Sunny Afternoon
In this suspenseful and twisted crime/thriller, a young mobster faces a life-altering confrontation with his menacing associate in a New York City jazz club when a seemingly routine payday meeting takes an unexpected turn.
John Field Brown is a 20-year-old filmmaker and videographer from Austin, TX currently pursuing a BFA in Film Production at Texas State University. For the past three years, he has built an extensive resume, working on over 40 sets in both the Production and Grip & Electric Departments on narrative, commercial, corporate, and live event projects for notable companies such as FOX Sports, WarnerMedia, and UPROXX. He has also worked on set under credible filmmakers such as Bryan Poyser, Johnny McAllister, and Chris Beier. John currently works as the Videographer and Editor for KW Cares.
Since 2021, John has written, directed, produced, and edited five of his own short films, “Sunny Afternoon” being his latest. His short films have gone on to screen at reputable film festivals such as the Waco Independent Film Festival, El Paso Film Festival, and Austin Under the Stars, as well as winning “Best Student Film” at the 2022 Austin Spotlight Film Festival. John’s achievements also include multiple wins for Best Writing, Best Cinematography, Best Editor, and Best Young Filmmaker.
As John continues to pursue a career in film producing, he established his own production company, FieldFilms, in early 2023 to provide a dedicated platform for showcasing his current and future portfolio of narrative, commercial, and corporate work.
“Sunny Afternoon was born out of a deeply personal moment in my life. Emotions I experienced during a major change caused me to formulate the script for the dramatic, thrilling and emotion-filled short you see today, with the help of my co-writer, Jasper Jones. This film is merely a reflection of those moments of sadness, anger, and confusion with layers of dramatization, jazz music, New York City, and the mafia helping build the world around these characters.
At its core, Sunny Afternoon explores themes of loyalty, nostalgia, personal growth, reflection, and self-discovery. Through the protagonist’s eyes, we witness a crucial moment in his life when one fatal decision completely alters his future. The juxtaposition of a happy and gleeful “Sunny Afternoon” with the underlying extremities of this film reinforces the idea that everything can look bright and sunny on the outside but is actually rather opposite on the inside.
Visually, I wanted to introduce the film with the warmth and vibrancy of a sunset, using a rich color palette to create that basement jazz club atmosphere. With the introduction to our characters, I wanted to capture the more intense contrast in the space, giving it a dark underlying tone. The cinematography is deliberately intimate, drawing the audience close to the characters’ emotions and experiences.
There were many, many challenges in making this film. I find myself to be an extremely ambitious writer, director, and producer, so I tend to subconsciously raise the bar with each movie I make. The biggest question we faced with this film was: How do we make a movie with two characters sitting and talking at a table for 12 minutes entertaining? Through careful direction and collaboration with my cast and co-writer, we managed to find a harmonious blend that flows the duality of the lighthearted small talk at the beginning and extremely dark dialogue at the end quite nicely in order to evoke audience reactions while keeping their engagement.
Sunny Afternoon is not just a short film but a piece of my own journey as a filmmaker and a person. It’s a tribute to the small yet profound moments that define us and shape us into the person we are today.”