A classic love triangle — a boy, a girl, a pair of hands. Jordan Estes (Jared) and Jess Barbour (Katie) star in the award-winning "Oh Crappy Day." Photo by Griffin Davis.
January 6, 2017
FOR IMMEDIATE USE
Raleigh, NC – After screening at more than 35 film festivals and winning 11 awards along the way, the short film “Oh Crappy Day” is now available to watch for free on Amazon.
“Oh Crappy Day” is a romantic comedy with a psychological twist. Jared, an aspiring filmmaker, meets Katie, a charming young grad student, on a blind date, and the two of them seem perfectly matched. Jared has a problem, though: an acute case of OCD, which he’s determined to hide from Katie. He succeeds for a while, until a sticky menu triggers his compulsive hand-washing, threatening the budding romance. It’s a classic love triangle — a boy, a girl, a pair of hands.
The success of “Oh Crappy Day” has come as a pleasant surprise to writer and director Jon Lance Bacon, who lives in Raleigh. “After we finished the film, I thought that if we got into about two or three festivals, that would be great,” Bacon says.
Bacon came to filmmaking by way of American studies, having earned a Ph.D. in English from Vanderbilt University. He is best known as the author of Flannery O'Connor and Cold War Culture, published by Cambridge University Press. Since the publication of his book, Bacon has focused on screenwriting, including original stories as well as adaptations of works by Hawthorne and Poe.
The idea for “Oh Crappy Day” came from Bacon’s personal experience dealing with OCD. “For a long time, I felt as if I were just too weird to find love and acceptance,” Bacon explains, “But I think just about everyone can identify with the feeling of insecurity when you're in the dating situation, and that’s why I think so many people connect with the main character in the film.”
Writer-director Lance Bacon makes sure every visual detail is right while sound designer Richard Walters manages the boom on set of "Oh Crappy Day." Photo by Griffin Davis.
Producer Steve Neilson says “Oh Crappy Day” has a positive message for viewers. “What I love about the film is that it's not making fun of people with obsessive compulsive disorder — it's actually highlighting that there is someone for everyone.”
“Oh Crappy Day” stars Jordan Estes (Jared) and Jess Barbour (Katie). Estes studied acting at Greensboro College, in North Carolina, and currently lives in Chattanooga, where he co-founded the Chattanooga Film Collective. Barbour studied acting at Elon University, also in North Carolina, and has starred in numerous local stage productions.
Inspired by the film’s success and the enthusiastic responses from audiences across the country, Bacon and Neilson plan to adapt the short into a feature film. Bacon has already completed the script, and they are currently raising funds to begin production in 2017. Estes and Barbour will reprise their roles as Jared and Katie.
“We’ve been really encouraged by how much audiences love the characters,” Bacon says, “You watch the film and see their awkwardness, discouragement, even panic, but they get through it, and the story is still lighthearted and ultimately hopeful.”
Click here to watch “Oh Crappy Day” on Amazon now.