Short Summary
“June" is a short film about a closeted 17 year old named June who is brought up in a very religious, Catholic Vietnamese family. June's parents are very strict and take her to church every Sunday to make sure that she is well versed in the "word of the lord." “June” Takes place over four Sundays in the year 2006 and shows the repetitive nature of June's life as she tries to come to terms with her sexuality. She finds comfort in her best friend Eva, who she can freely talk to and be open with. June, believing that she is never going to come out to her parents, changes her mind after hearing the Pastor's sermon about acceptance in church. She tries to convince her parents to accept her sexuality but instead fights with her dad . The short story reflects the harsh realities of many young people that are caught between the battle of sexuality and religion.
Meet The Crew
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Patrick Nguyen as writer director
I’m very passionate and interested in telling stories. I realised at a young age that music and film making were the best ways for me to connect with an audience. I am interested in writing, directing and cinematography. As far as experience I have directed and shot a few short films. I love collaborating with people to tell important stories.
Amelia Turnbull as producer
I have always been very passionate about film, and have since been producer on most of the projects I have been involved in. Such as, Rock, paper nuggets!, Leshi, Home Sweet Home and Tale of the flame. I also have A passion for learning and am therefore looking forward to being involved in this production.
Claire Sanderson as Production Designer
Claire Sanderson is an aspiring editor who has edited for the student short film ‘The Invisibility Cloak’. She has also co-written written, acted as an extra in and been a boom operator in the LGBT short film ‘Marcus’, which has appeared in various film festivals.
Col Barlow as D.O.P
My name is Col Barlow. I am an aspiring filmmaker, interested in all facets of the industry, primarily writing and sound. I have participated in a small number of student films, acting as director, and then recording sound for another. I thoroughly enjoy being on set and cooperating creatively with my fellow crew.
Joshua Wong as Editor
I am a 19 year-old filmmaker aspiring to be a part of the influential projects in the film and television industry. I am attracted to projects that radiate the same energy as productions with multiple storylines, complexity and clever writing. When directing I am very focused on the emotions of the audience and how they feel moving between scenes. Whilst editing I am extremely concentrated on the rhythm of shots and flow of information delivered to the viewers. I most enjoy the people I collaborate with and the relationships built within that.
Tiana Mcgoon as first AD
An aspiring film maker, I first thought I wanted to edit but then I realised I was shit at it, then I decided to write a short film named ‘captured’ and people seemed to really like it, I ended up directing it and now am in love with it and creating in general. I love seeing my vision come to life and love when people appreciate my creation. Making someone’s vision in their mind come to life is my favourite part about filming .
The Impact
The central focus of this short film is sexuality. Homosexuality is looked down upon and even considered taboo in Asian communities. This film aims to display this though the portrayal of June Le, a 17-year-old Vietnamese girl who is gay. This film is made for the Asian and LGBTQ community and I believe it has its place because we don’t see many movies that explore “sexuality” in the Asian community. Alongside this, the film aims to display the on-going conflict between sexuality and religion. This story is very important to the Director as there are people that are close to him that are Homosexual. In a way, June represents them and June’s parents represent a closed-minded/ conservative society.
Risks & Challenges
As this is such a serious issue the challenge is to capture its raw reality. The pain, the shock, the good and the worse. We plan on bringing this film to life with the simple elegance and harsh reality, showing the world how we can be different.
This is a sensitive issue but is getting more and more important everyday. We hope to do the movement justice.
