Science fiction drama film “Omni Loop” was released on Sep. 20 through independent distributor Magnolia Pictures.
Starring Golden Globe winners Mary-Louise Parker and Ayo Edebiri, the film approaches the time loop trope in a manner more philosophical than expected. While viewers might expect the film to be centered around the solution of the time loop, director and screenwriter Bernardo Britto instead places the solution in split focus with the introspection caused by dying weekly. This results in the film touching upon heavy topics such as mortality, the decision between chasing greatness or contentment and the overall pursuit of purpose. New University spoke with Britto in the lead-up to the movie’s release.
As one becomes strapped for time and is forced to make decisions on how to allocate it, they tend to realize what really matters.
“You think about time and how you spend it,” Britto said. “And for me, it’s with connection to other people and family and friends.”
However, knowing what matters most doesn’t make allocating one’s time simple. Other things can matter too, and there is only so much time in life. The issue then becomes finding a balance between everything that works for you, though this is not that simple either.
“The lesson that [making ‘Omni Loop’] reinforced is that I don’t think there ever is a perfect balance. And I think whichever way you go with it, there’s going to be some regret and there’s going to be some guilt,” he said.
For Britto, achieving this balance has not been tied to any one factor such as age or achievement. Rather, it is life changes as a whole and those big things that are out of our control.
“All of a sudden … all of the movie stuff that felt so important becomes so small and meaningless,” Britto said. “It always comes down to those things where it’s just like, people dying, people being born and people getting sick — [universal] things that happen in the world.”
These considerations make choosing one’s occupation and goals within it a more nuanced issue, especially in fields with as large spreads of time investment as film. Though Britto enjoyed prior stints writing for TV shows and appreciated the stability they brought, he knew he needed to be able to work on his own projects to be content. However, this choice complicates being able to spend time on what he knows matters most.
“That’s a path that makes it harder for me to have a normal schedule that allows me to build the foundations for a family,” he said.
These perspectives of Britto’s all make their way into the film. The protagonist, Zoya Lowe (Mary-Louise Parker), starts the picture out in a time loop, feeling discontent and noncommittal. She is then aided by Paula (Ayo Edebiri) in racing towards an absolute in the decision between pursuing greatness and contentment. Through this facing of mortality, simultaneous shortage and abundance of time, Zoya finally accepts what she subconsciously knew mattered to her and makes peace with her life choices.
Photo provided by Magnolia Pictures
When asked about pieces of media that he associates with the making of this movie or what inspired it, Britto responded, “I remember on set listening to this one song over and over again to start the day. I get really stressed out on set and kind of, like, retreat into myself and would have to step away and be by myself, and I used to listen to a song called ‘Theme From Failure, Pt. 1.’”
In terms of movies, Britto offered ‘Red’ by Krzysztof Kieślowski‘s and ‘Aquarius’ by [Kleber] Mendonça Filho.
“I think both of those movies capture time travel in a way that isn’t science fiction at all, but about how we look at our lives and the choices that we’ve made,” he explained.
This approach is fundamental to the appeal of ‘Omni Loop,’ with much of the movie’s narrative being focused on Zoya Lowe reflecting on her own life. Britto being able to cast the actor he had in mind for Donald Lowe, Carlos Jacott, likely produced a similar effect for himself.
“That’s an actor that I’ve loved for years and years and years. He just is so funny to me and always was so funny. He doesn’t really act anymore; he became a dad, TV writer and all this kind of stuff, but I just thought it would be so great if we could get him, and he was like, ‘Sure, I’ll do it,’” Britto said.
Casting the actress he had in mind for Jayne Lowe, Hannah Pearl Utt, likely had a similar effect, though for different reasons.
“She was someone that I met years and years ago at NYU, and we made something together in like 2010 or something — she’s a good friend,” he said.
These castings track Britto’s progression from a fan and student to a director, allowing for more positive retrospection than experienced by Zoya.
Photo provided by Magnolia Pictures
The leads, on the other hand, were initially written with more fundamental references.
“I wrote Zoya thinking mostly about my mom and Paula as like me,” he said. “And then I got filtered out through everyone else’s characters, and everyone changed.”
Photo provided by Magnolia Pictures
Those interested can learn more about the film and find screenings near them here, or access some of Britto’s other work here.
June Min is a 2024-2025 Arts & Entertainment Editor. He can be reached at junehm@uci.edu.
Edited by Alaina Retodo and Jaheem Conley.