Thunder Road (2016 film)

Thunder Road is a short comedy-drama film written, directed by, and starring Jim Cummings. Shot in one take, the film depicts a police officer giving a eulogy for his mother. It premiered at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival, where it received positive reviews, winning the Short Film Grand Jury Prize. A feature-length adaptation of the same name was released in 2018, also written, directed by, and starring Cummings.

Synopsis
Police officer Arnaud eulogizes his mother at her funeral by singing and dancing to the Bruce Springsteen song, "Thunder Road".

Cast

 * Jim Cummings as Jimmy Arnaud
 * Kitty Barshay as Funeral Director
 * Francesca I. Biasiolo as Crystal (as Francesca Biasiolo)
 * Melissa Papel as Carissa
 * William "Will" Daubert as Police Chief (as William Daubert)

Production
Cummings wrote the film over two months on his commutes to work at CollegeHumor. The film cost $7,000 to make, of which $2,500 was renting the funeral home. He sold his wedding rings to help fund it. Cummings did not license the song "Thunder Road" prior to its screening at Sundance. Springsteen later viewed the film and enjoyed it, and agreed to license it for online distribution for $1,000.

Reception
On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 100% based on 8 reviews, with an average rating of 7.3/10. Metacritic gives the film a weighted average score of 81 out of 100, based on 4 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".

The film was awarded at the Sundance Film Festival with the Short Film Grand Jury Prize, being called "a mini masterpiece of writing, directing and acting". Short of the Week called it "funny, inventive, and thought-provoking" and "the toast of this year’s American festival circuit-", and IndieWire listed it as one of the best short films ever made.