★★★

A curious and experimental mixtape of fiction, non-fiction, and behind-the-scenes filmmaking, Callie Hernandez stars in Invention, taking the real-life story of her conspiracy theory-minded father’s passing and exploring the encounters and situations which drive us to thoughts of belief, empathy, and skepticism.

Director Courtney Stephens worked with Hernandez on the screenplay and together they create a lo-fi blending of 16mm filmmaking, archival footage, and insights into how the film is being put together. Hernandez’s father was an alternative medicine enthusiast, who veered into the world of conspiracy theories. Within the context of the film, Hernandez, known here as Carrie, meets with her father’s attorney who informs her that she has inherited a parent for a healing device that has been recalled by the FDA.

As she wanders through each scene, she encounters a fictionalized group of people who knew or were otherwise connected to her father. A handful of familiar indie actors pop up including Joe Swanberg as a deeply religious manufacturer who built a few prototypes for her father, and small cameos from Caveh Zahedi as someone seeking her dad’s device and Lucy Kaminsky as someone who saw Callie’s father as a healer.

This is not an easy film to watch from a narrative standpoint, but the film’s analysis of how grief can alter our perceptions is insightful. In all of her encounters, Carrie runs through a cycle of analyzing everyone within the context of understanding her father’s complicated legacy. Was he a snake oil salesman or did he truly believe he could help heal people? Did people genuinely connect with him or just want something from him? And how does Carrie answer that same question?

Invention was screened as part of the 51 st Seattle International Film Festival.