Creative Success = Effort + Time

PLUS—West Coast screening dates added!

May 14, 2025

We just wrapped the first leg of our Guacamole Yesterdays theatrical tour:

5 cities.
200+ attendees.
$600+ in merch sold.
1,500 miles added to my VW Golf.
0 stops at Buc-ee’s.

It was exhausting, but also deeply rewarding, to finally get to share the film with audiences across North Carolina, Tennessee, and Georgia. We had amazing opening acts from comedians Daniel Emmons, Tevin Scott, and Kristina Jin, and Wil Wright doing a musical set in Knoxville. Every venue felt like a love letter to indie film, filled with passionate staff and supportive audiences.

Massive thanks to our hosts: a/perture, Jengo’s Playhouse, VisArt Video, Central Cinema, and The Springs Cinema & Taphouse. (Also to Hammer, Daniel, Kenny & Elle—thank you for letting us crash in your guest rooms!)

Follow @guacamoleyesterdays or visit GuacamoleYesterdays.com for future tour stops.

The Myth of Creative Arrival

It’s been a successful tour so far with a film we’re incredibly proud of. But there’s often a wide gap between how successful people think you are… and how successful you actually feel.

(The truth is usually somewhere in the middle.)

Jordan and I have been making things together since 2011. That’s 14 years of filmmaking. And only now are we releasing our second feature (with a third currently in post).

It’s easy to stay so focused on the next goal, getting to the next level, that I often forget to appreciate where I am and how far we’ve come. But every once in a while, we try to pause, breathe, and be grateful.

And in that spirit, I want to share some thoughts on how we got here.

Effort Over Time

Jordan’s therapist recently gave him a mantra for dealing with difficult things that has stuck with us:

Effort over time.

Everything we’ve accomplished has come from applying that equation over and over again.

EFFORT. Great art costs something. That’s why AI will always come up empty. It removes the struggle, the spark, the sacrifice. Anything worth making takes an unreasonable, often blind commitment to keep showing up. You have to naively believe it’s possible.

TIME. Working hard isn’t enough. You have to work hard long enough.
Our first feature, This World Alone, was shot in 2017 and released in 2021. We wrote the first draft of Guacamole Yesterdays in 2018, but it took four years to gather the resources, and two more to get it into the world.

You can often control the how.

You can’t always control the when.

Success vs. Creation

Maybe you’re thinking, “Even with effort and time, I’ll never be Christopher Nolan.”

And that’s fair. You can’t control what kind of success you’ll have. There are many talented artists who die in obscurity—Van Gogh apparently only sold one painting in his lifetime.

Instead, focus on what you can control: Your growth (and joy) as a creator.

You shouldn’t create for success anyway. Create because you can’t not create. Because something in you feels pulled toward a purpose. Because you’re trying to make sense of, and connect with, the world around you.

Every movie we’ve made has been deeply personal for Jordan and I. It’s been our path to building connection and exploring the ups and downs of our own lives.

Don’t make your art for “them.” Make it for you.

A Ridiculous Piano Metaphor

My wife bought me a piano for Christmas. If I practiced three hours a day for ten years, I’d get pretty damn good. (I’ve practiced about three hours total. So… still pretty terrible.) To get good at anything, to find success at anything, it takes about 10,000 of intentional practice. Filmmaking (or fill in your art form of choice here) is no different.

Filmmaking is sometimes harder to get those reps in. It’s expensive. It’s collaborative. It’s chaotic. It’s difficult to rack up your “10,000 hours” when every project takes a village.

There are some potential shortcuts:

Money (which we don’t have).
Connections (not many of those either).
Talent (debatable).
Luck (we actually do pretty well with this one).

But the biggest cheat code?

A community.

Most people give up not because they lack skill, but because it’s just too damn hard. Too much effort. Too much time. Too many rejections.

I’m lucky to have Jordan—and an incredibly committed team of filmmakers—to hold me up when the weight gets too heavy.

Just Start

Every movie we make doesn’t get easier.

It just gets more possible.

When I sit down to write now, I believe it will actually become a film.
That wasn’t the case when we started. It was all pipe dreams and crossed fingers.

But you don’t know you can do the thing… until you do the thing.

So just start.

Start your script.
Start your business.
Start your weird, beautiful, messy thing.

Whatever your dream is, however far-off it may seem, you’ll never get to step 15 (or 1500) if you don’t take that first step.

The world needs your art… now more than ever. I can’t wait to see what you bring into the world!

Upcoming Screenings

ASTORIA, NY
Thurs, May 29, 2025 | 7:00PM
Q.E.D.
Q&A with Filmmakers + Stand-up Comedy by Joseph Lymous
GET TICKETS

TUCSON, AZ
Mon, June 9, 2025 | 7:00PM
The Screening Room
Q&A with Filmmakers
GET TICKETS

PHOENIX, AZ
Tues, June 10, 2025 | 7:00PM
Harkins Scottsdale 101 Theatre
Q&A with Filmmakers
GET TICKETS

LOS ANGELES, CA
Fri, June 13, 2025 | 7:00PM
Mubi Microcinema at Vidiots
Q&A with Filmmakers
GET TICKETS

AUSTIN, TX
Sat, June 21, 2025 | 7:00PM
Hyperreal Film Club
Q&A with Filmmakers
GET TICKETS
GET VIP TICKETS*

*VIP Ticket includes enamel pin & hand-numbered screen-printed poster.

🥑 Guacamole Yesterdays is a sci-fi romance that follows a heartbroken woman who, after a painful separation, turns to cutting-edge technology that lets her relive and reshape her memories in a quest for healing. Starring Randy Havens (Stranger Things), Sophie Edwards (This World Alone), and Adetinpo Thomas (Hawkeye).

🍿 In theaters now!
📺 On-demand on major streaming platforms starting June 24.

Get tickets and find out more at GuacamoleYesterdays.com