There are certain films that quietly pull you in… and then stay with you long after the credits roll. California Scenario is one of those films.
Ahead of its world premiere at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, I sat down with filmmakers James Takata and Dara Resnik to talk about their deeply personal and beautifully layered film, California Scenario.
From the moment I watched it, one thing hit me immediately: this film carries the emotional DNA of This Is Us. And it turns out—that connection isn’t accidental.
Takata, who previously directed and worked behind the camera on This Is Us, reunites with several collaborators here, including actor and producer Jon Huertas, whose presence in the film further strengthens that emotional lineage.
At its core, California Scenario is a middle-age coming-of-age love story. It follows two single parents—one Japanese American, one Jewish American—both carrying the weight of intergenerational trauma while trying to raise their children without repeating the same cycles. Their paths cross at Isamu Noguchi’s iconic California Scenario installation in Costa Mesa, a setting that feels as emotionally intentional as the story itself.
But what truly sets this film apart is its unflinching yet compassionate portrayal of mental health—specifically self-harm—and how those struggles can echo across generations.
Resnik spoke candidly about her own experiences with self-harm and the responsibility she felt portraying that reality honestly, without exploitation. Partnering with the Mental Health Storytelling Initiative, the team worked carefully with the cast to ensure the depiction was truthful, restrained, and rooted in empathy. The result is one of the film’s most powerful moments: a raw, devastatingly honest conversation between a mother and daughter that doesn’t offer easy answers—but offers understanding.
As someone who openly discusses mental health on this show, that storyline hit me hard. Not because it was shocking—but because it was recognizable. That’s the power of independent film. It creates space for stories that don’t often get told, or told this thoughtfully.
California Scenario is exactly why festivals like SBIFF matter. This is filmmaking driven by intention, not algorithms. Heart, not spectacle.
Watch the full interview with Dara and James above.
