Draft:Always, Lola (2022 film)

Always, Lola is an American coming-of-age comedy-drama film written and directed by Jeffrey Crane Graham.

The film premiered at the Marina del Rey Film Festival on June 22, 2022, winning Best Narrative Feature. The film was acquired by Good Deed Entertainment via Glen Reynolds of Circus Road Films to be released on Apple TV, Prime Video, and Google Play on November 28, 2023.

Cast

 * Roxy Striar as Lola
 * Corrinne Mica as Katherine
 * Collin Campana as Trey
 * Andrew Ghai as Lee
 * Sheldon White as Riggs
 * Candice Cruz as Camila

Premise
Five best friends and recent high school graduates reunite on their annual camping trip to mourn the loss of their best friend Lola, but when secrets slowly leak out around the nature of her life (and death), the bond that held the group together is threatened.

Production
Director Jeffrey Crane Graham was inspired to write the script after losing a high school friend in his mid-20s. He wrote and developed the script with the intention of shooting on and around his alma mater Miami University under the working title "What We Bury."

In conjunction with the university, students were incorporated into pre-production and shadowed set during the 11 day shoot.

Graham worked closely with Inside Out co-writer Meg LeFauve during development on the script to deepen the relationship between the central sister characters.

Release
Always, Lola had its world premiere at the Marina del Rey Film Festival in Los Angeles on June 22nd, 2022.

The film will be released on Apple TV, Prime Video, and Google Play on November 28, 2023, courtesy of Good Deed Entertainment.

Critical response
In anticipation of the 24th annual Heartland International Film Festival, the film was listed as one of 15 film recommendations listed by The Indianapolis Star.

The film has a 100% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with with critics praising the lighthearted approach to it's heavy subject matter. In a review for his The Independent Critic, Richard Propes called the movie, "a feel-good film somewhat reminiscent of some of the 80's hangout movies we know and love." He praised the "urgency to the films performances," calling the film a "truly moving picture." . On Graham's script, John Smistad of The Quick Film Critic mentioned "genuinely funny and patently absurd moments to lighten the load of a heavy undercurrent of touching somberness." . Film Threat's Andrew Stover called the film, "a heartwarming exploration of grief, loss, and addiction that isn’t all doom and gloom."