Haunted by the belief that she’s wasted her life, a spent woman in her 60s is jolted into action when her therapist’s sudden illness gives her a chance to save him—at the cost of confessing a long-buried secret and reopening a past love, proving that risking it all is sometimes its own reward.
It’s All Relative is an intimate exploration of memory, loss, and resilience, set against the eccentric rhythms of small-town life. Janie Newman, exhausted and reflective, drifts through her days—surrounded by the beauty of the Berkshire hills and the absurdities of traffic, tourists, and well-meaning neighbors—while carrying the weight of family estrangement, lost opportunities, and one very big secret.
Janie’s natural grace is, in part, a legacy of her past career as a dancer, and at pivotal moments in the film, we see that emotional depth and physical longing—expressed through private, poetic dance sequences on a black-box stage. Here, in the younger, freer version of herself, movement becomes memory which, eventually, becomes motivation. As the story unfolds, Janie is drawn into the lives of those around her: her estranged husband Hank whom she tries, unsuccessfully, to leave; her therapist Justin, who is tied to Janie through the secret she can’t reveal; and RJ, a man from her past whose presence rekindles hope and possibility.
Through a series of darkly comic, sometimes chaotic, yet very human interactions, Janie begins to reclaim her agency, find laughter amid grief, and connect with the people, and the life, she thought she had lost. It only happens after she tells the truth.
Alicia (Lee) Slimmer is an award-winning filmmaker. Her debut feature film, Creedmoria, screened at 12 festivals and won 12 awards, including the Jury Prize for Best Feature Comedy at Cinequest, Audience Favorite at the Brooklyn Film Festival, and the Industry Choice Award at Los Angeles’ Dances With Films Festival. The Hollywood Reporter said Creedmoria “boasts an exuberant comic vitality that keeps the viewer engaged” and The Village Voice called it “a timeless lark: a rollicking, touching family yarn.” Lee is currently in development for her next feature, It’s All Relative, starring Karen Allen. Her indie approach has been highlighted in multiple publications, including The Wall Street Journal and The Hollywood Reporter. She was a featured panelist at Cucalorus for “Ceiling Busters: Women in Film” and has led workshops at Montclair State University and the School of Creative and Performing Arts in Brooklyn. Lee is a contributing writer to Thrive Global, a member of NYWIFT, WIFVNE and Film Fatales, and also runs the monthly writing group, FWD (Film Writer Directors).
Actor - Karen Allen
Producer - Al Bailey
