The Godfathers

A Family Comedy... For Unhappy Families

Project type: Fiction Feature
Project status: Development
Writer/Director/Producer: Tristan Chandra
Director of Photography: Nkosi Roma
Casting Directors: Harriet Greenspan & Terry Berland

Email: Tristan@MandalayFilmClub.com
Instagram: @thegodfathersfilm
 
Help independent filmmakers tell their stories.
Make a donation to The Godfathers today.

Film Independent’s Fiscal Sponsorship program opens the door to nonprofit funding for independent filmmakers and media artists. Donate today and help bring The Godfathers to life.

 

Logline

On Thanksgiving Day 2016, Becca, the family black-sheep, returns home expecting to be named the godmother to her new niece. She’s shocked to discover that her sister’s two gay best friends are the godfathers. As the night progresses, the family unit dissolves in real time as the nation’s unity dissolves in the background.

Synopsis

The Godfathers is an ensemble comedy-drama set on Thanksgiving Day, 2016. Becca, the outspoken black sheep of the family, arrives at her sister Laura’s home expecting to be named godmother to her newborn niece. Instead, she’s stunned to learn that honor has gone to Laura’s two gay best friends, Jack and Jeremy.

What begins as an awkward holiday dinner quickly spirals into a combustible mix of rivalry, jealousy, and miscommunication, exposing both the absurdity and the fragility of modern family life. Against the politically charged backdrop of 2016, the day becomes a portrait of a family struggling to effectively communicate with one another.

 

Meet the Filmmakers

TRISTAN CHANDRA — Writer/Director/Producer
Tristan began his filmmaking journey by accident during his first year of law school. Since then he’s gone on to create character-driven
short films grounded in realism and heightened with dark humor and surreal energy. His films, shot exclusively on film, evoke the raw intimacy of 1970s and 1990s American cinema. After years of directing and producing short films and music videos on shoe-string budgets, he’s
tackling his feature film debut with The Godfathers.

NKOSI ROMA — Director of Photography
An award-winning filmmaker and cinematographer specializing in motion picture film. Roma was part of the Vision Mentorship Program with the American Society of Cinematographers from 2024-2025. His expertise in shooting motion picture film has earned him the spot as one of the most sought-after celluloid cinematographers in the nation. Nkosi has collaborated extensively with writer, director Tristan Chandra, serving as Director of Photography on The Godfathers short film.

Harriet Greenspan & Terry Berland — Casting Directors
Harriet Greenspan, CSA, is an awardwinning casting director, acting coach, show business mentor, and author. Since 1993, she has cast over 265 Episodics, 20 TV movies, and 18 Feature films. Her credits include Drake & Josh and Ned’s Declassified School Survival Guide. Terry Berland, an award-winning casting director and the former head of casting for the world’s third-largest ad agency, BBDO/New York. She eventually moved her business to Los Angeles where she partnered in a commercial division with Liberman/Hirschfeld Casting. At the time, they were casting Seinfeld and many other iconic shows. That business then morphed into Terry Berland Casting.

Make a donation to The Godfathers.

Contact

For inquiries, please contact fiscalsponsorship@filmindependent.org.