PMA Alum Sara Chiang-Pistono '21 is the Associate Producer for a new film called Dateless to Dangerous: My Son's Secret Life, which premiered June 21 on Lifetime and is available to stream on Amazon Prime and Hulu+.
Dateless to Dangerous follows a teen who becomes angry, isolated and hostile when he's rejected by a few girls at school. When he joins a shadowy online underworld that fuels his growing resentment, his mother and sister race against time to try and save him. The film is directed by Stefan Brogren, and stars Jodie Sweetin, Alexander Elliot, Nikki Rommel, Kolton Stewart and Husein Madhavji.
Chiang-Pistono took some time to discuss her work on the film:
Could you share a bit about your role in the production and what you enjoyed about the process?
I came up with the original concept back in 2022, and with the help of my team at FOX Entertainment Studios – a studio I am proud to be a part of that creates scripted, unscripted, and animated content across all genres and formats - pitched and sold it to Lifetime. The film itself is centered around the dangerous rise of incel culture, and I am honored to have been a part of such an important story. As this was one of my first films as an associate producer, I thoroughly enjoyed being a part of all aspects of development, production, and post. Through brainstorm sessions with the writers, doing notes on a new draft, or reviewing various cuts, I was able to gain a much deeper understanding of filmmaking and producing. I am grateful to the creative team for being such amazing collaborators, and my incredible co-workers for their mentorship and for championing the movie. I look forward to my next project!
How did your time at PMA influence your career trajectory?
Throughout most of my time in the PMA Department, I had a theater focus. However, when the pandemic hit my junior year, I was forced to turn my senior thesis play into a film. Initially, I was terrified at the change - I’d never considered going into film and was intimidated by how technical I assumed directing and producing for the camera would be. However, I quickly found that I loved the medium - my project, ASIAMNESIA, a play by Sun Mee Chomet, was able to have a life beyond the curtain falling and reach a much wider audience than it ever could’ve as a play. Although my pivot into film came quite late, much of what I studied in the theater department at Cornell has still been incredibly valuable in my profession. Everything I learned in the PMA Department about story, structure, and character, continues to influence how I approach new scripts and development. I am grateful for the wonderful professors in the department, my incredible peers, and am continuously inspired by the amazing student work I see coming out of the PMA department - even post-graduation.
Read more about the film.
