After losing his job as a paralegal, Sam Stein suffers a panic attack and stumbles into a job babysitting his psychiatrist’s three granddaughters. The girls’ mother, Dianne, is an actor whose once-promising career has stalled; she’s in a difficult marriage to David, a rock bassist. When David goes abroad on tour, Dianne and Sam discover an easy rapport as well as a shared history of mental illness. Sam joins Dianne’s Family to babysit for the summer on Martha’s Vineyard, and he ends up in a house with the woman he pines for, her husband, the three kids, and all four grandparents, including his psychiatrist.
Winner of the special jury award for best performance, for Amanda Peet, and the audience award for best narrative feature at the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival.
Fantasy Life
2025
16 years
91 min.
Fiction
USA
USA, mental health, family drama, international film festivals, awarded films
Colorido
Matthew Shear
Matthew Shear
Conor Murphy
Ian Blume
Amanda Peet, Matthew Shear, Alessandro Nivola, Judd Hirsch, Bob Balaban, Andrea Martin, Zosia Mamet, Jessica Harper, Holland Taylor, Sheng Wang
Charlie Alderman, Chris Dodds, Phil Keefe, Amanda Peet, Emily McCann Lesser, David Bernon, Sam Slater
Prospect Avenue, Made by Limbo, AC3 Media
Christopher Bear
Visit Films
49