Honeycomb
After a string of losses, an over-the-hill indie rocker must give everything to keep his dreams of stardom alive.
Interview with Writer/Director Sam Roden
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
Being the son of two successful string musicians, I have an intimate understanding of the many challenges musicians face and know that, despite talent and hard work factoring into their success, building a sustainable career in the music industry also requires a lot of luck.
With so many pursuing creative careers, it felt important to tell a story about the daily struggles of aspiring artists who might not succeed — the self-doubt, the burnout, the need for validation and all the messy elements of real life that are rarely shown in the ever-present paid partnerships we are bombarded with daily.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
Hopefully, it's entertaining. The cast is extremely talented and funny which can't hurt. I think what consistently made me want to keep working on the story was the idea of a character leaning into the alignment of self-worth and professional success, to the point where fighting for success becomes as important as fighting for one’s life. The idea is totally absurd, but also, somehow the satire of it felt less far from reality than you might expect!
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
For all the benefits of technology, I do feel like people are increasingly isolated from one another and more and more of our lives are shared as curated profiles. I think this is especially true for musicians and more value than ever before is being placed on followers, likes, and social media engagement. My big takeaway is nothing new -- that significance or notoriety or fame doesn't really matter (it might have perks but there is nothing deep that comes from it), and that everyone has innate worth. But success is enticing. Receiving validation from the masses is powerful. Trying to figure out how best to navigate the modern world without losing sight of one's basic human worth is an interesting question for me.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
The script certainly evolved, but I'd say the main thing was we really wanted the performances to feel alive and immediate, and we were lucky to have an extremely talented cast with comedy and improv backgrounds -- so there were a lot of discussions as we worked through scenes. The heart of the scenes rarely changed, but we would make adjustments or cuts or additions or allow for ad-libs. The actors were very involved in how the final dialogue reads and the rhythm of the interactions.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
This was an independently produced pilot and our hope is to find partners to help us make the full season.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
A production company or distributor who would like to help us produce the full season of Honeycomb.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
I'd love for people to be able to laugh/commiserate at the absurdity of entrusting people on the internet with one's feeling of self-worth.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
What does a healthy life of an artist look like in the modern world?
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
I'm in the early stages of writing 2x features and short films but there isn't too much to say at this point! Of course, I've also spent a good deal of time this past year developing the larger story of Honeycomb where it is to be picked up.
Interview: January 2023
We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela
Honeycomb
After a string of losses, an over-the-hill indie rocker must give everything to keep his dreams of stardom alive.
Length: 32:00
Director: Sam Roden
Producer: Elisha Yaffe
Writer: Joseph L. Roberts and Sam Roden
About the writer, director and producer:
SAM RODEN, the son of two classical string musicians, graduated Summa Cum Laude from Emerson College with a BA in Film Production. Based in Los Angeles, Roden has directed commercial projects around the world for clients including Condé Nast Traveler, West Elm, GQ, PlayStation & Wieden+Kennedy. His short documentary King of the Rails premiered at the 2017 Big Sky Documentary Festival and follows the story of a modern hobo battling cancer. Roden’s narrative short film The Dishwasher, awarded a Special Jury Mention at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival, is colored by Roden’s first-hand experiences working as a cook at a Michelin restaurant in the Bay Area. The official selection of over forty film festivals worldwide, the short was optioned by HBO Max where it made its television debut in August 2020. In 2021 the writer/director completed Atrophy, a narrative short that uses genre elements to express the horrors of a woman’s fight to recover from a stroke and her husband’s struggle to become her caregiver. Atrophy premiered at Fantasia and can be streamed on Short of the Week.
After earning a degree in theatre from Emerson College in Boston, JOSEPH L. ROBERTS moved to Los Angeles and created The Brimmer Street Theatre Company. Working in an ensemble, he helped to create over 10 original productions and bring them to the stage. He’s also been the drummer in the southern rock cover band Smokewagon for over 15 years, playing local venues and weddings.
ELISHA YAFFE first broke through as a stand-up comedian in Boston, where he was called “a rising star” by the Boston Harold. A YouTube Comedy nomination and a little buzz brought him to Los Angeles. There, he began an internship at Warner Brothers Television where he was lucky enough to be selected to develop, create and star in a series Executive Produced by Nick Hall (White Lotus). This indispensable opportunity helped get his foot in the door as an actor (Better Call Saul, Mad Men, Southland, Hollywood! on Netflix, a commercial where he got half-naked in front of Michael Jordan) and helped him realize that his foundational passion, what kept him sane over LA’s cold winter nights, was collaboration— aka developing, experimenting, and creating with good people. He’s gone on to sell a few scripts, snag a few Vimeo staff picks and, this past year, he launched a boutique shingle, Cult Status, with a focus on boosting indie voices, soup to nuts creative + production, and the occasional bit of (decidedly not lame) branded content.
Key cast: Baron Vaughn (Gregory), Hayley Marie Norman (Brenda), Joseph L. Roberts (Doug), Joe Mande (Dan the Superfan), Charlyne Yi (Claire), Elisha Yaffe (Nico)
Looking for: buyers
Instagram: @samdotroden
Website: www.honeycombtheband.tv
Other: Vimeo