A strange series of events led to writer-director Georgia Bernstein towards creating her first feature length effort Night Nurse, which opens in select theatres on July 10th after having a successful premiere at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival back in January.
The first event that shaped the trajectory of Night Nurse was the revelation that her grandmother was being scammed by a phone caller claiming to be a relative that’s locked up in prison and in need of money to be released. The second was driving by a billboard advertising elder care and thinking about the nature of giving and receiving care. The third was the dissolution of a relationship that made her think about power dynamics and co-dependency.
All of those feelings put together informs the story of Eleni Sadik (played by Bernstein’s close friend and collaborator Cemre Paksoy), a mysterious young woman who has just been hired at a retirement community, specifically so she can act as a caregiver for elderly resident Douglas (played by Bruce McKenzie). Douglas shows symptoms of dementia that are picked up on by Eleni’s boss (Mimi Rogers), but he’s really sharp as a tack, running an illegal scam similar to the one Bernstein’s mother went through. Employing the help of fellow nurses, Douglas makes scam calls to fellow elders to tug on their heartstrings and empty their retirement accounts. Eleni finds herself drawn into Douglas’ orbit, not only his criminal activities, but also developing a sexual attraction to the much older man.
We chatted with Bernstein about Night Nurse, the influence that that works of David Cronenberg, Atom Egoyan, and Jane Campion had on the film, what it’s like trying to create an erotic thriller in the modern era, constructing the story around a villain that has built a cult of personality, her working relationship with Cemre Paksoy over the years, orchestrating intimate movement, and creating characters that have become numb to life.
Night Nurse opens in select cities on Friday, July 10, 2026.
