Niclas Gillis’ “Hold Me Down” is a Vimeo Staff Pick

Based on true events and cast entirely with real people, HOLD ME DOWN depicts a day in the life of a 19-year-old single mother in the Bronx who works as a stripper at an illegal nightclub to support her child. It is inspired by the experiences of Unique Adams, a young mother who invited writer/director Niclas Gillis into her world to portray the reality that she faces. It is filmed in the locations where the events depicted actually occur, and produced with the participation of the local community. As such, the film becomes an untainted window into a life lead by millions of women in the shadows of mainstream America. In the words of Carole Dean: (President of the Roy W. Dean Film Grants) “There has never been a film like this before. It is really in a category of its own.”

Hold Me Down has played at Odense, Gothenburg, and Harlem International Film Festivals and won the award for Best Short Film at the latter. It has also been exhibited at the Swedish Embassy in Washington DC and the Phillips Collection in DC as well. It has received outstanding critical praise and was featured extensively on CNN (link below). Beyond that, the film played three times on SVT (the national Swedish broadcaster) and was available for a month on the network's VOD platform in Sweden. It was ultimately released as a Vimeo Staff Pick.

Credits

Stephen Buchanan - Producer 

Steve Annis - DP