In Once Bitten, director Michelle Kamunyo trades in spectacle for subtlety—and wins. This short film, led by Katricia “Coco” Kariuki in the role of Bonnie, captures the aching quiet of moral erosion. It’s a story of survival, but not in the traditional sense. There are no chases or guns. Just decisions. Quiet, small, irreversible decisions.
Kariuki’s performance is an exercise in controlled tension. She doesn’t broadcast Bonnie’s desperation—she compresses it. Her delivery is measured, her body language closed but volatile. There is a moment when she turns to speak and pauses just long enough for the audience to feel what she doesn’t say. That moment carries more weight than any speech could.
What distinguishes her performance is its internal rhythm. The film’s tension comes from what remains unsaid, and Kariuki leans into that with precision. She lets silence do the talking. Her control over micro-reactions—eye movement, breath, spatial shifts—makes Bonnie a character not just acted, but constructed.
It’s no wonder she earned Best Actress honors at multiple international film festivals. Her work is not about technical flash. It’s about emotional restraint and ethical ambiguity.
Once Bitten may be a short film, but it delivers a long aftershock. Kariuki plays Bonnie not for pity, but for truth. And the truth, as the film shows us, isn’t always sympathetic—but it’s always earned.
Once Bitten: When Family, Caregiving, and Survival Collide
Caregiving doesn’t always look noble. Sometimes it looks like desperation. Sometimes it looks like silence. Once Bitten understands this and presents it with unflinching honesty. The film follows Bonnie, a woman stretched beyond capacity, caring for her ailing sister while navigating the quiet brutality of poverty and systemic failure.
Katricia “Coco” Kariuki delivers a performance that never asks for sympathy—but demands recognition. She doesn’t plead with the audience. Instead, she brings them into Bonnie’s world through small, studied choices. She counts her steps, fixes her posture, checks her voice mid-sentence. These aren’t theatrical gestures. They’re survival tactics.
In a film that could have easily turned melodramatic, Kariuki remains grounded. And that choice makes the story resonate even louder. Her performance reframes caregiving not as sainthood, but as sacrifice—complex, imperfect, and often invisible.
Once Bitten has found international recognition across several film festivals, but more importantly, it has sparked dialogue. Viewers have responded not just to its quality, but to its emotional truth. The conversations it generates—about burnout, about being unseen, about caregiving under duress—are its greatest achievement.
Kariuki doesn’t offer us a hero. She gives us a woman making impossible choices in an unforgiving world. And that makes her unforgettable. Katricia Coco Kariuki Official IG and IMDB filmography.
