Digicosm - Breaking Point

Modern living places a tremendous amount of pressure on the average person. Daily, people struggle to meet the deadlines of work and personal commitments, scarcely aware of the mounting pressure they place on themselves to succeed. This pressure is hidden well below the surface of our consciousness, and beneath the facade we present to those we meet. It is only as these stresses mount that we become aware of their presence bearing down upon us, and our own mortality becomes self-apparent.

For every individual, this ‘breaking point’ represents the moment when even the best of us succumb to the pressure of modern life, and a choice is made: either snap, or rise boldly to face another day. It is the point where the successful achieve, and the failures disappear, withering into darkness.

Alyssa March is a young woman, working in a large corporation by day and studying for a university degree in her spare hours. Alyssa, finding herself under constant pressure to meet work, study and personal commitments, fights a constant battle to manage her time efficiently. She feels obligated to look out for her sister Jane, who does not work, study or aspire to anything; she idles her days away at home, irritating Alyssa with her lethargy and complacent attitude toward life. The antagonism between the two sisters weighs heavily on Alyssa, who begins to look upon Jane with disdain. In defending her lifestyle Jane defensively argues against Alyssa’s endless pursuit of deadlines and career success, not realising that she will have to confront her own lack of drive.

Finally, a tragic event at work becomes the catalyst that culminates in Alyssa experiencing a complete nervous collapse: her ‘breaking point’. Simultaneously, Jane is attacked at home by an unknown intruder who bashes her senseless. Both sisters are rendered unconscious and placed in hospital where in what can only be described as a telepathic link, the sisters both experience the same dream-like state. Within this altered state of consciousness the sisters connect, coming to terms with the painful issues that face them. Alyssa realises she can no longer push herself so hard and Jane realises she has not been pushing herself hard enough.

Overseeing all the events is a close work friend of Alyssa, Justin Walman. Taking a personal interest in the fate of two sisters, he launches his own investigation in to their unfortunate predicaments. In doing so he encounters an uncaring, cynical manager who does nothing to protect his team from the mounting pressure that claims a life. He discovers the smashed house of Alyssa and Jane, a shattered image of broken memories; and a sobering testimony that one is not even safe in their own home.

In a disturbing climax Justin comes to the conclusion that most people are not prepared for the speed or fury of modern life, nor the trail of needless casualties that lies in its wake. Overwhelmed, Justin reaches his own catharsis through which he realises Alyssa and Jane are the victims of a society that desperately needs help.

We all have a ‘breaking point’. Some crumble. Some stand tall. Some succeed to control the system. Which one are you?