
Oscar Nominations Announced
January 23, 2025
Sundance Interview: Daisy Friedman on Disability Representation, Judaism, and Going from College to Sundance with ‘Unholy’
January 23, 2025It’s hard to know what someone else is going through, but it usually helps to ask or, at the very least, not to make assumptions. Finding the balance between genuine polite curiosity and posing far too many invasive questions, however, is not always easy, and can lead to deeply uncomfortable moments. Inspired by the filmmaker’s own experiences, Daisy Friedman’s short film Unholy looks at how an inability to engage in traditional activities can prove extremely difficult and unpleasant.
Noa (Olivia Nikkanen) arrives with her parents at her grandmother’s home for a Passover seder. It’s her first time seeing the whole family since having a feeding tube put in as a result of her recently diagnosed gastrointestinal disorder. Her father (Danny Burstein) preemptively assures her that everything will be fine, but when her tube starts beeping in the middle of the meal, it’s difficult to focus on anything else. Add to that the burning desire her grandmother (Roberta Pikser) has to be able to feed her, even just some of the broth of her famous soup, and it’s a recipe for disaster.
Friedman, a triple-organ transplant, delivers a fresh and inviting film, all the more impressive given that she’s still in college. The premise is simple and the surrounding setup is also fittingly not complex. Whether it’s because she doesn’t want to disappoint her grandmother or because she fears blowback for her father, Noa knows that she has to be there even though she doesn’t want to, and she’d so much rather fade into the background than be the center of attention for something that she’s figured out how to control. Placing herself in this situation makes her vulnerable to the prying eyes of others and the unspoken judgments about how she should be taking care of herself.
In just fourteen minutes, this film conveys a great deal about the nature of disability and how others may have good intentions yet still arrive at precisely the wrong things to say. The affection that Noa’s father has for her is touching, and it’s especially rewarding to see a film about Jewish tradition and culture that doesn’t attack or demean it but instead grapples with the difficulty of restrictive diets when it comes to fulfilling ritual obligation. Friedman’s film doesn’t pass judgment on the rituals themselves but instead interrogates what it means to gather as a family or a community to partake in shared and meaningful activities that can be inclusive for everyone. Unholy is a witty and poignant ode to those who would rather not – and shouldn’t – have to explain themselves, perfectly able to go about their business if only others would leave them to it.
Movie Rating: 8/10
Unholy is screening as part of the Short Film Program 1 at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival.