FAULTLINE
FAULTLINE is a dance short film exploring masculinity, macho culture, and society’s expectations of men, and how these structures shape, limit, and sometimes harm both individuals and their surroundings. At the same time, the film is also a striving for something new - a space of freedom, empathy and compassion.
Across the world, masculinity is closely associated with strength, control, emotional restraint, confidence, and constant performance. These expectations are rarely spoken out loud, yet they form a silent system of rules that many men grow up navigating.
The film is grounded in an extensive research process based on academic studies, literature on masculinity, multiple in-depth interviews with men of different ages and backgrounds, as well as an anonymous survey. Across these conversations, similar patterns began to emerge: emotional repression, the pressure to perform strength, and the difficulty of expressing vulnerability.
One thing that stayed with me during these conversations was the silence. How rules can exist without ever being spoken. A silent authority. A silent system of rules. A silent agreement. Many men described growing up navigating these invisible rules. The constant search for identity while at the same time having to hide parts of it in plain sight.
Research also shows that men are significantly less likely to seek help for mental health struggles and are overrepresented in suicide statistics worldwide. In Sweden, men are about four times more likely to take their own lives than women.
Through dance and movement, FAULTLINE explores the tension between the external image of strength and the internal emotional fractures that can form beneath the surface. The film moves through emotional repression and silence, through pressure and aggression, and toward the possibility of something else - a space where these structures begin to dissolve.
Creative Director, Choreographer, Director, Producer & Edit – Linnéa Sonka
DOP & Colorist – André Forsström
Original Music – Eli Ben Avi (Chelono)
Dancers:Arūnas Mozūraitis, Robin Sabazade, Gautier Mambambu, Carl Selvén, Mohamed “Shika” Saleh, Younes Majri, Mattis Johansen, Louie Nelson Nagode Indriana Adargo, Evan Zayya, Laurenz Sontheimer and Marvil Iglesias
Gaffer – Alex Franco Fogelström
Set Design & Execution – Lina Sundkvist Strindberg
Set Dressers – Amanda Artberger & Matilda Zeitz
Costume Construction – Clara Norborg
Set Assistant - Erik Sonka