Throuple
Hungover from a bad breakup, a not-so-great stripper makes a house call to a progressive married couple, whom eventually challenge the way she sees love, life and her own sexuality.
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Chrissie De GuzmanDirector
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Chrissie De GuzmanWriter
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Xin LiProducer
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Ryan ConnellyKey Cast
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Project Type:Short, Student
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Genres:Drama, Comedy
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Runtime:19 minutes 15 seconds
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Completion Date:January 1, 2019
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Country of Origin:United States, United States
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Film Color:Color
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First-time Filmmaker:Yes
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Student Project:Yes - University of Southern California
Chrissie De Guzman is a television and feature film writer and director. She is a storyteller defined by her curiosity of the Filipina-American & Queer experience, pushing mainstream boundaries in hopes to create a platform of non-traditional content. Her short film Throuple has been the official selection at the Palm Springs International Shortfest, Outfest, American Cinematheque Local Shorts, NewFest New York and Short of the Week. She is also the 2019-2020 fellow of the Paramount ViewFinder Emerging Directors Program and one of the 2020 CAPE New Writers fellows as well as a 2020 CAPE List x The Black List finalist. Most recently, Chrissie was a shadow director on Showtime's Flatbush Misdemeanors under John Lee (Broad City, Search Party) and Comedy Central’s hit show Awkwafina is Nora From Queens where she shadowed Laura Murphy (Murderville, Cursed Friends, Girl Code). She is an alumni of USC’s Production in Film & TV MFA program.
Deadline: https://deadline.com/2020/02/coalition-of-asian-pacifics-in-entertainment-cape-new-writ ers-fellowship-representation-inclusion-diversity-1202862565/
Short of the Week: https://www.shortoftheweek.com/2020/08/24/throuple/
In real time, I am sitting in a coffee shop in the middle of Silverlake. Tomorrow, my first paid directing job starts - an episodic series for a vertical platform storytelling app - and although I've had to put aside some of my fundamental film/tv training and auteur sensibilities for soap opera romance, I am thrilled to be directing. And to not be working for free.
However, I have not lived in LA since the beginning of the pandemic, I left with the exodus. Along with leaving this city, I also left behind my dream of being a working writer and director. It wasn't until my community of artist friends revived that spirit again and I found my way to some (hopeful) stable work until I get to make my first directorial debut.
But the path back in is not always easy. Coming back to the reason why I'm in this Silverlake coffee shop is due to the fact that the friend I was staying with during my duration of my shoot, had a little bit of a COVID scare this morning. And in the moment of mentally preparing my mind, body and soul into a chaotic 7 day shoot with 10 pages a day, after having unpacked my life for 2 weeks, it wasn't worth the chance of not being able to do my job. So I packed up my car in 15 minutes not really knowing where I will stay, call time tomorrow: 4AM.
So, I sit here, back in a coffeeshop that I used to write my screenplays, get lost in day dreams and open acceptance and rejection letters, to today: transferring money from my savings account so I can get a decent hotel for the next week so that I stay healthy - mind, body and soul to be the best director I can be for this job - even if it's for a small platform of a few thousand people.
I sit among people like me, on a similar path, sitting by themselves at a 2-top table working, writing, dreaming....reminding me that this is where I need to be. While I am happy to be finding work in the vertical storytelling space, I do not want to live there forever. A reminder on my calendar pooped up for this opportunity - a chance to be able to pitch my proof-of-concept for a feature film, so in the midst of my chaos, I am standing in the storm filling out this application, hoping it lands in the right hands.