BAD COMPANY is a dark comedy with bits of absurdism, bringing levity to the very real struggles of losing yourself as you get older. For many of us, the person we thought we would become has faded away, or never even got the chance to exist.

Mia, now in her late twenties, has spent her early adulthood feeling suffocated and depressed from the constant work grind. Pursuing a career in engineering, she has gotten caught in a cycle of over dedicating herself to a job that doesn’t fulfill her, and her daily exhaustion has put an end to her passion for painting. 

Mia has reached a breaking point, where one day she contemplates ending her life. Before she can make her decision, a little girl appears in her apartment. Although she can’t believe it at first, she discovers that this little girl is a younger version of herself. 

Mia is now tasked with finding the balance between honesty and masking the bleak, harsh truth of how their life turned out (spoiler alert, not good). How do you tell a little girl that her dreams never came true, especially when that little girl is yourself? What does it look like to reconnect with your inner child, but that child is disappointed in you?

As the morning unravels, antics ensue one after another, and Mia is forced to fight against her greatest obstacle. Herself.

There is something about the phrase, "I used to."

Sometimes it casually rolls off the tongue without any feeling. Other times it hurts a little bit to say. To admit that something that brought you joy, that lit a fire under you, is now something you "haven't done in ages." Life gets in the way, and at times we don't have the energy to push back.

People everywhere are making sacrifices in the name of stability. How many painters, musicians, writers, or actors are spending most of their days behind a desk? Perhaps you're in that situation right now.

For as long as I can remember, I wanted to be an entertainer. It’s really one of the first things I knew about myself. Being creative always felt like second nature to me, I was constantly making things (even if they weren't good). And not to be an actor and bring out the dramatics, but I truly felt like I needed to have a creative outlet or I would die. (Or want to, at least. I know, dramatic).

Acting on the big screen always felt like a pipe dream. Coming from an asian family, fully pursuing a creative career was a bit out of the question.

Nope. If Hollywood wasn't in the cards for me, I decided to take matters into my own hands. From a young age, I started to post videos online, starting on Vine and then migrating to TikTok and YouTube in order to fulfill myself creatively.

Despite what I felt I was meant to do, I ended up going to nursing school and pursuing a career in the medical field. However, during that time, I knew that I needed to tend to my creative passions and not let those things become obsolete.

So as a full time nurse, I made time to write and continue growing my online presence. For over 12 years, I have written, acted in, and edited my own comedic content for an audience of over 3.5 million across platforms. I used my days off to audition and act in short films, gaining experience in the film industry and getting better at my craft. Juggling a "traditional" job and a creative passion was at times tough, but what I needed to feel fulfilled.

Now, after many years, I’m at a point where my work has paid off. I am now a full time YouTuber / actor, and I use my channel as a place to entertain and champion indie filmmaking by showcasing independent short films.

BAD COMPANY is my love letter to this journey, a comedic but sincere depiction of this struggle that many of us go through. I thought about what my life might look like if I never took that initiative, and how eventually, that initiative would have had to come sooner or later. 

With this story, I hope to instill hope and comfort to people who are feeling stuck and like they have lost touch with themselves. Your passions don't have to be your entire life, but at least a part of your life.

The Tone

Although this is a comedy, the stakes are very real for the characters through the absurdity of the situation. Some references of other pieces of art that have moments of levity / comedy through conflict or heavy emotions:

Where are Your Contributions Going?

There are so many moving parts to making a movie, and each of those parts can be pretty expensive. We are looking to raise a little over $20,000 to make this film a reality. Your generosity will be going towards:

• Securing our single location.
• Paying our hardworking cast & crew.
• Lighting equipment.
• Camera / camera related gear.
• Feeding our cast and crew.
• Postproduction (score, color grading).
• Festival submissions.

During this time, we are in the preproduction phase. With your help, we will be able to assure that we have the resources we need to make sure this project not only gets made, but gets made well.

OUR TIMELINE

In January, I made it my new years resolution to write a screenplay. I wrote this script in February, and we have been in preproduction since then. Later this summer, our cast and crew will be on set, working hard to bring this story to life. But of course, the story can't be properly born without an intensive postproduction process that will put all the pieces together.

After we have our finished product, we will submit to festivals and aim to have the film publicized on YouTube in 2027. One of the most exciting parts about this project is that our community on YouTube has expressed much love and support for prior films on the channel. I'm so happy to showcase a project where I am not only acting, but writing and directing!

Other ways to help!

If you aren't able to pledge, you can follow this campaign and help spread the word! Tell your friends, family, strangers, anyone who is interested in supporting indie film. You can keep up with the project by following my instagram or subscribing to my YouTube channel, and showcase your support by expressing your excitement :) Trust me, I'm just as excited!!

This project has been a long time coming. I've always known what I wanted to do from a young age, I just was never sure that I would have the resources to do it. For those who have followed me throughout the years, I truly would not be anywhere near where I am today without your support. Because of the love from my community, I have been able to build the confidence to do something like this, something that my younger self would have dreamed of.

I have just as much appreciation for those of you who don't know me, and I hope after reading about this project you'll want to stick around and see what the future has in store!

I can't thank you enough. Here's to passion projects, chasing your dreams, and reconnecting with your inner child. Let's make it happen!