Park Bench
Donation protected
Hi! My name is Anika, and this is a story I've been dreaming of sharing with you...
"Two best friends tackle life's twists from the (dis)comfort of their local park bench."
Help our team create Park Bench, a heartwarming slice-of-life short film!
Why this project?
This film exists because stories like this rarely do.
Park Bench warmly explores what friendship means. At its heart, this is a story about love and laughter. About how life cannot be a perfect fairytale, how we're left guessing, but also about how much better it all is when you face the various bumps in the road with someone else.
This tale challenges the default narrative that places romance at the center of male-female friendships. Jules and Sim simply exist as they are—messy, funny, thoughtful, and entirely platonic.
More than anything, this is a personal film. It grew from scraps of my own experiences, conversations, and questions I’ve wrestled with. And, honestly? I’m sharing this story because I love it. It’s open, authentic, and definitely playful.
Help us create a movie that feels like a warm hug on a chilly evening.
Cheers!
Anika and the Park Bench Team
Production
Park Bench will be filmed in the Netherlands, September 2025. Our dedicated team is ready to bring this story to life. To make this film as strong, beautiful, and meaningful as we'd like, we're searching for funding for equipment rentals, location-related fees, and the various other costs directly associated with filmmaking. If this project resonates with you, please consider donating and sharing this project with your network!
Artistic Vision
We've got a plan, now we have to make it happen...
Zooming in on the beautiful, yet imperfect relationship between Sim and Jules, Park Bench is a character study. We capture this through various techniques: lens flares and soft focus, unconventional camera angles, and subtle film grain.
The score, composed by Elijah Liu, is elegant, soft, and quite playful and quirky.
Despite being best friends, Sim and Jules differ significantly. Whereas Sim can’t sit still for the life of her and sees humor as the epitome of intelligence, Jules is the kind of person who could tame a feral cat (or a small child) through sheer patience. This contrast is reflected in their clothing, as well as in the objects they carry with them.
Meet the Team
How to keep in touch
We'd love to keep you in the loop about the progress of the Park Bench project. Movies take a while to make, and you'll be able to follow our story, from funding to filmfestivals:
Newsletter: all donors will receive important updates (and a waffle cart club sticker! :D) via the newsletter. Please get in touch with us to be added to the list!
Due to the international nature of this project, funds will simultaneously be raised via GoFundMe and Voordekunst (a Dutch fundraising and fund-matching site). For an overview of the combined campaign progress, check out our socials where we will post regular updates! All income from both campaigns goes entirely into the project.
Thank you for your generosity!
Organizer
Anika Vroom
Organizer