December 2025: Creating and Moving Forward
It's been a while, hasn't it? You last heard from me in March. Yowza.
But that doesn't mean that I haven't been creating and moving things forward for various projects at Pomonok Entertainment. What it does mean is that I've spent the better part of this year trying to balance a job search (and working one-off gigs here and there to make ends meet) with creating my own work.
I'm actually rather proud of how I've done that, and I'm looking forward to the new year and how it will teach me even more about myself, my ambition, and my capacity for growth and creativity than 2025 did.
BTW, I'm a night person, which is why you're getting this late in the evening. And if you ever get an email from me in the morning, it'll be because I stayed up late to write it. You, however, can read it when you like!
Whenever you're ready – pull up a chair, grab a warm beverage, and let's catch up.
Love,
Teresa
"The Industry is Weird Right Now"
This has basically become 2025's catchphrase for those of us peddling our storytelling wares across genres, mediums, and platforms. The Industry is Weird. That means a bunch of things, including:
- major studios whose existence and financial health once seemed inevitable are being bought and merged at breakneck speed. I'm waiting for the day when I'll get to pitch a show to Weyland-Yutani. No one knows how any of this is gonna shake out, and if they say they do, they're lying. Or deluding themselves. Bottom line: this is some anxiety-inducing shit.
- despite the wins of the new WGA deal that ended the recent strike, there are fewer writing jobs available, despite the fact that shows and films continue to be made. Writing teams are smaller and generally staffed with mostly upper-level writers. I don't think it will remain this way – but it's a difficult thing to ride out right now.
- despite the prevalence of streaming services, the industry's basically "reinventing" television as services start showing ads and returning to a weekly release schedule for shows, rather than dumping an entire season at once. It's hilarious to hear young people be amazed by this. "It's so much better to see a show once a week so that you have time to talk about it!" Yes, it is! That's how TV used to be! But now, we also have "verticals" as the hot new darling (which is basically the industry giving online content that's existed for years a fun new name and pretending it's a new thing now that they want to invest in it), so who knows how people are going to seek out stories in the next couple of years, or what that means for storytellers?
- the entertainment industry's always been skittish, and it seems even more skittish now – especially when it comes to hiring/buying from "untested" talent. Hell, even mid-level talent is having trouble getting work. I've never staffed on a show, but I have friends who have. Several have progressed to a certain level, stalled out, and have been unemployed in television for several years. I used to "feel bad" about needing to cobble together tutoring, babysitting, and dog-walking jobs to make ends meet, but I don't anymore – mostly because I see "successful" friends needing to do the same.
In a weird way, there's comfort in knowing that we're all in the same boat and that, while a rising tide raises all boats, an ebbing tide lowers them all.
I suppose the point is to stay in the boat.
This year, my Development Trainee position in Sony Pictures Television - Nonfiction department ended at the end of May, and after a brief stint as a Development Coordinator at B17 Entertainment (filling in for their coordinator while she was on vacation), I went on seemingly endless job interviews while collecting unemployment.
Throughout August, I was a Set PA on an independent feature called Wake, directed by Devon Michaels and written by/starring Kelley O'Malley along with Cole Sprouse, Chris Parnell, and Riki Lindhome. It was a great experience, and I got to meet some awesome folks...but it was a month of employment, and then it was over.
As the job search continued, I joined a new writing group, Deadline Junkies, wanting to broaden my network while providing myself with accountability for continuing to write new things. That - plus a personal writers' group I have with friends, a Writers' Circle I'm part of through my synagogue, and a Writing Group I'm part of through my theater company - brought my writers' group tally up to four. Not sure if all of those will be on my rotation in the new year, but they did get me more productive, so we'll see.
In September, I started babysitting a friend's twin 4-year-old daughters (lovingly referred to as the Dillon Dyad) once a week and took on children's programming duties at my synagogue for the High Holidays while pursuing unpaid creativity:
- I performed in Force of Nature Productions’ annual Fallen Saints show, Tales of Blaze City, an immersive, interactive walk-through Spooky Season experience set in a comic book world that’s lost its color.
- I directed a staged reading of the short play Separate Loads by Jennie Webb as part of “Artful Resistance,” an evening of 9 staged readings of works by L.A.-local playwrights to benefit local Indivisible group, Democracy Action Network.
- I also got accepted into Sunbloom Media Arts Center's Mentorship Program for underrepresented video game developers, which I applied for on a lark and was thrilled to get into, because it gave me structure through which I could continue work on my visual novel, ROBOT GIRL.
- And as I continued babysitting, dog walking, teaching kiddos during High Holidays at shul, and seeking full-time work through October, I directed my first short film! Happy Birthday Harold completed principal photography on October 19, and the process filled me with pride…and exhaustion. More about that soon!
The Industry is Weird. But so's the country. So's the world. We're living in weird fucking times.
Call it resilience, courage, or stupidity, but I think one of my greatest gifts has been having the wherewithal to trudge ahead, telling stories however I can, whether it pays or not. I'm adaptable and good at pivoting. Change doesn't scare me. Neither does poverty. I've been some level of broke most of my life. I guess it pays to be used to it? The current industry climate hasn't taken anything away from me. It's just that the obstacles to "breaking in" have changed.
I'm working on making my independent storytelling more sustainable though, as always.
It'd be really nice to have one major source of income at a time instead of needing to cobble together, like, twelve. If Pomonok Entertainment can eventually be My Job, all the better.
POMONOK PICTURES
HAPPY BIRTHDAY HAROLD! IS IN POST-PRODUCTION
My film directorial debut, Happy Birthday Harold!, wrapped its 2-day shoot on October 19th and is currently in post-production. In fact, I dropped off the hard drive with our footage at my editor's place just last night! I'm so excited to see her first pass at a cut!
The plan as of now is to arrive at a completed and locked film by the end of February, as deadlines for festivals I'd like to enter it into start popping up around March. And I'd love to host a friends and family screening at a local venue sometime around then, too.
INTRODUCING...'TITI TERRY'
As you've probably noticed if you've paid any attention to me at all, I've done a lot of work with children over the years – from babysitting and nannying, to tutoring and early childhood education. I have nieces and a nephew I adore, and I've loved building relationships with my friends' children. I tend to be good with kids of all ages, and it's been said that I have a unique and effective way of getting complicated or abstract ideas across to children in a way they can absorb and use.
I've been wanting to create content for children and young adults for quite some time, and I'm finally bringing my weird, Xennial aunt vibes to the internet in 2026!
My nieces and nephew know me as Titi Terry and soon other kids will, too! I'm putting together a YouTube channel that I hope to roll out in Summer 2026 with different playlists for kids in different age groups where I'll provide answers and guidance on these weird times we're living in. From personal identity, to media literacy, to socioeconomic issues and civic engagement, I'll help kids navigate the choppy waters of today's world in an age-appropriate way while speaking to them with respect and providing a fun and safe place to learn.
As a queer, Latina, Jewish woman with ADHD, I bring a unique perspective to the children's space, and I hope to use that perspective to connect with kids who exist at similar intersections, illuminate those intersections for kids and parents who don't, and provide a starting-point for conversations that parents and children can have with each other. Children walk through the world beside us, and I hope to empower them to become their best selves and interact with the world in a way that's true to their family's values.
If you'd like to keep up with Happy Birthday Harold!, Titi Terry, or any other filmed content we'll be releasing, consider subscribing to the POMONOK PICTURES paid newsletter, where you'll get photos, up-to-the-minute updates, special gifts, first dibs on screenings/events, and more!
POMONOK PODCASTS
FINDING FELICITY IS ON HIATUS...BUT WILL RETURN IN 2026!
Not only was I writing, directing, and producing Happy Birthday Harold! for a good chunk of this year, but my Finding Felicity co-host, Kat Street, served as my cinematographer on the film! That means that as we got closer to the shoot, we had less and less time to record new episodes.
Throw in other life goings-on and at the moment, we're not able to devote the time we need to sustain regular releases. We want to continue releasing Season 3 when we're sure we'll have the time to devote to it. Currently aiming for Spring 2026.
THERE'S A NEW PODCAST ON THE WAY!
While Finding Felicity is on hiatus, there's a new show on the way from Pomonok Podcasts!
Part "fan podcast," and part discussion of the craft and business of screenwriting from the point of view of an emerging screenwriter currently navigating the film and television industry, I'll be hosting this bite-sized podcast (most episodes will be 30 mins long) solo, though I'll definitely be roping in the occasional guest or two as schedules permit. Keep your eyes on your inbox for an official announcement about the podcast TOMORROW (12/2)!
If you want to keep up with everything Pomonok Podcasts has to offer, consider subscribing to the POMONOK PODCASTS paid newsletter, where you'll get early release episodes, up-to-the-minute updates, bonus content, first dibs on screenings/events, and more!
POMONOK GAMES
ROBOT GIRL IS COMING IN 2026!
What started as a text-only prototype for my Writing Interactive Fiction workshop has evolved into what I hope will be my first visual novel!
ROBOT GIRL: Teenage Dream tells the story of Ana, a 15-year-old girl in an indeterminate future who learns that everything she believes about herself and her life may be a lie. Playing as Ana, you interact with the people in her life (both the ones IRL and the ones in her head) as she tries to solve the mystery of herself...and also maybe get herself together enough to ask out her crush.
I'm aiming for this to be a Spring/Summer release, too – but if there's one thing I'm learning as I explore indie game development, it's that GAME DEVELOPMENT TAKES A LONG-ASS TIME! So, you know, maybe Spring/Summer 2026. Or Fall. On Steam. Eventually.
Want to keep up with ROBOT GIRL and future Pomonok games? Consider subscribing to the POMONOK GAMES paid newsletter, where you'll get exclusive updates, dev logs, be invited to playtest, and secure your copy of the game upon release in your preferred format!
WRITING PROJECTS ON THE DOCKET FOR EARLY 2026
LITERARY ADAPTATION I CAN'T GET OUT OF MY HEAD
Just so this project has a name I can refer to, I'll tell you that this series I'm planning is called Dolores. While I still don't feel comfortable speaking publicly about the novel I'm trying my hand at adapting (you might've already figured it out), I have written most of a pilot...and proceeded to realize that I'd actually written Episode 8 and have been working on outlining an actual pilot. I've brought pages of this into a writing group, and the controversial source material has translated into my work being received like a scandal. It's been an interesting experience, and perhaps foreshadows what it'll be like to try and sell this to anyone. Which is why I'm trying to put together an undeniable pitch package.
SUBMISSION FOR THE 30 MINUTES OR LESS FESTIVAL
I'm currently going through my short theater pieces and unproduced short film scripts to see if there's anything I want to submit to the 30 Minutes or Less theater festival happening in North Hollywood in January. It would be nice to have another theater piece produced (and another directing credit?). If I submit, and if it's accepted, y'all will be the first to hear about it!
SHADY PINES FOREVER
What if the story of a group of middle-aged women were written like the YA novels of their youth (Sweet Valley Twins/High, The Babysitters Club, etc)? That's what I'm trying to figure out! Inspired by the cross-country friendship between me and my closest female friends – lovingly referred to as the Shady Pines Girls, because we plan on getting old together like the Golden Girls and going to the Shady Pines nursing home - Shady Pines Forever is a planned series of books that will look at our middle-aged lives through the lens of the books we grew up reading. Because life is just a series of puberties until you die. I'm going to be focusing on this after I get to a final draft on a Dolores pilot.
I also hope to actually complete a feature this year...but whether that will be THE FARM, or something else entirely, has yet to be decided.
ONE GREAT SHOW
Plur1bus (Apple TV+) - Vince Gilligan basically thought, "How can I make a TV show that's perfect for Teresa Jusino? I know! I'll take the gritty New Mexico vibes and unlikeable protagonist of Breaking Bad, the sci-fi vibes of The X-Files, and I'll make it female-led and chock-full of people of the Global Majority." Well, CONGRATULATIONS, Mr. Gilligan. You fucking did it. This show's amazing.
ONE GREAT FILM
Saint Maud (2019 - directed by Rose Glass) – I'm reaching back for this one, as I watched it for my Big Baby Horror Fest this year, but of all the films I've watched since the last time I did one of these lists in March, Saint Maud is the one that got me thinking the most long after it was over. My wife and I were talking about what we thought the ending meant days afterward, and I was fascinated both by what I thought the film meant, and how my wife could've come away with something so completely different. The best films take hold of you and don't let you go. They force you to reckon with them, and doing so is pleasurable, because it illuminates something about humanity that you needed illuminated. If you want an experience like that, check out Saint Maud. My video review is HERE.
ONE GREAT GAME
Baldur's Gate III (Larian Studios) – this game was released back in 2024, but I played it for the first time in 2025 when we finally got a PlayStation 5. I'd been playing Dungeons & Dragons long before this, but BGIII made me fall more deeply in love with the world and the game. By letting you play in the world of D&D without requiring you to do excessive calculating and giving you such a well-thought-out open world, it's much easier to learn the lore, how spells work, and the strengths and weaknesses of various classes and species. I'd only ever played clerics, paladins, and rangers in tabletop D&D, but BGIII made me realize the awesomeness of bards and sorcerers. And bard-sorcerers! Not to mention hot Tiefling barbarians named Karlach. BGIII is a great game in its own right while inspiring you to run to your nearest game table to play a campaign with friends. This is already a huge game – it doesn't need my help – but I'm shouting it out for those of you who might be intimidated by a lack of D&D knowledge. The storytelling and characters in this are so compelling, none of that will matter. I posted a video review HERE, but TikTok annoyingly added a sound I didn't choose. Still, you can read my captions if you want.