Books like then she was gone

Then She Was Gone is a 2010 short comedy-drama film, written and directed by Burleigh Smith. It features Smith, Sarah Louella and Gordon Honeycombe. The film was awarded Best Drama at the 2010 Katoomba Short Film Festival and Best Director at the 2011 West Australian Screen Awards.

Basil (Burleigh Smith) lives in Perth, Western Australia and feels isolated. His psychologist provides little help. Then Basil meets Mia (Sarah Louella), a florist. He pretends to share her love of ballet and invites her to a performance. They have a great time but several days later, Mia tells him she's only interested in him as a friend. Romantically, she prefers men who are masculine.

Basil does his best to hide his hurt. He continues to spend time with Mia and tells her he was raised without a father and knows little of what it is to be a man. This strikes a chord with Mia, who never had a mother. Mia attempts to make Basil more masculine and becomes unsettled when her girlfriends show interest in him. After an evening at the ballet, Basil and Mia spend the night together. In the morning, Basil cruelly rejects Mia, using similar phrases she had used earlier. "But I'd really like to be friends!" he tells her.