Experiencing Interruptions?

Sunset Rock

Jasey Rae - a Midwest native and NIU Communications student with a passion for online fandom - travels to Los Angeles to research famous YouTube personality known only as Lincoln for her thesis project on social media. The relationship between fan and creator soon becomes a complicated entanglement as the pair begin developing both a new web series and a romantic bond that causes each to examine the way they project themselves online and imagine one another.

All is not as it seems, and as the two spend more and more time together, documenting the cities famous landmarks for their YouTube channel, Jasey and Lincoln begin to unravel secrets about who the other truly is.

Set in Los Angele’s emerging YouTube Community, Sunset Rock is a romantic coming-of-age story, dealing issues of celebrity worship, first love, and disillusionment -- reminiscent of films like Once, Frances Ha, and Like Crazy. It stars Andrew Nowak of Lincoln, Nebraska and Megan Baim of Crested Butte, Colorado, and is written/directed by Marc Wilkinson of Ottawa, Illinois.

  • Marc Wilkinson
    Director
    The October Crisis, After Party, Sardines
  • Marc Wilkinson
    Writer
    The October Crisis, After Party, Sardines
  • Megan Baim
    Key Cast
    Trail Mix, GBF, Sardines
  • Andrew Nowak
    Key Cast
    Underemployed, Broken Hearts
  • Jeff Harlow
    Key Cast
    Red on White, UnSETTLED
  • Amy Bury
    Key Cast
    The Newsroom, Epic Rap Battles of History
  • Project Type:
    Feature
  • Genres:
    Drama, Romance, Young Adult, Coming of Age, Comedy, Indie
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 35 minutes 43 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    January 31, 2016
  • Production Budget:
    50,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital SLR
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2.35:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Phoenix Film Festival 2016
    Melbourne
    Australia
    April 8, 2016
    Australian Premier
  • Sinema Obscura 2017
    Chicago
    United States
    May 1, 2017
    North American Theatrical Premier
  • Cinema Soup 2017
    Mattoon, IL
    United States
    September 8, 2017
    WINNER - Best Film
Director Biography - Marc Wilkinson

Marc Wilkinson is a filmmaker from the cornfields of Illinois. When not writing and directing, he enjoys making music, finger painting, and exploring wooded glens. Though he has directed dozens of short films and music videos, Sunset Rock will be his feature debut. He drinks an amount of black coffee that has been described as "stupid" and is known to get emotional when thinking about outer space.

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Director Statement

Sunset Rock was made as a response to the evolving culture of content creators and fans in the age of YouTube. Though the ideas of celebrity worship and idolization have existed for millennia, new technology has changed they way we relate to entertainment makers, and even more so has shaped the way we present ourselves too and perceive one another. My hope is that our film explores the complexities that lie beneath these projections of one another, uncovered bit by bit as our heroes similarly discover the true nature of Los Angeles beyond it’s glitz-and-glamour reputation.

Sunset Rock was shot as a truly independent and DIY adventure, filming once a week with a minimal cast & crew over the course of seven months, capturing the performers in live environments that blend a documentary aesthetic with the stylized photo-ready look of a Southern California summer.