Private Project

Tater Tots

Tater Tots is a dry comedy about a lesbian high school student named Gilly who needs to make it through a school day of harassment, the Pacer test, and a lack of tater tots, or she’ll get suspended for truancy.

Throughout the day, Gilly is accompanied by her two best and only friends, Jane and Frances. It’s the three of them against the world of hormonal heterosexual teenagers and teachers that care more about statistics than they do about students.

  • Julia Berkey
    Director
  • Julia Berkey
    Writer
  • Abigail Lang
    Producer
  • Chris Padro
    Key Cast
    "Gilly"
  • Sara Meade
    Key Cast
    "Jane"
  • Alexa Rand
    Key Cast
    "Frances"
  • Alicia Pilgrim
    Key Cast
    "Sarah"
  • Project Type:
    Short, Television
  • Genres:
    Comedy, LGBTQ
  • Runtime:
    13 minutes 35 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    November 20, 2022
  • Production Budget:
    1,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    DCI
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    Yes - SUNY Purchase
Director Biography - Julia Berkey

Julia Berkey is twenty-five years old and recently graduated with her BFA at the Film Conservatory of SUNY Purchase College in New York in May 2020. She was born in West Virginia, raised in Seattle, Washington, and moved to New York to pursue film. She has directed and written sixteen short films, produced six, and crewed over twenty during college. She is currently pitching her original television series, Gilly, submitting her proof-of-concept pilot to festivals, and is in pre-production for a comedy/horror short. She focuses on telling lesbian stories and bending the genres of comedy and horror.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

Tater Tots puts a spin on the “geeks” of high school stereotypes and creates a group of queer teenage girls who are the geeks- not straight boys who are the usual focus.
This isn’t an exact autobiographical film but I was a lesbian nerd who was often truant due to the mental and physical toll that homophobia takes on teenagers all over the world. The three main characters are a mix of different parts of myself and my childhood friends. I hope I do the nerdy gay girls of the future justice.