Hannah Takes the Stairs (2007) - Synopsis

Over the course of one hot post-graduate summer, Hannah (Greta Gerwig), falls precariously in and out of love. A breaker of hearts and chronically dissatisfied she finds herself drifting away from her newly unemployed boyfriend (Mark Duplass, The Puffy Chair) and drawn to two of her co-workers, Matt (Kent Osborne) and Paul (Andrew Bujalski, Mutual Appreciation). Conceived without a traditional script, this triumph of improvisional acting was born from intimate collaboration between director Joe Swanberg, and his cast, which is made up of some of todays most important up and coming independent filmmakers. Alternately heartbreaking and hilarious, and featuring stunning naturalistic performances, Hannah takes the Stairs is a delicate look at friendship, ambition, and the pursuit of happiness that heralds the return of a truly independent form of American moviemaking.