Filmed in Columbus, “They/Them/Us” champions city, love of all kinds
A film crew, cast of actors and an entire movie set took over most of a city block on Neil Avenue between 1st and 2nd avenues for roughly two weeks during the summer of 2020.
They also filled to the brim and transformed the three-story Italian Village home belonging to Jon Sherman and Melissa Vogley Woods.
The couple couldn’t think of a more fitting place to set and film the movie they co-wrote.
Not only did they want to spotlight the city of Columbus, but the home was also where Sherman and Vogley Woods moved in together in 2016, blending their family of four teenage children, which is the premise of “They/Them/Us.”
“It’s very loosely autobiographical,” said Sherman, an associate professor of film at Kenyon College and director of the movie, his third feature-length project. “The characters meet on a dating site in their 40s. They both have two teenagers and move in together. One of the teenagers is nonbinary and goes by they/them pronouns.”
Hence, the title of the movie.
However, each of other teens has his or her own struggles, including “the one who orders his weed through the mail, the outspoken one and last but not least, the ‘good’ child,” as the film bio states.
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But at its core, the film is a romantic comedy — Sherman’s specialty — just one that takes a more realistic and honest look at love, especially for those finding relationships later in life. It balances that with some humor and edginess (think, leather and whips as the main characters explore Columbus’ sexually adventurous kink community).
It’s definitely not “Yours, Mine & Ours,” the 2005 family comedy about a blended family, starring Dennis Quaid and Rene Russo, Sherman said with a chuckle.
“It’s a little outside the norm, but it’s really a 20th-century update … it has all the beats of a romantic comedy, but in the second half, the kids struggle,” Sherman said. “It’s about being a parent but also romantic and how can you be both at the same time.”
Where can I watch ‘They/Them/Us’?
The film is being released Friday through Gravitas Ventures in select theaters nationwide, including the Gateway Film Center and the Drexel Theatre, and Sherman will be hosting Q&A sessions at both this weekend. Then, it will be available for streaming starting Tuesday.
The film, which stars New York-based actors Joey Slotnick (“Too Big to Fail,” “Nip/Tuck”) as Charlie and Amy Hargreaves (“Homeland,” “13 Reasons Why”) as Lisa, debuted in the fall, first in Hollywood then here in October to a packed house at the Lincoln Theatre in the King-Lincoln District.
It’s since gone on to rave reviews in a slew of film festivals, including as an official selection at the San Diego International Film Festival and as winner of best low-budget feature film at the Paris Independent Film Festival.
The $550,000 film not only was one of the first projects green-lit by the Screen Actors Guild to begin shooting during the pandemic with the strictest of safety protocols, but “They/Them/Us” was also the first film to use funds from Columbus Pictures, a nonprofit entity of the Columbus Association for the Performing Arts.
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Chad Whittington, CAPA’s president, said they’ve been working for several years on ways to grow the film industry in central Ohio, including starting a fund to help get movies off the ground.
When Sherman came to CAPA in 2019 with his script, it gave CAPA the ideal opportunity to start such a program, Whittington said.
“We thought, ‘We’ve got to support this,’” Whittington said. “It allowed us to get the model up and running. (Jon) was a catalyst and such a great partner. This was exactly the type of film that we wanted to invest in. This sets the tone for what we want to do in the future.”
Plus, the project championed Columbus.
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Logistically, Sherman said it made sense with their small budget to set it in more or less one location and not in an expensive area such as New York City. Also, he was able to take advantage of the 30% Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit.
Still, he did end up spending more than $60,000 on a personal credit card to pay for all the COVID-19 tests required by the actors guild.
Filming in central Ohio also allowed Sherman to pull talent from area film schools. Roughly a dozen interns from Kenyon College, the Columbus College of Art & Design, Otterbein University and Ohio State University joined 20 to 30 local crew members to help with the movie.
However, perhaps the biggest reason to showcase Columbus, was to feature the Midwest as a place where people are struggling with the same issues — drug addiction, gender identity, sexuality, family dynamics, love — that viewers see in countless shows set in New and Los Angeles.
“What I was pleasantly surprised about Columbus is how open-minded and reasonable the city can be at times,” said Sherman, who moved here in 2010. “We definitely leaned into the whole Ohio thing once it became clear that it was such an important character in the movie.”
A dating montage between Charlie (Slotnick) and Lisa (Hargreaves) features the cement Field of Corn in Dublin and the Drexel Theatre in Bexley.
Charlie’s ex-wife lives in a neighborhood that is unmistakably German Village.
During a pivotal scene, Maddy (played by nonbinary actor Lexie Bean) confides in Charlie. (Bean consulted with Vogley Woods’ child, who uses they/them pronouns, to prepare for the role.)
“A teacher keeps misgendering me and being a jerk,” Maddy says in the film.
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“Want to get some doughnuts?” Charlie asks, and what ensues is an endearing bonding trip to the South Side staple Buckeye Donuts.
Over the 18 months it took her to write the script with her now-husband — the couple tied the knot shortly after filming ended in 2020 — Vogley Woods, a prominent visual artist, said they discussed a multitude of topics to include.
It was especially important to her to explore sexuality and what that can look like for two older consenting adults.
Exploring sexuality
In the movie, Lisa is heavily involved with “kink” — which can range from feathers and whipped cream to full-on dominatrix — and filmmakers consulted with those in the kink community to make sure they portrayed the scenes accurately.
For advice, the filmmakers turned to the husband-and-wife Drew and Trina Gardinier, of Pickerington.
“At first we did consulting in some of the writing and that it took into account that kinky people in Columbus are soccer moms and dads — normal people,” said Trina Gardinier, who along with her husband, runs Adventures in Sexuality, the largest kink organization in Ohio.
But soon, Sherman and Vogley Woods approached her about playing Lauren, the dominatrix in the film, who is an old friend of Lisa’s and who helps Charlie explore this new side of himself.
“It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” Trina Gardinier said.
Both Gardiniers were honored to be a part of the project and for the opportunity to showcase just how important sexuality is to being human.
“The main thing for me is I am really thrilled people are challenging the dominant paradigm and embracing the alternative, whether that be kink, gender fluidity, nonbinary,” Drew Gardinier said.
Hargreaves, who plays artist Lisa, fell in love with the story of the couple and children, who many involved with the project agreed stole the show.
Danny, played by recent University of Cincinnati graduate Jack Steiner, boasts a hard exterior but ultimately leans on his family when he needs them most, whereas his sister Anna, played by Cleveland native Shanna Strong, strives to be perfect but eventually finds solace in her new housemates, siblings Courtney (Sarah Eddy) and Maddy (Bean).
“I absolutely loved working with the four of them,” Hargreaves said. “Casting did such a great job and the young actors bring the four teenagers to life so beautifully.”
Her favorite scene to film was the one in which the entire family goes go-karting, one of the lighter ones of movie to help balance the weightiness of some of the real subject matters the film tackles.
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“The film shows that it’s never too late to make a change and live your life however you want,” said Hargreaves, who is longtime friends with her co-star Slotnick. “That applies to the grown-up characters and the teenagers.”
Sherman, who recently moved to the Old Oaks neighborhood near Downtown with his family, said “They/Them/Us” is really all about redefining…
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