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Logline

Ta Ta, Dear follows a son at his dying mother’s staged “pre-wake,” her final performance, where he must choose to confront her or play along amid the chaos and dark comedy of her last act.

Synopsis

Ta Ta, Dear follows Owen on the final day with his mother, Sally, a dying performance artist. She stages a “pre-wake” to celebrate her life, where all the guests have prepared performances… except Owen, who has a eulogy. A simple goodbye. The event quickly descends into chaos: Owen knocks over the casket, and Sally, trying not to show her illness, vomits in front of everyone.

They retreat to Owen’s childhood room, where an old camcorder video sparks a brief reconnection and revisiting of past memories. Owen returns to the party for a final performance that surpasses his planned eulogy. To complete it, he and Sally stab her obituary photo, destroying it and achieving a fragile, wordless connection.

As the applause rises, they share a fleeting smile, but when Sally bows, Owen stays seated, realizing the connection has come too late.Ta Ta, Dear is a darkly comic, emotional story about trying to connect with a parent in their final days, showing that love and understanding often come through the attempt, not the outcome.
 

Meet the Filmmakers

Brandon Tyson — Writer/Director
Brandon has directed 10x short documentaries, won a Telly and Webby award, and has led direction on dozens of branded campaigns (some award-winners!) for companies like Ford, Google, and Dunkin’. He even gave Mike Tyson direction for a Singaporean online casino.

Adam Edery — Producer
Adam produced the feature film Grassland and is in pre-production on another feature. He’s done 8x short films, and was Head of Production at Exit 14, leading countless commercial.

Gus Bendinelli — Director of Photography
Gus has filmed 2x feature films and 39x (that’s right, 391) short films. His music videos include artist like Snoop Dogg, Sabrina Carpenter, Travis Scott, Hozier, and he’s filmed the likes of Bill Murray & Nicholas Hoult.

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Contact

For inquiries, please contact fiscalsponsorship@filmindependent.org.