All The Empty Rooms: "Not only do we not show shootings or talk about the shooters, we don’t even mention the word “gun.” "

In this vHopeful Conversation, Vanessa Hope talks with director Joshua Seftel about his Oscar‑nominated short All the Empty Rooms, which follows CBS reporter Steve Hartman and photographer Lou Bopp as they visit the preserved bedrooms of children killed in school shootings. Joshua describes how a single image—a toothpaste tube with its cap left off—convinced him this could be a powerful film about absence and presence, and why he chose to avoid showing violence, naming shooters, or even using the word “gun,” instead focusing entirely on rooms, objects, and the families’ memories. He explains the intimate, low‑impact way they filmed, the photo books they created as gifts for each family, the minimalist score that “holds” viewers without telling them how to feel, and the emotional impact of the project—from helping grieving parents like the Muhlbergers finally move house to changing the minds of gun‑rights supporters and even a Sandy Hook denier who saw the film. Get full access to Dream of a Better World at vanessahope.substack.com/subscribe