Upper Thirties is created by Jennifer Anderson and Kaitlyn Krieg and produced by Rodriguez de Conte's Phat Camp Productions. This web series shows the realities of female friendships as we age. Popular series like “Broad City" focus on women in their twenties, but not many talk about what happens in that awkward transition between “college kid scraping by” and “middle-aged adult with a 401K."
Upper Thirties, a web series by Jennifer Anderson and Kaitlyn Krieg, highlights the inevitable changes that our friendships go through as we get older.
In the series we meet Kait and Jen, two best friends who couldn't seem more different. Kait is a single lesbian living for late mornings and lots of hookups, but under the surface longs for something deeper. Jen is a married woman with a loving husband and a cushy HR job, but wonders if societal expectations may rob her of excitement and freedom.
Through outrageous gender reveals, neighborhood sex shops, and crazy undercover cults (that serve really, really good chili), Kait and Jen navigate a challenge that most millennials face: barreling toward middle-age with none of the benchmarks they were promised, and watching their relationships morph into something new.
MEET THE CREATORS and PRODUCERS OF 'UPPER THIRTIES':
Jennifer Anderson (co-creator, co-writer, "Jen")
She is an writer, actor, singer and improviser. She co-created the show "Missed Connections" which featured comedic legend Gilbert Gottfried, and her work has been seen on stages and screens through the New York City area. Her short film "Screaming Place", produced by EOTI Studios, was a finalist for Best Narrative Short at the Monmouth Film Festival. Her television pilot "Sadist" has been a finalist in many screenwriting competitions, including NYC's Festival of Cinema. You can hear Jennifer on "Fairy Tales", a song cycle written by Benjamin and Jennifer Shorstein, available on all streaming platforms. She is also part of Dean's Killer Podcast, which you can also find across streaming platforms. In addition to Upper Thirties, she's currently developing a one-woman show. www.jenniferanderson.com
Kaitlyn Krieg (so-creator, co-writer, "Kait")
She is a director, writer, actor and improviser. She is the co-creator of the web series "Kait & Nic" about two queer women and their struggles with dating in New York City, whichw as features at the 2018's ClexaCon Film Festival in Las Vegas. She is also the creator of the short film "Allein" following the struggles of a young woman battling her depression after a bad breakup, which was part of the 2020 Lift-Off Global Network, Manchester. Both can be found on YouTube. While working on Upper Thirties, she is also in teh process of writing her first feature film, which she is hoping will the sapphic community their first true lesbian romcom since 2006.
Dr. Christy Rodriguez de Conte (Producer, "Chris)
Artist, Activist, and Scholar, Dr. Christy Rodriguez de Conte, holds a Ph.D. in Theatre Studies from Florida State University and a Master’s in Theatre Education and Applied Theatre from Emerson College. She prides herself on living a hybrid artistic identity that values both the creative production of theatre and the critical collective conversation. Key acting roles include Lady Macbeth (Macbeth), Jason (Medea), and Eddie/Dr. Scott (The Rocky Horror Show). Directing credits include The Cuban Swimmer, Macbeth, and Shakespeare Night Live. Her two solo shows, Other and Butch, Pregnant & Pissed (on myself), travel through Rodriguez de Conte’s investigation
of the Butch identity and the complicated perceptions placed on queer people. For over a decade, Rodriguez de Conte has performed/directed/written with The Mickee Faust Academy for the Really Dramatic Arts, a thirty-year-old radical queer and disability theatre collective. Through Faust Rodriguez de Conte wrote and produced a lesbian super-shero comedy, Shero: Femme Fatale, as well as The Mystery of the Violated Vagina, an absurdist comedy that investigates trauma and rape culture. Currently, Rodriguez de Conte happily returns to wearing the hat of film/television producer with projects like the short film Redlining, which tells a story of the discriminatory practice of America’s housing history, Schmidt's Circuit, a live comedy web series created by Cheryl Chase, and the hilarious new series Upper Thirties, which explores the comedic commitment needed to cultivate one's chosen family.
Under a recent stitched version of our teaser that Kaitlyn posted on TikTok, we received the following comment:
"I work in television and I'm always telling people that there is no one representing me on tv!!"
And this, friends, is exactly why were telling this story. Who better to tell a story about being an elder millennial then two elder millennials. We, like you, understand the struggle -- to find a job with health insurance and plan for the future while trying to maintain a shred of dignity of what was promised for us, the fear of never reaching “important” milestones, and having to work until our 80’s because will social security even exist when we reach those ages? (we promise this is a comedy)
Are there elder millennial women on tv? Sure, but they're either high-powered and super successful (do you actually know anyone in real life like that?) Or, they're wives and mothers...and ONLY wives and mothers.
With Upper Thirties, our goal is to portray a more accurate (and hilarious) version of life that so many of us face. Who better to tell the story than two women creeping towards 40 (or past it, shhhhhhh). And what better time to tell the story than now? Why not have a show where we can laugh at ourselves and commiserate with characters facing the same challenges we are?
Your contributions will help us with all production costs associated with making this series. Once we're wrapped and the episodes are completed, we'll be releasing the series for free on sites like YouTube and Vimeo, while also focusing on festival submissions and streaming network pitches.
Right now, our scripts are locked and we've got our dream team cast in mind. This campaign will move us forward by allowing us to hire crew, secure our desired locations (sex shops are EXPENSIVE to rent, ya'll), get all the equipment we'll need to film, and compensate everyone involved -- at least a little. Once funds are received, we hope to start filming in summer 2025. Our campaign will also allow us to submit Upper Thirties to film festivals and other competitions, with the hopes of gaining traction and attention for release on streaming networks.
If we're able to raise more than we need, we'll be able to compensate our cast and crew at an even greater level. Our talented friends can't pay the bills with exposure, and it's has always been our goal to provide them with the kind of $$$ that they're worth.