‘Down Here’, the visual piece from composer Claudio Olachea and director Omer Ben Shachar, depicts a nightmarish scenario where everyone wears identical masks to fit in.

But when one young man’s mask begins to peel off, he questions if hiding his true identity is really worth it.

FROM THE DIRECTORS

"Growing up between Tel Aviv and Texas, I always felt as if I had to put on a different identity depending on where I was trying to fit in. Not only did I feel like I had to be another version of myself with different people and cultures, but after a few years, I started to get confused about who my real self was. Of all the different identities, which one was the ‘real me’? This is something that I still question. When someone says “just be yourself”, I always want to ask them, “which one?”.

We all put on different masks when we leave home, hoping that by eliminating some parts of ourselves and showcasing others, it will help us connect with others. But so often, it does the complete opposite. That’s where the idea for the story came from. What if everyone had to wear an identical mask when they left their homes?

And what if one person was so scared of accidentally revealing his real face that he went to extremes and super-glued the mask to his face? To make things worse, what if everyone else started revealing their real faces as trends changed, but our hero had gone too far and couldn’t change back?“

-Omer Ben Shachar