SELL YOUR HOUSE is playing at SBIFF (Santa Barbara International Film Festival), and I had the opportunity to see an early look. Here’s my spoiler-free take:
Sorry readers, but I will be swearing in my review of SELL YOUR HOUSE. Why? Because the movie has more f-bombs than a Tarantino film. So with that… SELL YOUR HOUSE is a fucking awesome documentary. Utilizing a BIRDMAN-like cacophony of music, the panic level is ratcheted up to the max as we watch James, the guy who sold his house to make a one-million-dollar film, and the writer/director, Francis, try to make a movie while also maintaining their friendship.
At the beginning of the film, we see the quote, “Give me less money, give me more friends.” A truer statement couldn’t be made about the friendships you make on a film set. It’s like having a family during production, with long hours and high stress. Yet once filming is complete, it’s rare for those friendships to last a lifetime. The central challenge in SELL YOUR HOUSE is the financial and emotional risk that James takes by selling his house to fund a one-million-dollar film. I’ve seen several people I worked with back in my film-producing days only stay in my life for a season, while others are in it for the long haul. The point is that James and Francis have a magical friendship that should go the distance. The question, though, is whether your friend sells his house to make your movie, and the movie risks not making money, can your friendship endure that hardship? It’s a bold ask, and one that directors Eric Foss & Brandon Pickering take head-on in a fucking fun style.
Let’s talk about the style of SELL YOUR HOUSE. It’s fucking bananas. Think flash-cuts, quick one-off jokes, and high stress. The film keeps you on the edge of your seat, making you feel the intense pressure of an independent film set, where resources are scarce, and stakes are high. The perfect example of this involves an explosion and a $50k shot. If they don’t achieve it, there’s no fallback. It just won’t be in the movie, and the final product will suffer as a result.
Final Thought: In SELL YOUR HOUSE, James says, “It’s hard to regret the funnest month of your life.” So, stealing from one of the bravest independent fucking film producers, I would say, “It’s hard to regret seeing the funnest documentary at SBIFF.”
SELL YOUR HOUSE premieres at SBIFF on Sat 2/7 – 9:00 PM