LBB Film Club: Boomerang
If you are one of those people who had to stall their 20s or 30s to move back with their parents during the pandemic, KODE’s director Rylee Jean Ebsen knows exactly what you went through. She herself had to celebrate her 30th birthday sandwiched between her parents feeling like Little Edie in ‘Grey Gardens’, while the nail-biting prolonging of the lockdown made her believe this could be what life will be like… forever!?
Of course, things go both ways - just because you’ve moved out of your parent’s house doesn’t mean their lives stopped. This logically means that you moving back in during what seemed like an endless grocery-washing, phone-spraying isolation period, wasn’t their idea of the great life either.
Overall, regardless of which age group you fall into and what your circumstances were during the past three years, especially at the peak of chaos, things weren’t easy. This is why Rylee and her co-writer, actress and writer Sydney Steinberg, took it upon themselves to make the self-proclaimed dramedy ‘Boomerang’. The story of a confused, now jobless millennial woman going back home for the pandemic, and having to settle with the luggage she brought for what was meant to be two weeks (we see her starting to go through her high-school-aged scrunchies, hair accessories and fits too). But clothes are the smallest of the protagonist Sarah’s problems - loneliness, deep family secrets, covid-related fears, and past lovers climbing through her childhood bedroom window, are just a few of the rest.
“This film is our love letter to anyone who hosted or was hosted by family during the lockdown. It was cathartic to write because the script was inspired by many personal experiences and it was constructed with care,” said Rylee. “Though our specific experiences may vary, we are connected to our larger shared history of going through this together. At its core, ‘Boomerang’ is about complicated family relationships and how deeply funny life can be even in its most serious moments. A heartfelt, funny, timely, and relatable tale about an entire generation of people who were forced to move home and suffered arrested development.”
LBB’s Zoe Antonov sat down with Rylee to find out more about her and Sydney’s inspirations behind the characters and plot, and what the major success of the film means to them. You will be able to watch 'Boomerang' online from August 2023.
LBB> You co-wrote, produced and directed the film - how was that experience for you and have you taken on so much in a project before? What was the best part of making ‘Boomerang’?
Rylee> I’ve done narrative branded content and digital series over the years, but this is my first official narrative short film since NYU (I graduated in 2013). It’s a story that came from my universe and it’s exactly the tone I wanted to nail. It’s a sample of my vision for the types of stories I want to tell, characters I want to develop, and worlds I hope to build. It can feel scary to put yourself out there with a piece that came from you, but I was so incredibly excited to dive in and make a hard comedy about dysfunctional family relationships because those are the longer form stories I want to tell too.
Plus, we could all use some levity and laughter these days. Some of my favourite films are comedies about complicated life moments and I think that’s why I gravitate towards making films with a similar tone. With ‘Boomerang’, my goal was to create a solid comedic showpiece in order to pivot into narrative film and TV. During its successful festival run, I met my new managers at Kaplan/Perrone (who are the best), and after a series of generals and reading lots of wonderful scripts, I’m now officially attached to two feature films. Both are in the stages of casting and financing. I’m really glad I prioritised this projected and invested time and resources into making ‘Boomerang’ happen, during a pandemic no less!
LBB> Tell me about the name - Boomerang - and why did you decide to go with it?
Rylee> ‘Boomerang’ as a verb means “to return to the originator, often with negative consequences. A Boomerang is also an object that when you throw it into the air, comes back to you. Sarah [the main character] goes out into the world but finds herself back at her parent’s house right as she’s about to turn 30. Her parents were enjoying their dysfunctional lives as empty nesters but had to confront everything when Sarah came back home. What we’ve all been through is absurd, bizarre, and ripe for turning some of our collective pain into art. We need to process it, and what better way to process it than to make a relatable comedic film about it?
LBB> Why was it important to have female leads in the film and how did you make sure you depicted them as well-rounded as you have in such a short time?
Rylee> This story comes from an honest place (from myself and co-writer Sydney) and so it’s only natural that our lead character is a woman because that’s our point of view. It was important to delicately write about a frustrating but also loving relationship with her mom. Moms drive us nuts but they are also the ones who know us so intimately. Also, I really wanted to portray an effortless BFF relationship between Sarah and Kaitlyn. I enjoy it when there’s a best friend in a movie and it’s written so well that you understand them and completely see their dynamic very quickly. If you were to break down their screen time it’s actually extremely short, but because it’s so well done (acted, written, etc.) you feel like they’ve been in the whole movie– that’s how I wanted their friendship to be.
There were many female leads behind the scenes too. I am proud to say that we built our production team with inclusivity in mind. When I spoke with potential crew for the short, I ended up hiring the folks who were most passionate about the story and I was able to hire a diverse, female-heavy crew. It’s amazing to look around the room and realise there are so many ladies on set. The collaboration was incredible.
LBB> Tell me about the costume design - how was each character expressed through their clothes and is there something to be said about the main character reverting to her teenage style over the course of the film?
Rylee> Oh my goodness did we have fun with the costume design! I’m a ‘90s baby so it was a blast. ‘Clueles’s, and ‘Spice World’ – those movies shaped my soul! I loved working with Daisy Stackpole, my fabulous costume designer, who found the most amazing vintage pieces. Sydney loved a few so much that she bought them!
Sarah shows up to her parent’s house in a cool, current outfit (jeans and a leather jacket), but after being trapped in her childhood bedroom for a bit, I thought it would be hilarious if she started wearing her old grade school clothes. The plastic chokers! The hair clips! I especially love the butterfly graphic t-shirt in the big blow-up family scene that says “The future is waiting.” The shirt tells you everything you need to know about that scene, the family is completely falling apart and they are all finally going to move out and move on with their lives.
LBB> What about the set design? What kind of considerations went into that?
Rylee> Her childhood bedroom became her prison during the lockdown and it was important to me that it felt like it hadn’t been touched since she left it. Her parents never got around to turning it into an office or guest room, which means it’s a time capsule of memories, ready to be opened. Her walls are covered in NSync and Third Eye Blind posters, there are Barbies and troll dolls on her desk and awkward Bat Mitzvah photos. Our lovely production designer, Sarah B Lund nailed all the specificity and I so appreciate that she listened to every kooky idea of mine (the pink Motorola Razr phone for one).
LBB> What is the meaning behind the moment when Sarah chooses to sleep with Matt instead of keeping cautious? Why was that an important decision she made in the plotline?
Rylee> After living at home for several months, Sarah starts to revert back to her old self. Everything seems out of her control and that’s a scary feeling. What if she can’t get her life back? What if she stays home forever like Will Ferrel in Wedding Crashers, “MOM!! MEATLOAF! NOW!” I think breaking the safe family pod and hooking up with her middle school crush, Matt, was her way of taking back some ownership over her life.
LBB> Tell us more about the scene where Sarah is crying on her birthday and why you decided this was the best scene to end the film on? Is it a relief cry or a sad cry? Or another type of cry?
Rylee> I think it’s a heart breaking cross between mourning the loss of her family unit while also looking forward to starting a new life on her own. The final birthday scene is when she processes the big blow-up fight where all three secrets are revealed… Sarah’s had an ‘illegal’ tryst exposing them to potential covid infection, Jean (her mom) is a lesbian (or bi), and Marty (Sarah’s dad) has been secretly dating a woman - a gynaecologist, who coincidentally is also Matt’s mom (the guy Sarah just made sweet love to).
Sarah must temporarily step into the role of parent and make an important decision for the family– they all are moving out, effective immediately. Emotionally depleted, she celebrates her 30th birthday knowing nothing will ever be the same. And maybe that’s not such a bad thing. Their new lives are waiting for them… Matt is literally outside the window waiting for her and perhaps that new life together will be a wonderful adventure.
LBB> What did you hope people would take away from the film when they watch it?
Rylee> We could all use some levity and laughter these days. Some of my favourite films are comedies about complicated life moments like ‘Mrs. Doubtfire’ (a comedy about a difficult divorce), ‘This is 40’ (a comedy about a midlife crisis), ‘What About Bob’ (a comedy about mental illness), ‘High Fidelity’ (a comedy about a bad breakup). I like this genre and it’s why I gravitate towards making films with a similar tone.
I think it’s because I believe humour is a great way to process difficult experiences. I’ve read studies that say laughing activates hormones that boost your immune system, so you could say laughter is actually medicine. Many people who watched ‘Boomerang’ have said it touched them because some aspect of it reminds them of their own experience, which makes me happy because it’s what we set out to do - to make people feel less alone. It might be the difficult mother/child relationship, the preserved adolescent bedroom, or the dysfunctional long term marriage, whatever it is, there’s a specific element a viewer connects with.
I hope this film helps people process what we’ve all been through. As this pandemic gets further in the rearview mirror, all we can do is reflect, process, and hopefully use our gifts to give these moments meaning. And laugh! We can't forget to laugh.
