A Central Coast College Rom-Com
An engineering student defined by her controlling boyfriend's "promise ring" has to relearn what partnership looks like once he puts her — and their four years together — "on hold." As she rebuilds, she keeps landing back in his shadow, until she has to ask whether the quiet best friend who's been waiting for her all along was ever really just waiting.
Ally Urqel arrives at her Central Coast college wearing a promise ring from her high-school boyfriend, Jarrod, who wants "everyone to know she's his." She throws herself into a brutal engineering curriculum alongside a tight, odd-duck study group — Trey, the Russian-accented Ivan, car-obsessed Alonso, ex-surfer Steve, and homebrewer Drew — while Jarrod's control tightens at the same pace: he vets her friendships, edits her wardrobe, and eventually makes her promise not to spend time with the guys in her study group at all.
Trey, Ivan's roommate and Ally's climbing-gym rescuer, refuses to act on his feelings out of loyalty — he won't be a homewrecker — even as everyone around him, including Ivan, tells him he's a fool for waiting. Then, on the eve of his own graduation, Jarrod puts the relationship "on hold" so he can "play the field," promising to "come back and take her as his wife" if she doesn't "burn any bridges." Ally throws the ring.
Trey pulls her out of the spiral (a storm at Pirates Cove, a surprise PSL at anime club), but Ally's first instinct once she's ready to date again is Alonso — charming, attentive, and, she slowly realizes, running the same possessive playbook as Jarrod. She breaks it off ("I am no one's woman") and starts asking, out loud, why she keeps choosing this.
Ally and Trey's friendship deepens into something neither will name until a drunken birthday dinner, where Ally accidentally "proposes" over sushi, and a 21st-birthday kiss in front of Jarrod that Trey later insists wasn't a real kiss at all — and then makes good on that claim. Years later, both building careers, Trey works up the nerve to buy a ring and finally ask — only for Ally to beat him to it again, inviting him into a new home before he can get the question out. He proposes anyway. They end the film exactly where the story always pointed: unremarkable, domestic, and entirely chosen.
Arrives at her Central Coast college wearing her high-school boyfriend's promise ring, determined to be exactly who everyone already expects her to be. Four years of engineering problem sets teach her to show her work — on paper, and eventually, in her own life.
Ivan's roommate, Ally's climbing-gym rescuer, and the only guy in the study group who refuses to make a move — not because he doesn't want to, but because he won't be the reason a relationship ends.
Charming, easy to love, and never once thinks of himself as controlling — which is exactly the point. He wants everyone to know Ally is his, right up until he decides he'd rather find out who else is out there.
Trey's built-in hype man and reality check, running commentary included. Half of the study group's comic engine.
Ivan's other half in the study group's running bit — the two of them are the film's release valve whenever things get heavy.
Car-obsessed, attentive, and — Ally slowly realizes — running a playbook she's seen before, just in a nicer jacket.
...and the rest of the study group: Steve (ex-surfer) and Drew (homebrewer), holding down the back row of every lecture hall.
Union and non-union performers both considered. We're a scrappy, weekend-shoot indie — bring your realest read, not a polished reel.
How to submit
Early 20s. Comedic timing paired with real dramatic range; ballet-trained posture or movement is a plus. Ally carries almost every scene — needs to sell both "controlled" and "self-possessed" without a costume change doing the work for her.
Audition with all of Ally's scenes, including the climbing-gym rescue (Scene 25) and the Madonna Inn date night (Scene 50). Full sides available on request.
Tall, physically capable — climbing sells or breaks Scenes 24–25 and 52 — understated, dry humor rather than broad. The love story only works if restraint reads as strength, not blandness.
Audition with all of Trey's scenes, including the climbing-gym rescue (Scenes 24–25), Scene 52, and the proposal (Scenes 66–67). Full sides available on request.
Charismatic, magnetic, genuinely likable on first read. If Jarrod plays as an obvious villain the whole first act collapses — the story depends on the audience understanding why Ally stayed.
Audition with all of Jarrod's scenes. Full sides available on request.
Comedic chops and strong two-hander chemistry with Shirley — the two of you are the study group's comic engine.
Audition with all of Ivan's scenes. Full sides available on request.
Comedic chops and strong two-hander chemistry with Ivan — providing tonal relief throughout.
Audition with all of Shirley's scenes. Full sides available on request.
Polished, controlled charm — a mirror of Jarrod at a different register. Needs to land as a believable rebound, not a cartoon repeat.
Audition with all of Alonso's scenes. Full sides available on request.
Free Body Diagram is shooting scrappy and local — a weekend-only schedule on real Central Coast locations. If you want in, tell us where you fit. All backgrounds and experience levels welcome.
Roles we're building out
Prefer to just email us directly? Write to holly@freebodydiagramthefilm.com.
An ultra-low-budget, festival-and-crowdfunding-ready feature, produced on real Central Coast locations the filmmaker already has relationships with.
Why This Story
Why Now
Tone, romantic structure, YA-adjacent crossover appeal.
Proof a mid-budget, star-light rom-com can break out theatrically and on streaming.
College-adjacent coming-of-age stakes handled with warmth over cynicism.
Closest tonal cousin — a quieter, character-driven campus romance built on a slow-burn friendship.
| Role | Target profile | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Ally | Early 20s; comedic timing with real dramatic range; ideally ballet-trained posture/movement. | Carries almost every scene. |
| Trey | Tall, physically capable (climbing sells Scenes 24–25, 52); understated, dry humor. | Highest-risk casting decision in the film. |
| Jarrod | Charismatic, magnetic, genuinely likable. | If he reads as a villain, act one collapses. |
| Shirley / Ivan | Comedic chops, strong two-hander chemistry. | Film's comic engine and tonal relief. |
| Alonso | Polished, controlled charm — a mirror of Jarrod. | Needs to land as a believable rebound. |
Want the full packet, the director's statement, or a conversation?
Email holly@freebodydiagramthefilm.com