Gist: When TONI SPRESSO (Lauren Toglia) realizes she cannot cure her emotionally volatile lover, VICTOR TIBLIANO (Michael Christoforo) from alcoholism, she attempts to sever their abusive relationship, but he would rather see her dead than with another man .

Inspiration:

When I was 16, my life changed forever.  I was a busgirl in an Italian restaurant. The alcoholic bartender with whom I worked had an indelible impact on my life.  Our relationship started innocently enough. Victor would hand me notes asking me to meet with him for a drink after our shift. I didn’t take him seriously. I had a boyfriend, I was sixteen, and I perceived Victor to be a bit – odd.  

Soon after my highschool sweetheart broke up with me, I learned that Victor was an alcoholic.  I felt compassion for Victor; my father was also an alcoholic, and I believed I might be able to help when Victor asked me to accompany him to AA.  Victor became obsessed with controlling me and turned violent when I attempted to end our relationship. In my naïveté, I thought if someone loved me enough, then I would find it in myself to truly love that person back.  Moreover, Victor believed my love could cure his alcoholism. Only in the aftermath of our relationship did I understand that neither of those were reality. Victor attempted to take my life, and although my independent film, Victims, is fictional, portions of it mirror my teenage experiences.