Mabel follows Mateo, a nostalgic young adult who, after a quiet breakup, has to confront the girl he loved without losing the girl he couldn’t.

Mabel is a fast-paced romance about attachment and unrequited love. By jumping strategically between Mateo's bittersweet young adulthood and energetic childhood, Mabel unravels the deep, consuming attachments that develop in Mateo’s young friendships and future relationships.

Tone and Visuals

Mabel is very upbeat and fast-paced but carefully chooses when to be tender and thoughtful, giving character drama space to breathe. Like young love, we’d like Mabel to hit you hard and fast and leave you wondering why you’re tearing up.

Tone comps:

Visually, Mabel juxtaposes static symmetrical composition for scenes of our characters in their adulthood against dynamic and intimate composition for scenes of our characters in their childhood, maintaining a consistent, gentle pastel color palette to tie the two worlds together.

Visual comps:

Director's Statement

The inspiration for Mabel came from my childhood friend group. Like many childhood friend groups clawing their way into adulthood, we'd gone our separate ways. We reunited around a fire, noticing it'd been the longest we've ever gone without seeing each other. Talking with these long-lost connections of mine, I realized two things. First, despite the new and exciting socialization I'd experienced in the"real world", there was always something different (not necessarily better, not necessarily worse, but different) about sitting down with the people who knew you before you were fully a person. Second, we were all so confused.

We're all taking our first strides toward love, and through our successes and (more frequently) our failures, we slowly begin to learn the complicated role romance and affection play in our lives.

I’m watching the people my age come to understand (more than any generation before) the many ways love can show up in our relationships. In reflection of that, I want to tell a story that acknowledges how, when we’re young and don’t know who we are or what we want, the lines between friendship, romance, and sexuality are blurrier than we like to admit. And how do we handle it when the way we love clashes with the way we’re loved… When love is unrequited.

The Team

Young, adaptable, and energetic, the Mabel team has worked on multiple projects together and is excited to bring this one to you

Timeline

March-June 2026: Pre-Production

July 2026: Principal Photography

August-November 2026: Post-Production

Winter 2027: Early private screening.

Spring 2027: Kick off our festival run!!

Winter/Spring 2028: Distribution and online premiere

Fundraising Goals

Why do we need to raise $3000 to make this short film?

Mabel relies heavily on bringing our characters’ childhoods to life in a way that feels authentic and grounded. To achieve this, we need to work with talented child actors who can carry these formative moments with honesty and depth.

Working with child actors also comes with specific responsibilities and costs. This includes fair compensation, on-set guardians, permits, limited working hours, and a safe, supportive environment that meets industry standards.

In addition to these costs, Mabel is a film driven by vibrant color and dialed-in production design. The visual world of the film plays a crucial role in reflecting the characters’ emotions and memories.

In order to achieve this level of immersion and detail, we need the resources to secure and transform locations.

How you can help

But we can’t do any of it... without you. If you’re up to it, join Mabel and contribute whatever feels right. We’re scrappy and can make a little go a long way, so even just $15 dollars will help us make Mabel at the highest level it can be.

And if you can’t contribute, sharing this with friends and family also helps us realize Mabel. Word of mouth is everything for a project like this.

Mabel is a story that I’ve needed to tell for a long time, and with your help, we can make it happen.

I hope you’ll be a part of it! Thank you!