor for her journey as a PTSD survivor reclaiming her voice and vision. Whereas SOVEREIGNTY reminds us that self-definition is radical, sacred, and necessary. These are not just short experimental films. They are declarations: she’s back, and she’s unstoppable!