The Job is one of those shorts that sneaks up on you. Sixteen minutes, simple setup: a guy walks into a job interview. But instead of the usual “tell me about yourself” routine, it turns into something heavier — a shot at redemption. LeJon Stewart plays Todd, a man carrying trauma like a weight on his shoulders, and Dawna Lee Heising is Athena, the interviewer who feels less like HR and more like a guide.
Right away, you know this isn’t about résumés; it’s about whether Todd can face himself.
Railsback directs, shoots, and edits the whole thing, and that triple duty gives the film a tight, unified feel. There’s no wasted motion — the camera lingers on faces, pauses on silences, and lets the tension build without flashy tricks. It’s stripped down, almost bare, which works because the story is about stripping Todd down to his core. You’re not distracted by spectacle; you’re watching a man wrestle with his own past across a desk.
The performances carry it. Stewart brings a rawness that makes Todd believable — you can see the weight he’s dragging around. Heising balances that with calm authority, almost otherworldly, like she knows more than she’s letting on. Together, they turn what could’ve been a flat “interview scene” into something layered. It’s relatable too: anyone who’s ever sat across a desk being judged knows that feeling of your whole life hanging in the balance.
If there’s a knock, it’s that the short ends just as you’re ready for more. Sixteen minutes feels like a teaser for a bigger story, and the sci‑fi hints could’ve been pushed further.
But that’s also the charm — it leaves you chewing on it after the credits roll.
The Job isn’t loud, it isn’t flashy, but it’s sharp, heartfelt, and it proves you don’t need explosions or gore to make a story stick. Sometimes the biggest battles happen in the quietest rooms.
The Job definitely deserves your full attention.
