Standing in front of four producers and twenty-six of her peers, Gryphon Vorbach pitched the perfect idea. Vorbach is a twenty-year-old filmmaker from South Berwick, Maine attending SMCC’s communications and new media program. In the fall semester of 2024, she joined the video pre-production team, a course entirely designed to set students up for the following semester creating films for the Maine Mayhem Film Festival. The pre-production course consisted of vigorous story-building and paperwork, all to pitch a fifteen-minute short film idea to a board of producers. Only eight films are greenlit from the process, creating a friendly but competitive atmosphere amongst peers. Vorbach was one of the lucky eight to be greenlit, with her short film ‘Shadows of Me’.
Vorbach started off her filmmaking journey in a familiar place: YouTube. She originally started making videos to pursue her interest in becoming a YouTuber and went on to join a film editing class in high school. The school had suffered low budgets and resources that forced her to get out of her comfort zone. She gathered all of her own footage and taught herself how to use the editing software. Her experience from that class was a milestone in her career, “That teacher was amazing and gave me so much of the confidence that I have in filmmaking today”, said Vorbach. Since then she has worked on various student productions including her own for the Maine Mayhem Film Festival such as, ‘Versions’ (2024), ‘Freddie’ (2025), ‘Guts’ (2025), ‘The Oracle’ (2025), and ‘21st Century Killers’ (2025).
Vorbach’s directorial debut revolves around a nonbinary person named Chloe who struggles with severe anxiety, depression, and a tremendous lack of self-confidence. This is all reflected in the main antagonist, Dark Chloe, who is Chloe’s personified manifestation of her inner thoughts and feelings. Dark Chloe relentlessly belittles Chloe until she meets Farrah, who shows Chloe that she deserves happiness and love.
Vorbach explores these deep emotions within the narrative, reflecting her own experiences with anxiety and insecurity. Even though Chloe is a different person with different experiences to Vorbach, the feelings Chloe experiences are in line with Vorbach’s own. “I am a lot better now, thanks to the people in my life… I am a big believer that having positive voices in your life can help immensely”, said Vorbach. Her partner Nate was the inspiration for the character, Farrah. But the support of her mother, brother, and friends shines through Farrah’s uplifting personality. ‘Shadows of Me’ is not a story about someone coming in to save the day, it is quite the opposite. Vorbach’s goal is to remind audiences that the change has to come from inside of you, not from anyone else. Encouragement and self-love are important, and it is okay to acknowledge that you are funny, pretty, or that people like you being around. Outside of the filmmaking world, Vorbach indulges in Airsoft, a role-playing sport that uses lower-powered BB guns to recreate battles both real and fake. From the beginning, she took on leadership roles on teams and squads. This key factor of her personality has transferred over to how she is as a director. A team player with an eye for strategy and determination. “Happiness and love spread, and that’s all I want to do with my life, and that’s what I want to do with this film.”
‘Shadows of Me’ will premiere at the Maine Mayhem Film Festival on May 8th, 2025, at the Nickelodeon Theatre in Portland Maine.
Tickets for this event can be purchased at:
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