Beverly Heights

Marci seems to have it all – she’s the star of a hit high school TV show, dating her co-star, and living the dream in sunny Los Angeles. But under the appearance of this perfect perfect Hollywood life, she is finding it harder and harder to hide who she truly is. With Beverly Heights, writer/director Alyssa Aldaz reimagines the classic girl-next-door success story through a female and queer lens, subverting audience expectations with a carefully crafted, eerie atmosphere.

“As a lesbian, I’ve often seen our lives reduced to clichés”

“Beverly Heights started with a dream – a pair of red heels sinking to the bottom of a pool”, Aldaz shared with us. This symbol of femininity, mainly created by men, is unsurprisingly reductive. “As a lesbian, I’ve often seen our lives reduced to clichés – either fetishized for shock value or softened to feel more palatable”, she added. Aldaz cites But I’m a Cheerleader and Mulholland Drive as key influences, references that won’t feel surprising after watching her film. Hoping to challenge the familiar narratives we are so used to seeing, the filmmaker crafts a complex queer story, grounded in authenticity that, beyond its striking style, resonates with universal tones. 

The film heavily relies on the juxtaposition between Marci’s seemingly perfect life set against her inner turmoil and unhappiness, with her only escape found in her dreams. The Lynchian atmosphere that Aldaz builds with DP Mélisse Riahi, shooting on 16mm, perfectly echoes Marci’s state of mind – a little lost, trapped and wanting something different. While there is no direct threat to her life, we feel her deep dissatisfaction and longing for more. Even the color palette enhances this feeling, making her real life – like the TV show she stars in – feel fake, while her dreams paradoxically seem more real. Beverly Heights immerses its audience in Marci’s world, helping us to understand and empathize with her situation, caught in between external expectations and what she truly wants.

“Film has a warmth and richness that digital can’t replicate, and for this story, that texture was essential” – Aldaz discussing her decision to shoot on 16mm

As the film progresses, Marci’s growing desire becomes palpable through the pacing and score composed by Forest Christenson. The build-up is effective, allowing the final scene to deliver a genuine sense of relief. Unafraid to admit that she loves the “wild, campy films of the ’70s and ’80s”, Aldaz plays with that aesthetic and ultimately creates a film that feels timeless, avoiding ties to any specific decade. “I rarely saw myself in the stories I loved growing up. Beverly Heights is my way of bringing those classic films back to life – this time, with a queer person at the center”, she explained. Between the set design, costumes and the decision to shoot on film, Aldaz infuses Beverly Heights with a nostalgic, dreamlike quality, making her short undeniably inviting and captivating.

Beverly Heights had its World Premiere at the 2024 edition of the Palm Springs ShortFest, before hitting the festival circuit, and then debuting online here on Short of the Week. Aldaz is currently developing her first feature Cutthroat, which she describes as “a psychological thriller set in the world of ballet, where the character’s sexuality is just one layer of a dark and more complex narrative”.