Private Project

Even Santa Barbara Gets The Blues (Short)

When a lonely singer-songwriter meets a quirky foot doctor, she must decide if she will wallow in her comfort zone or step into her destiny. Meanwhile, her best friend Jane struggles with her own dark secret.

  • Kimberl Wong
    Director
  • Kimberli Wong
    Writer
    Silver Fox
  • Kimberli Wong
    Producer
    33 Minutes To LIve`
  • Lisset Sanchez Valdes
    Producer
    Stunning
  • Kimberli Wong
    Key Cast
    "Alex"
    Pine Valley Medical
  • Diane Fredrickons
    Key Cast
    "Jane"
    3 Wonderful Seconds
  • Kenneth Luper
    Key Cast
    "George"
    Eagles in the Chikcen Coop
  • Reza Roustai
    Key Cast
    "Pierre"
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Runtime:
    39 minutes 59 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    December 15, 2019
  • Production Budget:
    5,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2.35:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Kimberl Wong

Kimberli Wong

Ever since she was a child, Kimberli has been drawn to the creative arts. Born to Filipino/Chinese-Indonesian parents, she spent her formative years writing, dancing, and eventually acting. After graduating from Princeton University with a degree in Cultural Anthropology, she spent two years training with a theatre group, which circuitously led to a job as a production assistant and producer’s assistant on the indie horror film, “The Invited” starring Lou Diamond Phillips. This led to a series of production jobs and it was there that she really learned the in’s and out’s of filmmaking.

Since then she has returned to acting and writing, while also working as an independent producer for various projects. She most recently produced the first season of the webseries “Sophie,” about a recent divorcee who returns to Los Angeles to pursue her dream of acting. She was also a producer on the webseries pilot, “33 Minutes to Live,” about a nuclear missile crisis, and an associate producer on the short film “3 Wonderful Seconds.” Kimberli has several short and feature films in development—Even Santa Barbara Gets The Blues is her first film as an actor, writer, and director.

When she is not working on film, Kimberli likes to spend her time dancing, playing guitar, and rideshare driving, which she finds rather relaxing.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

I moved to Santa Barbara almost 6 years ago from my hometown of Sacramento during a rather difficult time in my life. Having lived in Los Angeles before that, I thought once I found my ground, I would leave Santa Barbara and move straight back to L.A.—it seemed to make the most sense, since I worked in the film industry and that was the place to be.

My second year here, though, I discovered the Santa Barbara International Film Festival. A fellow filmmaker gave me her guest pass and we spent the week listening to Oprah talk, getting up at 8 in the morning to watch films, and at the Lobrero in the evening meeting an array of people. Soon after that, I returned to acting class with Peter Frisch, which further broadened my knowledge of the small, but incredibly strong film community here in SB.

A chance hearing of local music star Jackson Gillies’ song, “Santa Barbara Blues,” combined with my own experience here led to the writing of Even Santa Barbara Gets The Blues. Santa Barbara has a reputation for being paradise on earth, but we all know that the everyday, often existential problems we face are a universal experience wherever we are, wherever we go.

This film became a meditation on what it means to have purpose, what it means to have meaning, and the choices we make to see the best in what we have or to wallow in what we perceive to have not. In the end it is also a love story, but the love story serves as a catalyst for the main character, whose journey is really about opening up to the possibilities around her.

I also wanted to really capture some of the local essence here using iconic Santa Barbara locations, from the volleyball courts of East Beach to the hills of the Riviera. And to pay homage to a town that has given so much to me. Even our crew and cast, and the business sponsors were all local, and I wanted to incorporate as much of local filmmaking as I possibly could.