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“Everything That Can Go Wrong Did” | Katarina Zhu, Bunnylovr

An Asian woman is lying down facing the camera. A white bunny is visible in the foreground.Still from Bunnylovr. Courtesy of Sundance Institute.

Films are made over many days, but some days are more memorable, and important, than others. Imagine yourself in ten years looking back on this production. What day from your film’s development, production or post do you think you’ll view as the most significant and why?

The second day of the shoot will be forever seared into my memory, partly because everything that can go wrong did, but mainly because it was the moment I realized just how extraordinary my team was and how grateful I was to be surrounded by them. It was the first day that another actor, aside from myself, was on set, and the first day we were working with a live animal. We had Austin Amelio, one of the leads, as well as a bunny, in this teeny-tiny studio apartment in the East Village, on top of all the crew, animal handlers, and live tech required to make the private chat aspect of the cam site work.

The day began with a bad omen: someone defecated on the production van. Things continued to snowball from there with angry tenants demanding we leave the building and issues arising with camera equipment. To top it all off, midway through the day, the bunny peed on one of the laptops that we were using to film, completely short circuiting it.

Eventually, we got back on track, but what struck me most during this chaos was the compassion, ingenuity and resilience of every single person on set. No one panicked, pointed fingers, or complained. It wasn’t just about overcoming multiple logistical nightmares; it was about witnessing the best instincts of a group of people committed to telling this story, no matter what hurdles came our way.

See all responses to our annual Sundance Question here.

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