Thumper follows Dimitri and Elijah in New Hampshire as their days unfold through quiet routines and subtle rituals: moments of tenderness emerge, revealing the delicate and shifting power dynamics that shape their connection. As a storm approaches, their routines begin to fracture.

Thumper is rooted in a feeling I know well: the difficulty of letting go, and the way love can turn into routine, dependency, and shifting control. I’m drawn to complicated male relationships that exist in limbo, where intimacy isn’t clearly defined and identity isn’t forced into explanation. Thumper uses two characters as vessels for overlapping romantic, familial, and deeply intimate dynamics, allowing something unnamed to emerge on its own terms. I chose to explore these themes as a way to understand what I was moving through more clearly. In the process, I found satisfaction in letting the unknown stay present.