Houseplant Films

“I don’t think I’m doing very well,” Ruth Mackie tells her doctor during a cognitive exam. An elderly Nova Scotian woman struggling with dementia, Ruth likes feeding pigeons and playing TV bingo. She believes that her home is infested with bugs and that they live inside her, too. Ruth’s pregnant young caretaker, Shannon is grappling with her abandonment by the baby’s father, a race-car driver. As Ruth’s cognition deteriorates, these two women overlooked by society leave an indelible impression on each other.

Donna has recently been convicted of “Driving While Impaired” and is ordered to perform community service at the local animal shelter. When an elderly dog is scheduled to be euthanized, Donna decides to take the dog home and quickly realizes his companionship can ease her loneliness. In a futile attempt to fill the emptiness she feels, Donna begins to take home more and more animals and she is soon in over her head.