The Big Bad Swim

Colour, DIGIBETA
USA, 2006, 93 min
Section: Forum of Independents

Synopsis

An eccentric comedy following the antics of members of an adult swimming class. Amy, a middle-aged high-school teacher is going through a divorce. One of her students is filming a documentary about his croupier-by-day / stripper-by-night sister Jordan, who’s also in the class. Jordan has the hots for handsome swimming instructor Noah, an ex-Olympic hopeful, who’s haunted and depressed by failure. There are also other phobic wannabe swimmers: a local cop, an elderly woman, an eccentric mother-daughter duo and many others with their own interesting secrets. In the end, the film becomes a story about people seeking happiness and overcoming their fears. Not everyone makes it through the class, but those who do come to realize that life isn’t about learning to swim, but about forcing yourself to get in the water every once in a while.

About the director

Ishai Setton (Houston, Texas) graduated from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. His short film The Butcher and the Housewife has screened at many festivals and won Best Comedy Short at the Houston International Film Festival. Setton served as producer on the feature-length documentary Ocho Candelas, winner of the Joyce Award for Achievement in Documentary. The Big Bad Swim is Ishai’s feature-length directorial debut.