A Film by Michelle E. Farley · Columbus, Ohio · 2026

CHOSEN

She rekindled her first love. She found him dead on her couch. His family arrived at the door.

A dark comedy about being someone's greatest love — but never their choice.

About the Film

The Story

The official Chosen pitch video — then back the film on Seed&Spark

Janice Montgomery thought the hardest part of her life was losing her husband.

She was wrong.

Decades after reconnecting with her first love, she finds him dead on her couch — and his family standing at her front door. What follows is one impossible morning where no one is the villain and no one is the victim: just people in the same living room, each living their own truth, each holding a different version of a story one man never fully told.

Chosen is a dark comedy about grief, old love, impossible timing, and the unexpected ways life asks us to begin again. Its comedy is grounded, not slapstick — the absurdity of real life arriving all at once, and the grace it takes to survive it. By centering an older Black woman as romantic, flawed, funny, and still becoming, the film challenges limiting portrayals of aging — and reminds us that reinvention has no expiration date.

"After losing her husband, Janice Montgomery rekindles a first love only to find him dead on her couch — and his family at the door."

Official Logline
Genre
Dark Comedy · Drama
Written & Directed By
Michelle E. Farley
Featuring
Allyson Hood (SAG)
Production
October 10–11, 2026
Location
Legacy House 614 · Columbus, OH

Screenplay Recognition

Award Winner
Hollywood Just4Shorts
Finalist
Atlanta Film Festival · 2024
Finalist
Essence Film Festival · 2023
Finalist
Film Pittsburgh Shorts · 2023
Finalist
Cordillera Int'l Film Festival
Why This Film

Why We're Doing This

Our mission is to challenge limiting portrayals of older Black women and expand who gets to be seen as worthy of love, desire, and reinvention. Chosen celebrates aging as a continuing journey of growth, self-discovery, and the courage to choose yourself.

The Story

Janice isn't trying to relive her twenties. She's a widow who loved deeply, built a full life, and dared to believe there might still be another chapter waiting for her. When Harold reenters her life, he forces her to confront a question she thought she'd already answered: what does it really mean to be chosen?

The Women

The women who raised us are still growing, too — still falling in love, still reinventing themselves, still making mistakes, still becoming. They are just as complicated as they are wise, and their stories deserve the screen. Older Black women deserve stories that are romantic, complex, and unfinished.

The Moment

For years, Chosen lived quietly on the page — earning a Hollywood Just4Shorts Award win and finalist honors from the Atlanta Film Festival, Essence Film Festival, and Film Pittsburgh Shorts along the way. Now it's time for Janice's story to leave the page and find audiences the way it was always meant to be experienced: on screen.

Production

When We Shoot

Chosen shoots October 10–11, 2026 at Legacy House 614, a historic home in Columbus, Ohio, where nearly 80% of the film takes place. Our location is secured, our lead actress is attached, and our Director of Photography and Sound Recordist are confirmed.

In 2023, before Chosen was ever moving toward production, Michelle commissioned an illustration of the house where she imagined Janice lived. Two years later, while scouting locations in Columbus, she turned a corner — and there it was.

We're no longer talking about making this film. We're making it.

  1. Now
    Campaign Live

    Our Seed&Spark crowdfunding campaign is live — $15,000 goal for production. Every pledge brings us one step closer to set.

  2. July — September 2026
    Pre-Production

    Final casting, rehearsals, production design, and pre-production in Columbus.

  3. October 10–11, 2026
    Principal Photography

    Two days of production at Legacy House 614, Columbus, Ohio.

  4. Winter 2026 — Spring 2027
    Post-Production

    Editing, original score, sound mix, color, captions, and festival submissions.

  5. After the Festival Run
    Backers See the Film

    Eligible backers receive a digital copy of Chosen and their campaign rewards.

Cast & Crew

The Team Behind It

Michelle Farley, writer and director of Chosen

Michelle Farley

Writer & Director

Award-winning screenwriter and filmmaker exploring love, grief, identity, and faith. Director of Caught in the Middle, Monday Mourning, and Blocked. Her screenplay for Chosen is a Hollywood Just4Shorts Award winner and a finalist honoree of the Atlanta, Essence, and Film Pittsburgh festivals.

Allyson Hood, who plays Cadence

Allyson Hood

Cadence · SAG

SAG actress bringing wit and flair to Cadence — Janice's granddaughter, reluctant accomplice, and the sharpest tongue in the room.

Eric Snead, director of photography

Eric Snead

Director of Photography

Ohio-based cinematographer known for intimate, human-centered visual storytelling in films including Merciless and Thank You and Good Luck. He brings Janice's emotional journey to screen through a grounded, visually expressive style.

Charles Hairston, production sound mixer

Charles Hairston

Production Sound Mixer

Columbus-based filmmaker and multidisciplinary artist, founder of Faseis and AHNEU. His work spans narrative film, documentary, and visual storytelling exploring memory, identity, and place.

Full cast and additional crew announcements are coming as we head toward production — follow the campaign to meet Janice, Harold, Deborah, and Brian as they're revealed.

Get Involved

Support Chosen

Stories like this don't exist because one person has a good idea. They exist because a community decides they're worth telling. There are three ways to be part of Janice's story.

Share

Every share tells the algorithm these stories matter. Send this campaign to someone who believes stories like Janice's deserve to be told — every pledge is a vote for stories about older Black women that refuse to disappear after fifty.

Share the Campaign

Partner

Community Story Partners aren't advertisers — they're collaborators in bringing an independent Ohio film to life. Ohio-based businesses, women's organizations, community foundations, and arts groups receive recognition through campaign materials, production credits, social media, and future screenings.

Download the Story Partner One-Pager Or send Michelle a message →
The $1,000+ Tier · Open to Individuals & Businesses

The Director's Circle

For patrons who want a closer seat at the table — with an on-set visit during the October shoot, VIP premiere seats, and an invitation to the wrap celebration.

Individuals receive an Associate Producer credit on the film.
Businesses receive a "Presented in partnership with" screen credit, plus inclusion in press materials and premiere-night signage.

Join the Director's Circle

Follow the journey: @MichelleFarleyWrites on Instagram · behind-the-scenes and filmmaker updates at @MichelleElaine2.0