The New Year

A college student’s life gets stuck in neutral when she returns home to care for her cancer-stricken father, but an unexpected encounter with her high-school rival prompts some soul-searching about her future., In this charming comedy, a college student’s life gets stuck in neutral when she returns home to care for her cancer-stricken father, but an unexpected encounter with her high-school rival prompts some soul-searching about her future., A woman whose life is stuck in neutral struggles to get back in gear in this independent comedy-drama directed and edited by Brett Haley. Sunny (Trieste Kelly Dunn) was in her junior year at college when her father was diagnosed with cancer, and she came home to help look after him. Two and a half years later, Sunny’s dad is still around, and so is Sunny — she works at a bowling alley, keeps an eye on her dad, has a sweet if goofy boyfriend named Neal (Kevin Wheatley) and a good friend to confide in, Amy (Linda Lee McBride). Overall, Sunny is content with her life, but she knows that she’s not living up to her potential and at least for the moment has given up on her dreams as a writer. Sunny gets a potent reminder of her current stasis when she gets word Isaac (Ryan Hunter), who she always regarded as a rival in high school, is coming back to town for a visit. As it happens, Isaac and Sunny get along better than expected, and while he’s working on becoming a successful comedian, he encourages her to start taking her own talent seriously again. Sunny feels drawn to Isaac in a way she never did before, and she has to consider her future with Neal as well as her academic and career goals. The New Year was an official selection at the 2010 Los Angels Film Festival.