PRESS
LOGLINE
A group of regional theater actors build a show for a quirky small town theater. Both staged and unstaged this film plays inside, outside (within and, conversely explicitly celebrating being outside) the proscenium.
DIRECTOR'S STATEMENT
Sitting with my grandmother, a soft pretzel, and a cup of nacho cheese during one of my trips home I realized that The Great American Melodrama and Vaudeville was the perfect setting to explore some of my personal questions about the form of documentary.
While my documentaries are observational, or filmed real events, the story will still inevitably be shaped by the technical choices I make during the process. I was searching for a unique film structure which could let the audience in on the constructed nature of the documentary while maintaining an earnest and essential sense of truth. At The Melodrama, farce and parody are the packaging for earnest stories about friendship, family, love, and community. Finding a way to use parody in the service of documentary filmmaking became an obsessive challenge and spending a summer at The Melodrama was an irresistible opportunity.
FOLLOW THE FILM
We are implementing a collaborative festival strategy! What does that mean? You can be a part of the process:
We have had excellent audience responses and feel confident that when people get to watch the film, they will love it -- but first we need to get it to them! Film festivals program through submissions and recommendations.
If there is a festival you love to attend please recommend it to us! That connection could help to make sure the film makes its way to programmers. If you have a connection to anyone at the festival, even better. Many festivals can offer submission waivers to recommended films and a personal connection helps them to trust that the waiver is going to good use.
We will also be submitting to festivals which have programming about local arts, in towns with regional theaters, and festivals which have programmed content that is similar in tone and scope. Without waivers these submissions can add up. One way you can really help the film is to donate towards festival fees. Fees vary festival to festival but average around $50. This is the most common platform to manage submissions: film freeway.com
If you would like to donate towards our festival run please follow the link below. If you specify a festival that you think our film will excel at we will make sure to use the donation towards that submission.
FESTIVALS
San Luis Obispo Film Festival - Official Selection 2026
