Kupala
Los Angeles
Project Details
MILA (16), an outcast immigrant desperate to fit into her affluent American surroundings, secretly runs a social media account about the Slavic traditions her great-grandmother taught her. When her classmates JESSICA and RACHEL discover the account, they ask Mila to take them into the woods and show them the rituals of Kupala Night. Believing this could finally earn her acceptance, Mila agrees. In the woods, Mila teaches the girls to gather flowers and herbs, weave wreaths, and braid friendship cords. Jessica and Rachel photograph one another with their phones, turning the rituals into romantic cottagecore images. As the three girls dance in a circle and collapse laughing beside the river, for a brief moment, Mila feels like she belongs. That feeling disappears when Jessica posts a TikTok video calling her a "Russian witch.” Earnest and socially awkward, Mila misses the sarcasm and is hurt. At the river, Mila explains that a floating wreath promises good fortune, while a sinking wreath means the water has taken part of its owner. Jessica's and Rachel's wreaths drift away, but Mila's immediately sinks. Terrified, Mila desperately tries to retrieve it, praying in Russian while Jessica films her panic for content. Realizing the girls never respected either her or her traditions, humiliated and furious, she runs alone into the darkening forest. At night, Mila collapses in the dirt, smearing her makeup with mud and tears. Her grandmother CLAUDIA emerges from the trees wearing an amber pendant identical to Mila's. Claudia says that she came to help you remember what Mila has been running from. Masked figures appear around her and begin a ritual dance. The dance grows increasingly ceremonial and psychedelic. At first frightened, Mila eventually joins the dance, embracing the heritage she has spent years trying to hide. Mila wakes alone at dawn. When she returns home, Jessica and Rachel are waiting outside her apartment, exhausted and frightened after searching for her all night. Mila no longer seeks their approval or fears their judgment. She thanks them for their concern, calmly walks away, and, back in her bedroom, wears her family pendant openly for the first time—finally embracing her heritage and herself.
Roles For This Project
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Short Film
Mila
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Woman
Los Angeles
18 - 22
Non Union
Short Film
Submissions Due:
10/01/2026
Playing age: 16 A Russian-speaking immigrant who is knowledgeable about her family’s folklore and uncomfortable in ordinary social situations. She wants to appear intelligent, she often explains too much, misses sarcasm, or becomes more intense than the moment requires. Her awkwardness should be sp... [See More]
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Short Film
Jessica
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Woman
Los Angeles
18 - 22
Non Union
Short Film
Submissions Due:
10/01/2026
Playing age: 16 Charismatic and socially dominant, but NOT effortlessly confident. Jessica feels pressure to remain interesting, funny, and desirable. She hides awkwardness by making jokes, changing the subject, or turning an experience into content. She becomes more confident when a phone is record... [See More]
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Short Film
Rachel
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Woman
Los Angeles
18 - 22
Non Union
Short Film
Submissions Due:
10/01/2026
Playing age: 16 Jessica’s closest friend. She is warm, observant, and genuinely interested in Mila, but insecure about her own position. Rachel often looks to Jessica before deciding how to respond. She wants everyone to feel comfortable but avoids the confrontation required to protect Mila when it ... [See More]
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Short Film
Claudia
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Woman
Los Angeles
65 - 75
Non Union
Short Film
Submissions Due:
10/01/2026
Playing age: 65-75 Mila’s late grandmother. An elegant, memorable slavic woman with silver-gray hair arranged in a sculptural, old-fashioned updo. Claudia appears refined and carefully dressed, as if preserved in Mila’s memory from a family celebration. Her personality is grounded, practical, affect... [See More]
Similar Roles
Roles For This Project
-
Submissions Due:
10/01/2026
Playing age: 16 A Russian-speaking immigrant who is knowledgeable about her family’s folklore and uncomfortable in ordinary social situations. She wants to appear intelligent, she often explains too much, misses sarcasm, or becomes more intense than the moment requires. Her awkwardness should be sp... [See More]
-
Submissions Due:
10/01/2026
Playing age: 16 Charismatic and socially dominant, but NOT effortlessly confident. Jessica feels pressure to remain interesting, funny, and desirable. She hides awkwardness by making jokes, changing the subject, or turning an experience into content. She becomes more confident when a phone is record... [See More]
-
Submissions Due:
10/01/2026
Playing age: 16 Jessica’s closest friend. She is warm, observant, and genuinely interested in Mila, but insecure about her own position. Rachel often looks to Jessica before deciding how to respond. She wants everyone to feel comfortable but avoids the confrontation required to protect Mila when it ... [See More]
-
Submissions Due:
10/01/2026
Playing age: 65-75 Mila’s late grandmother. An elegant, memorable slavic woman with silver-gray hair arranged in a sculptural, old-fashioned updo. Claudia appears refined and carefully dressed, as if preserved in Mila’s memory from a family celebration. Her personality is grounded, practical, affect... [See More]