Louisa Connolly-Burnham, writer and director of multi-award-winning short film Sister Wives, explores why so many women are drawn to stories of cults, and what that shows about our capacity for care

13 August 2025

Like many women, I am obsessed with cults. I have devoured days and days of documentaries, podcasts,  books and articles about sordid sects, religious rituals, charismatic leaders, and dramatic escapes. In  making Sister Wives, I wanted to dive deeper into that fascination, exploring further the reasons why we as  women are so drawn to these stories. So, why are we so obsessed? 

When you strip away the extremes, cults are about control. They create strict rules for behaviour,  appearance, relationships, and even thought. For many women, that is not an alien concept. We grow up in  a world where expectations about how we should look, speak and act are often rigid, even if they are  disguised as “tradition” or “good manners.” 

In Sister Wives, Kaidence’s life is controlled down to the smallest detail. Torn between two worlds and two  loves, she is the devoted wife and the loyal follower - roles she has dutifully played without question. When her husband Jeremiah announces he’ll be taking a second wife, there is no conversation about it. He simply informs her of the news. Yet, beneath Kaidence’s carefully curated existence, an unspoken longing simmers, a yearning for something more. It isn’t until Galilee enters her life that Kaidence truly begins to understand the depth of her own desires, the silent ache for a freedom she has never dared to name. 

One of the things I find most intriguing about cults is how they control access to information. Knowledge is  restricted, and that makes it more valuable. There is something intoxicating about seeing the curtain pulled  back, especially if you have grown up being told not to question things. In Sister Wives we explore this  through contraband like Lady Chatterley’s Lover, Spaghetti Bolognese, and of course…a Nokia 3310.  These moments are small, but they are thrilling. They show how rebellion often starts with a whisper rather  than a shout. 

At first, the relationship between Kaidence and Galilee is marked by tension. Kaidence sees Galilee as an intruder, and Galilee does not yet know  how to navigate her new life. But over time, they bond. They share moments of kindness, humour, and eventually, intimacy. In a system designed to make them rivals for Jeremiah’s attention, they instead become allies. I wanted to show that quiet revolution, that even in an environment built to suppress them, women will find ways to connect and care for each other. 

When Jeremiah leaves for a four week mission, the absence of his control changes everything. Kaidence and Galilee swim in the lake, wear forbidden red, and tentatively talk about leaving. It is joyful, but fragile. When Jeremiah returns early and finds them together, the danger is palpably real, the reality of punishment immediate. 

At its heart, Sister Wives is about female connection within a hostile environment. Cults are not just about  the leaders and the rules – they are about the relationships between the people trapped inside them. I think  women are drawn to these stories because they highlight the ways we find each other in the gaps between the rules. When audiences watch Sister Wives, they are not just watching a love story or a drama about polygamy, they’re seeing how easily control can be normalised when it’s wrapped in religion, tradition, or love. And they are seeing the courage it takes to leave, even when leaving is terrifying. 

It’s easy to treat cult stories like thrillers, bingeing them for the next shocking, exciting twist. But for many  women, the obsession comes from a place of empathy. We see ourselves in the women on screen. We see  how they were taught to obey, how they were made to doubt themselves, how they were told their only worth came from serving others. And we see the strength it takes to undo all of that. Sister Wives, ultimately, is a story about finding your own agency in a place designed to strip it away.

Sister Wives was long-listed for the Oscars, BAFTAs and BIFAs, and was later acquired by Film4 and Channel 4. The film also featured in Letterboxd's Year in Review, ranking as the #3 Highest Rated Live Action Short Film globally.

The film has won 50+ awards at 100+ international festivals, including ‘Best Director' at The British Short Film Awards, HollyShorts, Sunrise Film Festival, The Shark Awards, One Fluid Night, and Brighton Rocks. It also took home Best British Short, Best Actress, and the Audience Award at The Iris Prize.