A few years ago, my friend’s dad came to visit and took us to a comedy show. While we were waiting in the lobby, I locked eyes with—let’s call him Frank—a guy I’d hooked up with about a month earlier.

Did I expect to see him again? Absolutely not. But fate had other plans.

The usher seated him right next to our table, and the comedians spent the night riffing on dating horror stories. I could feel Frank’s eyes burning into the side of my face.

As we shuffled out of the theater after the show, Frank shoulder-checked me as he and his friends passed by. Normally, I would’ve said something, but to avoid awkward questions from my friend’s dad, I let it go.

Days of simmering anger followed. Eventually, that anger turned into curiosity. Did he see the situation differently than I did?

That question became the seed for this short film: two strangers, bound by a one-night stand, forced back together to confront a real-life stressor. Unlike Frank and me, Jason and Lia don’t get to avoid each other.

Exploring hookup culture and modern stressors through this story was so compelling that I didn’t want it to end with the script.

Enter our charismatic host, Janae Price, tackling the modern dating divide alongside experts and everyday people alike. Maybe I’ll finally understand why Frank shoulder-checked me. Or maybe we’ll crack the code on dating altogether.

But let’s be honest: as an indie filmmaker, this is also part of my not-so-subtle plan to get the project funded.