We can accept union and non-union actors through our student agreement with ACTRA. This is a non-paying student film and no permit is required. Actors will receive a copy of the finished film for their demo reel. Meals and Beverages provided on shoot days.

Actors auditioning for this role must be comfortable being interviewed about their real life experiences, thoughts and feelings on white, straight men. These interviews will be integral to the story. Preliminary interview questions will be asked at auditions, however only scripted lines are required for initial self tape. Actors auditioning for the roles of Teddy, Mitch and Sasha must be comfortable engaging in a long hug (however no further intimacy will be required).

If you would like more information on the project, follow our Instagram @illtrytoexplainit !

I'll try to explain it is a fictional short film about Teddy, a mixed-race lesbian filmmaker in her mid-twenties, who is being haunted by a recurring dream of her estranged white high school ex-boyfriend, Mitch. In the dream, the two share an intimate hug, one which makes her feel oddly safe, more safe than she’s ever felt in real life. In a search for answers, Teddy decides to make a documentary reconnecting with Mitch and filming a reenactment of the dream with a group of her friends. The film follows the two during their day of shooting, intercut with interviews from the crew, who talk about their own relationships to white men. Teddy and Mitch will slowly realize that dreams and reality don't always align, and that their relationship is a lot more complicated than either of them initially thought. While the film is fictional, it will mix real life interviews done with our actors with the narrative storyline, further examining the queer and BIPOC relationship to white, straight men.