coming attraction
This film will spotlight the legacy of corporal punishment on the grown-ups who suffered it and the children it is passed down to.
The Filmmaker
Hi, I'm Justin Arnold.
Writer | Director | Actor and Producer of Whoopin'.
A short script about two brothers who come to blows over how to discipline a child for trying to drown the family cat. One of them is determined that the generational curse of corporal punishment stops with him.
The film begins with two estranged brothers meeting upon the death of their abusive father and the pulsing question amid the room is: "Did they bury daddy with his belt?" The older brother waxes poetic about the beatings they endured that made them the men they are today. The younger brother recounts a story about his wife catching their young son trying to drown the family cat in the kiddie pool out back. Enraged that the boy has escaped the kind of punishment their daddy would have laid on them, the older brother insists they teach this boy his lesson before he fails to learn it and the dispute explodes into an all-out kitchen brawl, cutting into their childhood to see which side of the line of spanking a kid they now stand on.
Whoopin' is my viewpoint on two boys now men who survived the combat of their youth.
Whoopin' is my spotlight on corporal punishment.
Whoopin' is my arrow in the night sky and my aim is to land deep.
Help make this film!
All contributions welcome!
Currently in post-production editing, scheduled to picture lock in mid-August and go into color and sound mastering. Entering the festival season September 1st 2025.
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super-16mm film presentation
Mother Fucker
A fed up young mother (Katie Folger @katiefolger ) scrambles to surmount a neighborhood rascal (Justin Arnold @filmjustinarnold ).
Hi, I'm Justin Arnold.
Writer, director, actor & producer of MOTHER FUCKER, a short script I adapted from a feature film I wrote. I've been an actor for quite some time now but I wanted to make a film. I'm influenced by so many great artists but for this project, I'll narrow it down to Sam Shepard's foolish whimsy, Patti Smith's passion & fire, Richard Linklater's romantic side and the charm in humor of any John Prine love song. For the first time, I'm stepping into the director’s chair and producing my very own short super-16mm film.
Mother Fucker is about asking for what you want to get what you need. Starring actor, writer & comedian Katie Folger. A staple in the Austin, Texas Indi film scene. Whose works center around more nuanced representations of women in media.
Imagine being a young mother. You ask your husband to pick up an item from the grocery store on his way in from work. An item you desperately need and when finally, your husband arrives home. He's absent minded and empty handed. Fed up, you take it upon yourself to go get what you need. Only to be ambushed by the handsome devil next door, who's got no second thoughts in going after the pursuit of his heart’s desire.
Mother Fucker is my Fool for Love, my before noon to the great Before Sunset trilogy, my shot in the dark at being a Sam-Shepard-Patti-Smith collaboration to just pick up the pen, pick up the camera, press record and put on a show. My film Mother fucker is sure to put a great big O' smile on your face, make you laugh, tear up and charm your pants off.
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