SEVERANCE
From the opening shot of SEVERANCE (trailer here), I was hooked. This thriller takes the sentiment of work-life balance to the extreme. In the series, there’s a distinct split between one’s work self and their not-at-work self; therefore, due to a chip implant, you have no memories of your work life once out of the office and vice versa. Sounds like a dream right? No. Absolutely not, it's terrifying. In the opening, an aerial shot zooms in on new employee Helly, passed out in an isolated conference room—she wakes up and can't answer even simple questions about herself—she's horrified. But this is the norm for Lumon Industries. The one character we straddle across personal and work life is Mark, played by Adam Scott, diving into very interesting reasons why someone would want to shut off any memories and thoughts of their personal lives during a large chunk of the day while at work. And throughout this pandemic, where many folks have shifted to WFH and work has infiltrated much of our home lives, I really like how this series toys with the balancing act of your personalities in "professional" spaces vs. not. A lot of us, especially in this zoom-era, have glimpsed into the personal lives of our coworkers and likely have newfound empathy for them as a result—but what if we didn't know any of those things? Largely in thanks to deft direction from Ben Stiller, this thriller series feels new, fresh, and surprisingly funny.
—Erin Harris, Development Assistant
