Daniel

Joan lives in an isolated convent in rural New Zealand where she finds comfort in the simplicity of routine and the promise of redemption. However - on the eve of her consecration - Joan’s world is challenged when one of the girls is dangerously injured in an accident and Joan is commanded to find help. 

Joan seeks assistance from a neighbour – a solitary young Carpenter - and meanwhile discovers an unusual sanctuary in his shed where he breeds locusts to feed to his pet blue tongued lizard - Daniel. This encounter is the beginning of an awakening for Joan, and when she returns to thank the Carpenter for his help she steals Daniel and brings the lizard back to the convent. Too shy to get to know the Carpenter himself, she uses Daniel as a way to feel close to him as well to reconnect with the long forgotten sensation of touch. But this confrontation of her unexplored and repressed sexuality becomes too much, and on the eve of taking her vows JOAN makes a decision that will change the course of her life forever. 

Daniel is an unsettling, visceral exploration of female sexual repression, and the consequences of lack of self-acceptance.