"Midnight Mass" Student Film

Midnight Mass is, above all, a film about waiting. About the weight of things left unsaid, the dissonance between appearances and interiority, and the roles expected of women in society.

It’s a reimagining of a short story by the Brazilian writer Machado de Assis, here transformed into a queer film following the interaction between two women: Clara and Gloria.

Set across two timelines—1964 and 1972—it explores the emotional and psychological reverberations of a single night that haunts Clara into adulthood. At its core, it's a story about a moment of recognition and intimacy between two women, caught in the constraints of domesticity and patriarchal structures, who share an intense connection during a Christmas night.

Through Clara’s voiceover, we follow her thoughts and memories from the evening she spent at her uncle’s home while waiting for the Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve.

Hello! My name is Iara Watanabe, and I am the writer and director of Midnight Mass, a student film co-produced by Alex Romero and Jayden Husfeld.

We are currently in the pre-production stage, and our team is composed of passionate students who are working really hard to make this project a reality. Our team is working tirelessly as we approach our shooting dates from June 6th to 8th. After production, we will dive into post-production, where the story takes shape and finds its final product.

Our dream is to share Midnight Mass with audiences around the world by submitting it to a variety of film festivals, from local showcases to major international venues.

However, student filmmaking relies heavily on community support!

The funds we raise will directly cover vital production needs, such as:

By supporting Midnight Mass, you are helping a group of young filmmakers tell a story that speaks to universal human emotions—and you become part of the journey to bring meaningful, heartfelt cinema into the world.