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Managing editor & film and television critic with a Bachelor's of Arts in English Literature with a Writing Minor from the University of Guam. Currently in graduate school completing a Master's in English Literature.
The first short film that I got to see at the Tribeca Film Festival this year—and the seventh film that I will be covering in general—is a cute one. Fame and Other Four-Letter Words is quite the cheesy narrative for its format. At the same time, it is straightforward in presenting takeaway messages. Running at a bit over fourteen minutes, this science-fiction comedy short has some amusing screenwriting that will have viewers thinking for a moment or two.
Fame and Other Four-Letter Words is written and directed by producer Miranda Kahn.
In this review, I will discuss Fame and Other Four-Letter Words. As this article’s title suggests, no spoilers will be present.
Tribeca’s Fame and Other Four-Letter Words Synopsis
According to Mirmade Productions, here is the official synopsis for Miranda Kahn’s science-fiction comedy short film, Fame and Other Four-Letter Words.
Fame and Other Four-Letter Words follows Jackie, a self-obsessed influencer whose life revolves around chasing likes, luxury, and fame. Her younger sister, Maxine, a brilliant but overlooked scientist, is always in the background, reluctantly helping Jackie with her social media stunts. But when Jackie is hit by a car while trying to catch a celebrity’s attention, she wakes up in a bizarre new reality—one where fame is meaningless, and her sister is celebrated for her intellect and achievements.
As Jackie struggles to navigate this upside-down world, she’s forced to confront the superficiality of her old life and rediscover the value of real relationships, especially with Maxine. With her followers gone and her influencer persona irrelevant, Jackie must finally learn that family, connection, and authenticity might just be worth more than all the followers in the world.
Fame and Other Four-Letter Words is a comedic and heartfelt exploration of sisterhood, self-worth, and the pressures of social media in the age of influencers.
Mirmade Productions
Discussion
Fame and Other Four-Letter Words can be a guessing game in trying to figure out what the “other four-letter words” even are. Miranda Kahn features abstract details, including a wish, a “half” birthday concept, the metaphor of a giraffe named Milo, and ultimately, the love between two sisters. Individually, these ideas work, but I’m curious how Kahn and her production crew can further mesh them together in a more cohesive manner. The film exhibits promise, yet it could fare greater with several more minutes.
On the surface, its lead, Jacqueline “Jackie” Carr (Chloe Cherry), is eerily invested in the idea of fame. However, like so many young people today, she miscontrues what it means to influence public perception. The “influencer” has replaced important matters such as family, wildlife, and memory. That is not to mention that too many people on social media, whether it be the spheres of YouTube, TikTok, OnlyFans, etc., share similar ideologies of beauty, i.e., beauty defined by an Other. In becoming so much like the Other, people have changed into Sames, hence the parasocial stan groups we know of today.
An Epoché of Change
The Tribeca short often shows how people are redefined by time, historicity, and the milieu of everything altogether. Kahn and editors Kate Pedatella and Megan Heard include video home system (VHS) footage to remind the audience of what once was. Birthday parties were once genuinely fun, and the family used to hold weight in an America’s Funniest Home Videos era of living.
There is a joke earlier on in a film about child celebrity, North West, being “wasted” at a Gucci party. The timing is odd, given the activities that her father, Kanye West (or “Ye”), has been roping her into, from a music video made with artificial intelligence (AI) and being in the same room as Sean “Diddy” Combs. Conversely, Greta Thunberg is still treated as an activist, which is a positive aspect. Aside from these, Kahn interestingly examines human life from a fictional angle. What if music artist Taylor Swift openly cared for the environment and instead specialized in water filter manufacturing? What if celebrity Kim Kardashian was actually a successful lawyer akin to Erin Brockovich?
Kahn’s rhetorical style—that is, her choice of words—is a challenge that gives Fame and Other Four-Letter Words its ethos. The writer-director’s use of the term “influencer” to sound similar to the medical infection, influenza, is intelligent. She also ties Gucci to climate activism in a rather clever way, which has its peculiar outcomes.
The Technical Elements
Still, where the screenwriting may not be for everyone, Kahn also carries the narrative with her music supervision and her assistance in the casting department. Her selection of “It All Began with a Burst” by Kishi Bashi is fantastical, transitioning the lead from one reality to the next. “Something for Your M.I.N.D.” by Superorganism is another great track, which plays as Carr discovers herself in a new sort of metaphysics of being. “Everything I Own” by Bread alters both mood and tone as she realizes the error of her ways, albeit not too detrimental.
Production designer Katie Balun and art director Jaclyn Goldstein bring Fame and Other Four-Letter Words to life with their set pieces. The mini paintings of celebrities framed and put up on Jackie Carr’s bedroom wall are neat set decorations. PAPER magazine’s cover of Kim Kardashian “breaking the Internet”, Marilyn Monroe in her dress, and Miley Cyrus swinging on the wrecking ball—if it weren’t for the painting of rappers Nicki Minaj and Drake on the wall, too, then I would think another four-letter word here would be “lady” or “girl”.
Casting director Stephanie Holbrook and Kahn are largely inclusive of women in the short, especially in the appearance of HBO’s Girls star, Jemima Kirke. She appears in what might be my favorite scene, wherein extras casting director Rita Powers has a horde of paparazzi flood an alleyway. Director of photography Charlotte Hornsby is definitely the steadiest element that grabs my attention from scene to scene. I believe the short could head somewhere if polished better, but this is fine, too.
The Crew Behind Fame and Other Four-Letter Words
Charlotte Hornsby serves as the director of photography. Matt Atwood serves as the gaffer.
Kate Pedatella serves as the editor. Megan Heard serves as the additional editor.
Kahn serves as the music supervisor.
Jacob Brody serves as the sound designer and sound mixer. Brody is also the ADR engineer alongside Ignacio Zas.
Stephanie Holbrook serves as the casting director.
Kahn does additional casting. Rita Powers is the extras casting director.
Leo Giannopoulos serves as the stunt coordinator.
Nicolas Coccaro serves as the stunt performer/ driver.
Daylen Chiang serves as the storyboard artist.
Katie Balun serves as the production designer.
Jaclyn Goldstein serves as the art director.
Evren Catlin serves as the costume designer.
Samson Smith serves as the hair and makeup department head.
Sarah Plata is the hair and makeup assistant. Plata also serves as one of a few behind-the-scenes photographers.
The Cast of Fame and Other Four-Letter Words
Chloe Cherry (HBO’s Euphoria, Charlie XCX’s “360” music video) portrays the Tribeca short’s protagonist, Jacqueline “Jackie” Carr.
Executive producer Francesca Scorsese (Luca Guadagnino’s We Are Who We Are, Crimson Ties) portrays Maxine Carr, Jackie’s sister.
Mary Catherine Garrison plays Cindy Carr, the girls’ mother.
Jemima Kirke (Girls, Maniac, Sex Education Series 3, Conversations with Friends) appears as herself.
Executive producer Aubrey Strobel appears as a friend of Jemima Kirke.
Richie Shazam plays “Girl with No Brain”. Niki Takesh appears as “Something Nasty”.
Kareem Rahma plays a bird lover.
Peter Vack plays the GUCCI founder. Kate Jean Hollowell plays the GUCCI event host.
Devon Walker plays a GUCCI event attendee named Eric.
Ruby McCollister and Scott Mendlinger play a party girl and a party guest, respectively.
Lauren Servideo appears as a Chanel guru.
Kahn cameos as a superfan of Jackie’s.
Character Developments and Performances
While I have not seen Francesca Scorsese in too many films or her TikTok videos, her acting career suggests she is becoming a seasoned professional. Maxine Carr’s circumstances are not too bad, but how Kahn writes her into the narrative is awkward. Where does this character venture to when off-screen? Why does her (half) birthday wish serve her sister and not as a self-fulfillment purpose? The juxtaposition between the two sisters is felt. However, Fame and Other Four-Letter Words would perform better if viewers saw more of Maxine’s perspective.
By comparison, Chloe Cherry’s role as Jackie Carr is decent. ADR engineers Jacob Brody and Ignacio Zas do run into trouble in a couple of scenes, but Carr is otherwise a good character. Even if she isn’t multi-faceted, Kahn writes her as a regular human being with human flaws. Cherry’s acting isn’t too bad, and I can see her going places if she chooses to widen her film credits.
Final Thoughts on Miranda Kahn’s Tribeca Short, Fame and Other Four-Letter Words
This Tribeca short is not perfect, but I can see the filmmaker’s potential in wanting to craft a memorable story from “words”. It’s a motion picture in the sense that Kahn guides viewers through one frame of art to the next and so on until the last. Overall, Fame and Other Four-Letter Words highlights values soon to be lost with the passage of time. As a matter of fact, loss and time are other four-letter words to add to the list. Therefore, perhaps Kahn’s film will age fairly.
4/5 stars
Miranda Kahn’s Fame and Other Four-Letter Words is now playing at the Tribeca Film Festival!
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Managing editor & film and television critic with a Bachelor's of Arts in English Literature with a Writing Minor from the University of Guam. Currently in graduate school completing a Master's in English Literature.
