Yellow Polka Dot
Sandra and Barbara are enjoying a day at the beach with their partners in 1962. The night before they all went out to a night club. The men bonded, as well as the women, albeit in very different fashions.
https://vimeo.com/657911904
Password: YellowPolkaDot21
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Tin NguyenDirectorA Little Cheese
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Ben KurstinWriterChrysalis
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Ben KurstinProducer
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Tin NguyenProducer
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Amy StrickerKey Cast"Barbara"
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Tori Lane RossKey Cast"Sandra"Hell Hole
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Project Type:Short
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Genres:Romance, Drama, LGBTQIA+
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Runtime:17 minutes 40 seconds
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Completion Date:December 20, 2021
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Production Budget:8,000 USD
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Country of Origin:United States
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Country of Filming:United States
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Language:English
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Shooting Format:Digital Arri Alexa Mini
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Aspect Ratio:16:9, 2:35
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Film Color:Color
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First-time Filmmaker:No
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Student Project:No
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Neptune Movie AwardsBologna
Italy
Italy Premiere
Official Selection -
Boden International Film FestivalBoden
Sweden
Sweden Premiere
Winner: Best LGBT Film -
Thessaloniki International G.L.A.D. Film FestivalThessaloniki
Greece
Greece Premiere
Official Selection -
Midwest Film FestivalChicago, IL
United States
Nomination: Best Production Design -
RollCall Indie ShowcaseAtlanta, GA
United States
Official Selection -
Bech Test Film Festival
United Kingdom
Winner: Best Cinematography -
Long Beach QFilm FestivalLong Beach, CA
United States
Official Selection -
Dreamanila International Film FestivalManila
Philippines
Official Selection -
Out & Loud Pune International Queer Film FestivalPune
India
India Premiere
Official Selection -
KASHISH Mumbai International Queer Film FestivalMumbai
India
Official Selection -
Red Cedar Film FestivalMenomanie, WI
United States
Official Selection -
Make Art Not FearPorto
Portugal
Winner: Best Fearless Cinematography and Best Poetry Short -
Alta Marea FestivalTermoli
Italy
Semi-Finalist -
Small Axe Radical Short Film FestivalTolpuddle
United Kingdom
Semi-Finalist -
Lulea International Film FestivalLulea
Sweden
Winner: Best LGBT Film -
Chicago Southland International Film FestivalUniversity Park, IL
United States
Nominee: Best Short Film Audience Award -
Love & Hope International Film FestivalBarcelona
Spain
Nominee: Best LGBT Short Film -
Stamped Film FestivalPensacola, FL
United States
Official Selection -
AKS International Minorities Festival - FILM ART DIALOGUE
Pakistan
Pakistan Premiere
Official Selection -
LGBT+ Film Festival Poland
Poland
Official Selection -
Festival AngaelicaPasadena, CA
United States
Official Selection -
Love Actually International Storyteller ShowcaseNew York City, NY
United States
Official Selection -
Fort Meyers Film FestivalFory Meyers, FL
United States
Official Selection -
Stockholm City Film FestivalStockholm
Sweden
Winner: Best LGBT Film -
San Antonio QFest - LGBT International Film FestivalSan Antonio, TX
United States
Official Selection -
Chicago OnscreenChicago, IL
United States
5 Screenings Across Chicago Park Over 5 Nights -
FilmPride - Brighton & Hove Pride LGBTQIA+ Film FestivalBrighton
United Kingdom
Official Selection -
BICONIC Film Festival - Centering on the Bi+ UmbrellaSan Francisco, CA
United States
Official Selection
Born in Chicago, IL and raised in Austin, TX, Tin studied directing at Columbia College Chicago’s Master’s in Fine Arts program in which he completed in 2015. His focus and drive to produce, bring together and work with collaborative artists has allowed him to bring varied stories to life while fostering a community that can express themselves through their respective craft. No matter the genre, he hopes to evoke as much feeling as he can through the use of images and sound through film. Since the beginning of his career he has worked on various types of work in the motion picture medium, now focusing on Producing, Photographing and Directing Narrative Films through his co-founded production company, “54 Script Productions"
I directed “Yellow Polka Dot,” about a year after the initial lockdown of 2020. due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Which meant I spent the better part of 2021 self-producing this special project with my friend Ben Kurstin. who also serves as the Co-Producer, Writer and DP of this film, while we were still in the midst of the Pandemic. Ben wrote 54 short scripts in the Spring/Summer of 2020, during the lockdown, and with us being mostly out of work, we were compelled to create something that was our own in 2021.
I will admit that I came upon to direct this project mainly due to Ben’s suggestion. He knew that he wanted to Lens this film, but for a while, I wasn’t sure who would direct. Ben asked if I wanted to do it, and I was initially afraid to direct something that I hadn't written; however, upon some more readings of the script, I really saw myself in the characters of Sandra and Barbara, the two protagonists of the film and their main conflict.
They’re two women who are unsure of the feelings they’re having about themselves, because they’re living in a time where society told them that they should be boxed into a specific archetype. As a first generation Asian-American, who was raised by immigrant parents, in Texas of all places, I felt that the theme of this story was a lot more universal in it’s subtext. During my prep, I was able to pull from my own experiences and feelings in order to communicate with the actors what I felt the characters themselves were feeling in context to their story, and the whole process was truly rewarding.
Much like our characters in this film, we had some unknown obstacles, as we chose to self-finance, pay all of our crew for their hard work, and were adamant about crafting the film to look and feel as professional as possible. Not to mention having to adapt to a post covid-19 world. An example being we completely casted one of our leads through the internet from out of town, and did a lot of pre-production work with rehearsals and meetings through video chat with our cast and crew. Once we had finished this short film, it really gave me the confidence to continue growing as a filmmaker and would serve as the catalyst for Ben and I creating a small Production Company, “54 Scripts Productions,” where we could tell more stories and collaborate with more people.
In fact, we've already shot our second short film together , "The Sleight," which is currently in Post-Production. I am truly proud to showcase this short film as it means so much to me in so many different ways, not only as a filmmaker but as a human being.