Director Zen Pace’s debut narrative short FRAUD starring Dana Aliya Levinson (STARZ’s American Gods) and Babak Tafti (Showtime’s Super Pumped), subverts the crime thriller genre by centering marginalized characters grappling with identity, love, and immigrant experiences. Levinson also wrote this timely tale. The Tribeca Film Festival is FRAUD’s World Premiere and the film is screening in competition.
Synopsis: A trans rocker girl getting by with petty credit card theft is forced to question who she wants to be when her latest target surprises her with an unforeseen proposition.
Dana and Zen are a queer creative duo who met in an AA meeting and became sober together. They found a healing space in each other’s creativity and through this bond they formed an artistic partnership.
Watch the official trailer for FRAUD as directed by Zen Pace
Dana Aliya Levinson (they/she) is an actor (AMERICAN GODS, THE GOOD FIGHT, ADAM), and television writer. She was a Dramatists Guild Fellow and her theatrical work has been performed from California to Paris. Her pilot script, FRAUD, which this short is based on, was named one of the top eight unmade LGBTQ+ pilot scripts of 2022 by The GLAAD List in association with The Black List.
Nonbinary Director Zen Zadih Pace’s work has been featured in top film festivals such as the Palm Springs; HollyShorts; and Rhode Island Film Festivals. Their work has appeared in PAPER, Huffington Post, Film Shortage, and more. Zen was labeled ‘Fresh Talent’ by the Shiny Awards for their short doc A LOVE BEYOND about a man with down syndrome finding a home after losing his parents to the pandemic.
Babak Tafti was most recently seen in Season 2 of SUCCESSION. His other notable credits include ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK, RAMY, AND BLUE BLOODS. He can currently be seen in Showtime’s SUPER PUMPED.
Up next, Dana and Zen are working on their first feature, JUDE. Taking place in a family’s home over Yom Kippur, JUDE is a surrealist psychological thriller about grief, atonement, and the lies we tell to survive.
FRAUD was produced by K. Dawn Dumas, Erikx Disantis, Amanda Mesaikos, Katie Rosin, and Gretchen Wylder. The stunning cinematography was created by Oren Soffer who is currently co-DP alongside DUNE cinematographer Greig Fraser on TRUE LOVE, directed by Gareth Edwards.
FRAUD, presented by Their Films in association with V-Day/One Billion Rising and Red Rope Productions, screens at Tribeca Film Festival on Friday, June 10th at 9:15 pm and Wednesday, June 15th at 9 pm.
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