'Dirty Towel': UF grad's coming-of-age short film to premiere at Tribeca Film Festival

A coming-of-age short film co-written by a University of Florida graduate will premiere next month at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York City.

"Dirty Towel," with a total run time of 12 minutes and 23 seconds, centers around a teenage girl named Charlie who struggles with shame and guilt after having sex for the first time, leading her to explore her conflicting emotions of generational shame and her own self-worth.

Film director and co-writer Callie Carpinteri said in a promotional packet that "women are often made to feel ashamed of their sexual choices."

"Whether stemming from religious beliefs, societal expectations, or personal relationships, myself and many of the women in my life have experienced this shame in one way or another," she said. "These toxic beliefs perpetuate a culture where sex remains taboo and speaking openly about it is discouraged. This is especially damaging for teenagers navigating their identities. The lack of comprehensive sexual education and the fear of being judged can pressure teens to make decisions they aren't comfortable with or compel them to conceal their true feelings."

Carpinteri said the short film acts as an effort to "change this narrative and empower women to be confident in their choices, free from the opinions of others."

Through exploring themes of self-worth, societal expectations, sexual empowerment and generational shame, her statement said, Carpinteri's goal for "Dirty Towel" is to "spark meaningful conversations and catalyze a collective shift in societal perspectives around sex and shame."

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Carpinteri thought up the film after conversations with her cousin Emma Parks, "Dirty Towel" co-writer and lead actress, regarding the social stigma around women's' sexual experiences. Parks shared a story of a friend's mother, who used a white towel and dirty handprints to relay the stigma of sex, which later inspired the "Dirty Towel" metaphor.

"My hope for the film is that whoever watches this, regardless if they're a woman or not... I want them to, hopefully, feel seen in the film and, ultimately, just understand that, you know, their choices are their choices, regardless of what anybody else has to say about them," said Carpinteri in an interview with The Sun.

The two decided to write the short film in March 2023, filmed in August 2023 and completed post-production in December 2023. After graduating from UF in December 2022, Carpinteri moved to Los Angeles the following month and decided she wanted to work on what she called a "passion project."

Carpinteri said she hopes to turn the story into a full-length feature film and expand into the story of the main character's mother.

Cassidy Campbell, producer, said in an email to The Sun that less than 1% of films get selected to be shown at the Tribeca Film Festival, which runs June 5-16.

"Beyond the facet of sexuality, the film is also a lot about shame, and just how we internally and personally deal with that," said Campbell in an interview with The Sun. "I think the hope is that everybody can feel a little bit more seen and feel less shameful about their decisions throughout their life."

Campbell graduated from UF in spring 2023 and is working locally in Gainesville. She said she hopes to gain more experience producing and branch into feature films.

Both Florida natives, Carpinteri and Campbell obtained degrees in telecommunications (with a specialization in digital film and TV) from UF. Additionally, over half of those involved with the creation of the short film — such as the production designer, editor and producers — graduated from UF.

"Dirty Towel" will premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 7 with some additional showings in theaters the following week.

This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Dirty Towel short film to premiere at Tribeca Film Festival in NYC