Abby Singer 2003

Curtis Clemins and Kevin Prouse are at the heart of a story about chasing a dream, weathering rejection, and finding a path through the tricky terrain of friendship and ambition. The film follows their separate yet intertwined journeys as they navigate auditions, memories, and the pulsating energy of independent cinema. The tone remains steady and reflective, inviting viewers to watch how small choices ripple into larger decisions and how hope can be both fuel and burden.

On a campus morning, Kevin Prouse walks across to teach his acting class, while Curtis Clemins stands before a mirror, wrestling with self-doubt and the weight of past disappointments. Meanwhile, Maxine Helms and her daughter drive to an audition, a reminder that the world outside the classroom is hungry for voices and chances. In a quiet moment of faith, Curtis prays in a church, and then steps into the casting office where he works, a place where dreams collide with reality every day. The classroom becomes a stage for motivational talk, as Prouse urges his students not to abandon their dreams, even when the odds feel stacked.

Across town, Mr. Mooker pushes his son toward the family business while quietly rehearsing a different dream—one of acting that distracts from the daily grind of work and responsibility. Curtis arrives at an audition, bringing in the first actor who falters, and the day’s tempo quickens as opportunities barely open ahead. A misstep with an audition leads to a confrontation when Mr. Mooker, slipping away with a half‑hearted excuse, persuades Maxine to let him audition, a moment that foreshadows the blurring line between producer, mentor, and participant in the festival world.

Curtis’s day unfolds with detours back to his old college, where a stroll through the theater department stirs memories of a decade past. There, he recalls a rift with a former friend, Kevin, who chose a different path after a girl—Leanne—entered his life. The friendship that once felt unequivocally solid frays, and Kevin’s choice to marry Leanne and teach instead of chase acting becomes a touchstone for both men—one that prompts Curtis to wonder if the dream still holds any heat.

The story deepens as Curtis finds himself pressed by a persistent, overzealous audition seeker who accosts him on campus, forcing him to escape down stairs in a moment of unease. Simultaneously, Kevin seeks guidance from his own father, a ski‑lift attendant, hoping for practical wisdom about an impending divorce from Leanne. The tension between personal life and professional ambitions broadens into a conversation about risk, sacrifice, and what it means to persevere.

A parallel thread follows Curtis’s father‑son duo, Mr. Mooker and Jake, as they discuss the balance between business obligations and chasing a dream that might never fully materialize. The tension between duty and desire is a constant undercurrent, touching both the labor of the working world and the unpredictable world of film and festivals.

Curtis’s life takes a sharper turn when he is arrested after an altercation with a parking attendant, landing him in psychiatric sessions with state psychiatrist Dr. Phelps. In those sessions, the question of happiness becomes a central theme, and Curtis revisits memories from the Sundance Film Festival with his ex‑girlfriend Mabline, a period that shines a light on what he’s lost and what he could still fight for. The conversation with Dr. Phelps invites him to reckon with the gap between his internal dreams and external reality.

As the film tracks Curtis, Mabline, and Maxine through the Festival circuit, the narrative threads converge in a kaleidoscopic sequence of ambition, flirtation, and ambition’s fragility. The trio seeks validation from a clutch of powerful figures, and the prospect of belonging among festival elites becomes a driving force. They navigate the social currents, trying to move closer to people who can grant them visibility, including encounters with notable figures at the event.

At the Sundance ceremony, the mood shifts as the talk shifts toward recognition and achievement. John Waters appears on stage to remind the audience that everyone has a reason for being at the festival, a moment that broadens the scope from personal struggle to a larger conversation about art, fame, and opportunity. Curtis, Mabline, and Maxine press forward, attempting to connect with industry icons like Stockard Channing, Robin Tunney, and Patricia Arquette, whose presence underscores the weight of celebrity influence within indie cinema.

Dr. Phelps continues to work with Curtis, who recounts a painful breakup with Mabline at the Independent Spirit Awards. The backstage tension thickens as Curtis and Mabline engage in a fight, with Jake Gyllenhaal reluctantly drawn into the fray and Don Cheadle trying to steer clear of the chaos. Jill Hennessy steps in to urge Mabline to move on, while Brad Pitt bluntly tells Curtis that the moment has passed for the dream they once chased.

The session closes on a reflective note as Curtis tells Dr. Phelps that sharing his story has helped him move forward, and they agree to meet again. Outside the therapy room, Kevin keeps faith in his students, scanning the classroom with a quiet resolve to find someone who can spark real inspiration.

As the film hurtles toward its emotional apex, Curtis makes a drastic choice when he hires a prostitute, only to experience a nervous breakdown in the moment of intimacy. Meanwhile, Kevin signs divorce papers with Leanne, a painful milestone that shakes his own sense of possibility. Curtis then spends his last thousand dollars on a gun, talking about it as an artistic statement rather than a desperate act, a line that reveals the fatal tension between creation and destruction that threads through the indie film world.

Curtis wanders the streets of Salt Lake City, feeling the isolation of a dream that has tested every limit. He reaches out to Kevin with a final call to say goodbye, as Maxine holds callbacks and Mr. Mooker asserts his authority, heading toward the audition with a stubborn resolve to see it through. The two men board trains in opposite directions—Curtis toward departure, Kevin toward reconciliation—before Curtis wanders into the woods with the intention of ending his life. In a tense, decisive moment, Kevin arrives just in time, proving that the stubborn hope at the heart of their stories may still have a chance to endure.

Throughout, the film blends personal drama with a sharp, sometimes wry exploration of the film industry’s quirks and ambitions. It captures the way dreams can sustain or haunt, how friendships are tested by time and choice, and how moments of courage—whether in an audition queue, a therapy chair, or a late-night phone call—can shape the path forward. The atmosphere remains intimate and grounded, even as the world around the characters brims with famous faces and festival glamour, reminding us that the deepest drama often unfolds in ordinary rooms, on ordinary streets, and inside the quiet corners of the human heart.

every now and then when I fall asleep

The ending leaves us with a fragile but potent sense of possibility, inviting audiences to reflect on what it means to chase a dream, to endure heartbreak, and to find a way back to each other when the world seems ready to pull apart. The film’s strength lies in its careful balance of humor and heartbreak, its honest look at failure and resilience, and its willingness to let uncertainty remain a part of the story rather than force a neat resolution.