TELL ME HOW YOU FEEL
Austin, Texas | Film Short
Drama, Romantic Comedy
TELL ME HOW YOU FEEL follows two Muslim millennials, Maya and Amir trying to navigate love and connection. A tender and bittersweet portrait of modern relationships, this short explores what happens when chemistry collides with vulnerability, and how difficult it can be to truly say what we mean.
TELL ME HOW YOU FEEL
Austin, Texas | Film Short
Drama, Romantic Comedy
96 supporters | followers
Enter the amount you would like to pledge
$8,355
Goal: $7,500 for development
TELL ME HOW YOU FEEL follows two Muslim millennials, Maya and Amir trying to navigate love and connection. A tender and bittersweet portrait of modern relationships, this short explores what happens when chemistry collides with vulnerability, and how difficult it can be to truly say what we mean.
Participating In
About The Project
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
NEVER HAVE I EVER
How do you find something real in a culture where people feel disposable?
Where digital intimacy doesn’t always translate into real-world accountability?
TELL ME HOW YOU FEEL is a grounded romantic dramedy about the messiness of modern relationships; where the lines between romance, friendship, and expectation are always shifting. It follows Maya and Amir as they try to figure out what they want from each other, an almost impossible task when we’re all living in an era where ambiguity has us in a chokehold.
CONVERSATIONS WITH FRIENDS
A recurring theme in my work is how people drift in and out of our lives, and how relationships—romantic, platonic, or otherwise—can evolve or dissolve over time. My first short, SO, THAT HAPPENED exemplifies two people reconnecting after a decade. TELL ME HOW YOU FEEL is a little more personal, and showcases two people who are new to each other trying to find connection. My friends and I, across genders and identities, have experienced the following feelings when trying to find romance: fleeting, intense, and often ambivalent.
SO, THAT HAPPENED
My artistic goal is to create a film that feels both deeply personal and universally relatable. I want to portray Muslim characters not through trauma or stereotype, but through their tenderness, humor, and vulnerability; essentially who they are in the everyday. I’m especially interested in expanding who gets to be centered in stories about love and desire. I want to see someone carry a film who doesn’t conform to Eurocentric beauty ideals, a character whose body, presence, and confidence reflect the reality of so many women who rarely see themselves portrayed as worthy of anything on screen. TELL ME HOW YOU FEEL is my way of challenging that narrow lens. I want to see a fat South Asian woman have agency and to occupy emotional and physical space without apology.
Tonally, this short lives between Mindy Kaling and Sally Rooney. It blends sharp, witty dialogue with emotional intimacy and unflinching honesty. There are moments that echo the charm of a rom-com, but also ones that feel raw and deeply personal. Vulnerability is central—whether it’s in the anxiousness of a first meeting, the electricity of touch, or the realization that a connection may not be what it seems.
I'd use the the $7500 to move TELL ME HOW YOU FEEL into late development/early pre-production. The money would allow me to compensate my current producer and bring on an additional producer to begin logistical planning and budgeting. We would also hire key creative collaborators like a composer, and production designer to define the film’s visual and emotional language. These hires will help us establish the film’s tone, and prepare for casting and location scouting in Austin. This support would provide the stability and creative foundation we need to confidently enter production and position the project for additional funding and other opportunities. We have a stretch goal of $10,000 and hope to begin filming either later this year or early next year with the film hitting the film festival circuit in late 2027.
.jpeg)
Some of the SO, THAT HAPPENED team at our West Coast Premiere in LA. (Composer Mark Hadley, Myself, Actress Anu Mysore, and Producer Alifya Ali
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Pre-Production
Costs $6,500
This money will be used for compensating our current team and to bring on other key collaborators.
Admin Costs
Costs $1,000
This money will be used for business purposes like setting up an LLC, and fees for fiscal sponsorship.
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
NEHA AZIZ (she/her) is a Pakistani-born writer, director, film programmer, and podcaster living in Austin, TX. From 2017 - 2020 Neha worked at SXSW as a member of the Communications team. She currently works as the Artistic Director for Austin Asian American Film Festival, and as a Film Programmer for Big Sky Documentary Film Festival and Palm Springs Shorts Fest. Neha is also the Communications Manager for the Asian American Documentary Network (A-Doc) and a Screenplay Programmer for the Atlanta Film Festival. In 2021, she was named an iHeartRadio NextUP fellow for their inaugural podcast program, her show, PARTITION (limited series) debuted in August 2022 and has been featured on Apple Podcasts, NPR, The Austin Chronicle, The 19th News, The Austin American - Statesman, The RepresentASIAN Project, Asian Founded, and more. In 2023, Neha was one of five recipients of the WAVE Grant from Wavelength Productions, a grant and one year mentorship given to first time female/non-binary directors of color. Her short, SO, THAT HAPPENED marked her directorial debut and is currently on the festival circuit. She wrote for the PBS Digital Series ROOTS OF RESISTANCE and IN THE MARGINS. She was named a 2025 Unlock Her Potential Film/TV Mentee and was also a finalist for Sundance’s inaugural Cultural Impact Residency. Neha is in development on a number of projects.
ALIFYA ALI (she/they) is a Pakistani American producer from Houston and now based in Brooklyn. They are an award-winning commercial producer, and their narrative work includes the short WHEN YOU LEFT ME ON THAT BOULEVARD which won the Short Film Grand Jury Prize at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival and AN ONGOING LIST OF THINGS FOUND IN THE LIBRARY BOOKDROP, USUALLY BEING USED AS BOOKMARKS, which premiered at SXSW in 2025 and won the Jury Prize for Short Short at Aspen Shortsfest. They are a 2023 Sundance Institute Producers Intensive Fellow and a 2025 Tasveer Producer lab fellow.
CARLOS ESTRADA (he/him) is a first generation Mexican-American filmmaker based in Austin, Texas, whose work centers on highlighting Latinx-American stories through an intimate and naturalistic lens. Carlos is a graduate of the MFA program in Film & Media Production at The University of Texas at Austin. He is an American Society of Cinematographers’ (ASC) Heritage Award nominee for his work as DP on “El Fantasma”. His work on “Los Mosquitos”, won at the Gotham Awards in 2025. In 2025, his work from “Rooftop Lempicka” screened at EnergaCamerimage, which showcases the best cinematography around the globe. His work as a cinematographer has been featured at SXSW, NPR, Palm Springs ShortsFest, New Orleans Film Festival, and more. Working in both fiction and documentary make him a versatile visual storyteller with a focus on capturing authentic emotions within the story.
Current Team
Incentives
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
NEVER HAVE I EVER
How do you find something real in a culture where people feel disposable?
Where digital intimacy doesn’t always translate into real-world accountability?
TELL ME HOW YOU FEEL is a grounded romantic dramedy about the messiness of modern relationships; where the lines between romance, friendship, and expectation are always shifting. It follows Maya and Amir as they try to figure out what they want from each other, an almost impossible task when we’re all living in an era where ambiguity has us in a chokehold.
CONVERSATIONS WITH FRIENDS
A recurring theme in my work is how people drift in and out of our lives, and how relationships—romantic, platonic, or otherwise—can evolve or dissolve over time. My first short, SO, THAT HAPPENED exemplifies two people reconnecting after a decade. TELL ME HOW YOU FEEL is a little more personal, and showcases two people who are new to each other trying to find connection. My friends and I, across genders and identities, have experienced the following feelings when trying to find romance: fleeting, intense, and often ambivalent.
SO, THAT HAPPENED
My artistic goal is to create a film that feels both deeply personal and universally relatable. I want to portray Muslim characters not through trauma or stereotype, but through their tenderness, humor, and vulnerability; essentially who they are in the everyday. I’m especially interested in expanding who gets to be centered in stories about love and desire. I want to see someone carry a film who doesn’t conform to Eurocentric beauty ideals, a character whose body, presence, and confidence reflect the reality of so many women who rarely see themselves portrayed as worthy of anything on screen. TELL ME HOW YOU FEEL is my way of challenging that narrow lens. I want to see a fat South Asian woman have agency and to occupy emotional and physical space without apology.
Tonally, this short lives between Mindy Kaling and Sally Rooney. It blends sharp, witty dialogue with emotional intimacy and unflinching honesty. There are moments that echo the charm of a rom-com, but also ones that feel raw and deeply personal. Vulnerability is central—whether it’s in the anxiousness of a first meeting, the electricity of touch, or the realization that a connection may not be what it seems.
I'd use the the $7500 to move TELL ME HOW YOU FEEL into late development/early pre-production. The money would allow me to compensate my current producer and bring on an additional producer to begin logistical planning and budgeting. We would also hire key creative collaborators like a composer, and production designer to define the film’s visual and emotional language. These hires will help us establish the film’s tone, and prepare for casting and location scouting in Austin. This support would provide the stability and creative foundation we need to confidently enter production and position the project for additional funding and other opportunities. We have a stretch goal of $10,000 and hope to begin filming either later this year or early next year with the film hitting the film festival circuit in late 2027.
Some of the SO, THAT HAPPENED team at our West Coast Premiere in LA. (Composer Mark Hadley, Myself, Actress Anu Mysore, and Producer Alifya Ali
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Pre-Production
Costs $6,500
This money will be used for compensating our current team and to bring on other key collaborators.
Admin Costs
Costs $1,000
This money will be used for business purposes like setting up an LLC, and fees for fiscal sponsorship.
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
NEHA AZIZ (she/her) is a Pakistani-born writer, director, film programmer, and podcaster living in Austin, TX. From 2017 - 2020 Neha worked at SXSW as a member of the Communications team. She currently works as the Artistic Director for Austin Asian American Film Festival, and as a Film Programmer for Big Sky Documentary Film Festival and Palm Springs Shorts Fest. Neha is also the Communications Manager for the Asian American Documentary Network (A-Doc) and a Screenplay Programmer for the Atlanta Film Festival. In 2021, she was named an iHeartRadio NextUP fellow for their inaugural podcast program, her show, PARTITION (limited series) debuted in August 2022 and has been featured on Apple Podcasts, NPR, The Austin Chronicle, The 19th News, The Austin American - Statesman, The RepresentASIAN Project, Asian Founded, and more. In 2023, Neha was one of five recipients of the WAVE Grant from Wavelength Productions, a grant and one year mentorship given to first time female/non-binary directors of color. Her short, SO, THAT HAPPENED marked her directorial debut and is currently on the festival circuit. She wrote for the PBS Digital Series ROOTS OF RESISTANCE and IN THE MARGINS. She was named a 2025 Unlock Her Potential Film/TV Mentee and was also a finalist for Sundance’s inaugural Cultural Impact Residency. Neha is in development on a number of projects.
ALIFYA ALI (she/they) is a Pakistani American producer from Houston and now based in Brooklyn. They are an award-winning commercial producer, and their narrative work includes the short WHEN YOU LEFT ME ON THAT BOULEVARD which won the Short Film Grand Jury Prize at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival and AN ONGOING LIST OF THINGS FOUND IN THE LIBRARY BOOKDROP, USUALLY BEING USED AS BOOKMARKS, which premiered at SXSW in 2025 and won the Jury Prize for Short Short at Aspen Shortsfest. They are a 2023 Sundance Institute Producers Intensive Fellow and a 2025 Tasveer Producer lab fellow.
CARLOS ESTRADA (he/him) is a first generation Mexican-American filmmaker based in Austin, Texas, whose work centers on highlighting Latinx-American stories through an intimate and naturalistic lens. Carlos is a graduate of the MFA program in Film & Media Production at The University of Texas at Austin. He is an American Society of Cinematographers’ (ASC) Heritage Award nominee for his work as DP on “El Fantasma”. His work on “Los Mosquitos”, won at the Gotham Awards in 2025. In 2025, his work from “Rooftop Lempicka” screened at EnergaCamerimage, which showcases the best cinematography around the globe. His work as a cinematographer has been featured at SXSW, NPR, Palm Springs ShortsFest, New Orleans Film Festival, and more. Working in both fiction and documentary make him a versatile visual storyteller with a focus on capturing authentic emotions within the story.