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Logline

In a reimagining of the Prodigal Son story, on receiving news of his mother’s illness, a young man returns home to mend complicated relationships and rediscover what love and family really mean.

Synopsis

Fran, 27, living in Brooklyn with his girlfriend and close friends, is unfulfilled. When he gets troubling news from his childhood friend Emily, he returns to his small upstate town of Burning Well. Back home he finds his father and younger sister bewildered as mom, the glue of the family, is hospitalized with cancer. Fran who hasn’t been home since he transitioned decides to stay the summer and keep things together. Between caretaking duties in the hospital and summer malaise at home, Fran starts to reconnect with Emily. Old feelings resurface between them and complicates his relationship with his girlfriend. Fran’s sense of self outside of NYC is unraveling, and so is his family’s when mom makes a surprising decision about her health. Through tears and laughter, this laconic, Catholic-guilt-ridden Fran and family start to confront their pain but also the love that has always lived alongside it.
 

Meet the Filmmakers

MG Evangelista — Writer/Director/Producer
Writer-director MG Evangelista was born in the Philippines and grew up between the Bay Area and Manila. Evangelista’s work spans narrative, commercial, and documentary filmmaking exploring themes of identity and power. Their debut feature film, Burning Well, is in development and has been supported by Tribeca, Film Independent, Torino Feature Film Lab and SFFilm Rainin Grant. The feature is based on their award-winning short filmFran This Summer, which played in over 30 festivals worldwide, including Sundance. Evangelista’s body of work includes the VR dramedy Water Melts , LA Gloria, a Film Independent Project Involve short; and the award-winning short docs They Call Me Suki and To Dance Again.

Simone Ling — Producer
Simone Ling’s feature producing credits include Mosquita Mari, Y Mari, that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and was nominated for a Spirit Award, and They, an Official Selection of the Cannes Film Festival, nominated for a Queer Palm and Camera d’Or. Award-winning shorts include Moving Out (narrative), Emerging Radiance (VR), They Call Me Suki and To Dance Again (documentaries). A member of the Producers Guild of America, MPEG/IATSE, and BAFTA, Simone Deputy Chair’s BAFTA North America’s Learning, Inclusion and Talent Committee and spearheads outreach for the Sundance Institute’s Feature Film Labs. A TAP (Transatlantic Partners), Film Independent, Tribeca, and SFFILM Rainin Development Grant Fellow, she consults and curates for labs and festivals worldwide and, a Fulbright Scholar with Masters degrees from the University of Oxford and Stanford University, is an advisor for Sundance Collab’s Writing and Producing courses, TIFF’s Writing Lab, and Senior Associate Faculty in story and development at AFI, the American Film Institute’s Conservatory.

Lucas Ford — Producer
Lucas Ford is an award-winning Canadian film and television producer. Most recently as a film executive at Shawn Levy’s 21 Laps (Arrival, Stranger Things, Free Guy), Lucas has developed various projects at major film studios including A24, Netflix and Warner Bros. Lucas started his career at TIFF and worked on the acclaimed series Letterkenny. Under his Ford Films banner he has produced 4 debut feature films and 3 short films in the last 2 years including Portal to Hell (Slamdance), How Was Your Weekend? (SXSW), Henry’s Ebb (Cannes Frontières), Party People (Austin) and American Baby (upcoming). A Film Independent and BAFTA Fellow, Lucas holds an MFA from USC’s Peter Stark Producing Program and a BFA from Toronto Metropolitan University.

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Contact

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