Experiencing Interruptions?

Home Gym

A woman’s lukewarm reaction to her boyfriend’s birthday gift sparks a confrontation that lays bare the deeper issues in their relationship.

  • Ben Stone
    Director
  • David Martin
    Director
  • Robert Hadlock
    Writer
  • Gabby Gammon
    Producer
  • Eilise Patton
    Key Cast
    "Emma"
    Almost Friday TV, Bounce House, Moon Blood, The Selectman
  • Robert Hadlock
    Key Cast
    "Sam"
    Moonrise Kingdom, Hangdog, Ragamuffin, The Selectman,
  • Alex Fauver
    Director of Photography
    Tom vs. Time, Portland is the New Portland, Bait
  • Ben Stone
    Editor
    Tom vs. Time, All In: The Boston Celtics, The Selectman
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Comedy
  • Runtime:
    13 minutes 15 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    December 7, 2024
  • Production Budget:
    7,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States, United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States, United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital, Arri Alexa Mini LF
  • Aspect Ratio:
    4x3
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Ben Stone, David Martin

Ben Stone is a co-founder of Vacationland and an award winning director and editor based out of Salt Lake City, Utah. He has worked at Shadow Lion, a production house based out of Boston, MA for the last five years, working closely with major clients like Tom Brady, Visa, Amazon, the NFL and more. Most recently, Ben was tasked with following the 2023-2024 Boston Celtics on their quest to an 18th championship in the real time documentary, “All In” (Shooter & Editor). Involved with Vacationland from its original incorporation, Home Gym marks Ben’s fourth major project for the group and first directorial debut, with previous work including The Selectman (2023), Catch of the Day (2021), and Tales of the Penobscot Bay (2019).

David A. Martin co-founded Vacationland in 2019, helping to shape it into a versatile production company where he’s co-written, directed, produced, and edited a wide range of projects. Beyond his own creative endeavors, David has contributed his expertise to programming at renowned festivals like Bentonville and Sundance, deepening his connection to the indie film community. David’s industry experience includes serving as the assistant to the CEO of Theriaca LLC., where he played a pivotal role in managing key relationships with private equity groups, management firms, agencies, and creative partners. Today, he lives life on the road while managing Production & Operations for Shadow Lion, a Boston-based creative agency and studio.

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Director Statement

Our team approached Home Gym with a specific desire: to craft a comedy that probes the nuances of a late-20s romantic relationship, revealing both its humor and its raw discomfort. Up until now, we’ve often gravitated toward themes centered on adolescence and the allure of returning to the magic of youth—a desire to sidestep adulthood. But as we age, our interest has shifted toward exploring how that reluctance to grow up impacts those around us.

Sam and Emma, the couple in Home Gym, are a reflection of this shift. Sam embodies the resistance to change—the discomfort that comes from seeing himself in the eyes of a partner who expects him to grow. His unease isn’t just a humorous character quirk but a mirror to that lingering sense of arrested development we often carry, whether we admit it or not.

Another layer we wanted to explore was the emotional inertia that often keeps couples together for longer than they should be. Relationships, especially as they age, can take on a shape that is less about passion and more about familiarity—a state that’s not quite fulfilling, yet not unhappy enough to end. There’s something poignant, if a bit bleak, about choosing the ease of “staying put” over the unknowns of moving on.

This film pushed us into a new creative territory. Home Gym is our most dialogue-heavy project to date, designed to be a sandbox where the actors could dive into big, unfiltered performances. We wanted to let the comedy—and the cringe—come alive in real-time, making each interaction both hilarious and heartbreakingly honest. This project has been an exciting experiment in creating a space where actors could lead the story, capturing the raw and messy heart of modern love.