An Interview with Kenneth R. Frank, Director of How I Spent My Summer Vacation

by Mike Haberfelner

October 2025

Films directed by Kenneth R. Frank on (re)Search my Trash

Your new movie How I Spent My Summer Vacation - in a few words, what's it about?

How I Spent My Summer Vacation is a coming-of-age story about entering the adult world and coming to accept fear and doubt as a part of life. It tells the story of a thirteen year-old girl who is confronting many challenges and fears as she watches her grandfather face the biggest fear: death.

What were your sources of inspiration when writing How I Spent My Summer Vacation, and is any of it based on personal experiences?

The inspiration for the film was the summer when I learned my grandfather was dying when I was about the age of the main character in the film. I see that time as my entry point into the world of adults in a very specific sense. Up to that point, I was the youngest in my family surrounded by adults who knew better, and everyone seemed to have the answers. It didn’t matter that I may or may not understand what was going on. Things had the feeling of a definite plan. Questions had answers. Problems had solutions, and I got carried along from place to place with the confidence that everyone knew what they were doing, even if I didn’t. Suddenly with my grandfather’s illness, it became clear that people didn’t know what to do. People were confused, angry, upset. For the first time, there was real uncertainty. So that sort of awakening was something I’ve thought about a lot since then.

To what extent can you actually identify with How I Spent My Summer Vacation's lead character Grace and her emotional journey?

I definitely identify with Grace. The strange thing that happened in the course of making the film was that my perspective changed somewhat. I conceived of and wrote this film from the perspective of a child, based on my own experience. But then, in the course of making it, I felt my outlook shift to that of the character Tom, Grace’s father in the film. I have two children about Grace’s age now, and I really started to see what it was like to shepherd someone else through these experiences and feelings. So that was something unexpected.

On one hand, How I Spent My Summer Vacation is a drama, but then it also has its lighter moments - so how would you describe the film's overall tone?

While I acknowledged from the outset that this film was a drama, I think, on some level, I approach every script as a comedy. To me, it’s so important to have humor in everything because it lends a sense of perspective. I think if everything is deathly serious then nothing is deathly serious. I think you care more about the dramatic stakes of the story if you’ve had some lighter moments. So while this is a drama and a story with serious elements, it is also the life of a family, and, as far as I’m concerned with it, family life is very funny.

What can you tell us about your directorial approach to your story at hand?

There are many elements to consider with this. First, I want as much of my work as possible to be done before we ever get to the set. I get the script in the best possible place I can. I work with my wife, the film’s producer Shawna Brandle, from the earliest stage to find our locations and work out a lot of the look (she handles production design and costuming for the film, as well). From the script breakdown and schedule that Shawna generates, I work up my shotlist and think about lighting and lens choice (I shot this film myself, so those conversations that normally happen with a DP are all internal). I try to have as much of that done as possible before I get to casting. This way, I can have very detailed conversations with the actors, since they usually have some questions about how we will work. Casting is obviously the biggest individual piece of the puzzle. These are the people who are telling the story, so I try to create as much time and space for them as we can. During preproduction, we will have a table read of the script to get everyone to see and hear each other and really get a sense of what we will be doing. From that moment until we shoot, it really is just accumulating all these individual pieces of the puzzle. I created some very specific guidelines for the look of this film early, just to streamline our process on set. I did some work with sample images to create a look to store in-camera and on our monitors on set so we were really previewing the finished image as best we could. I wanted to cut down on the actual decision-making on set so that we could move quickly. I didn’t want to approach a scene and say, well, we could block it ten different ways or light it a hundred different ways. I wanted those decisions to be thought out and made ahead of time. Because I’m wearing multiple hats, I reap the benefits of all the prep (or else I will pay the price for not doing it). I then carry all that into the edit, so instead of thinking there are infinite combinations of shots and paces for each scene, I know the one I’m hoping to achieve (and hopefully captured on set).

Do talk about How I Spent My Summer Vacation's cast, and why exactly these people?

This film, like most ones we’ve made, is a combination of people I’ve worked with before and people new to us and our little circle, which is a lot of fun. I had most of the adult roles cast as I was writing. The first person I had onboard the project was my longtime friend and collaborator Chris Mollica. I was talking to him about the project as I was writing, and I knew I wanted him to play Tom, Grace and Richie’s father. I had known Christina Elise Perry for some time and had seen her in a number of plays at the Chain Theatre in New York and approached her to play Clara, the children’s mother. I had written the role of Richie Reynolds, Grace’s grandfather, with the actor Jerry Colpitts in mind. I had directed Jerry in a previous film of mine called Family Obligations, and worked as DP and producer on two other films he was in, so he was in my mind as I was writing. Similarly, I had shot two films with Paolo Kossi, and I had written the character of Uncle Richie with him in mind. I was very lucky to get all of my first choices with those folks, as their availability lined up with our schedule, so we had a great foundation.

The really hard part for this film, obviously, was finding Grace. The character is on every page in every scene. We’re with her the whole time. We see everything through her perspective. So casting Grace was really setting up the whole project. Going off of Chris and Christina as parents helped me narrow down the look for the young performer somewhat, and Raquel Sciacca was the very first person I looked at. She had some great pieces on her resume and reel, so I started a conversation with her mother and shared the script. What came as a complete surprise was that, in looking at samples of Raquel’s work, I saw a young boy named Dawson Sciacca appearing in some similar work. The script called for Grace to have a younger brother, and here this young actress had a real-life younger brother who also acted. It felt too good to be true. I asked her mother if she would be comfortable with both children being a part of the production, and they were all game for it.

Both the children and their parents Dennis and Suzanne could not have been more delightful or professional through everything. Like I said, the success of the film really hinges on Grace and her performance, and I think Raquel does something truly special in this film. Dawson’s character Richie is really a huge part of the heart and humor of the movie, and he delivers in every scene he’s in.

I feel so lucky to have put this cast together. That core group of the family really developed great chemistry together, and I love how their interplay adds to the script. I should add that I think the hardest part to play in the entire film is the role of Mateo that was portrayed by Ryan Umbarila. He really is the outsider that comes into this world, and he brings a slightly different viewpoint to things. He was also a joy to work with and brought so much added dimension to the story.

A few words about the shoot as such, and the on-set atmosphere?

This was a really fun shoot. I will claim a little credit for that, because it turns out that writing a script about summertime in the Hamptons means you get to spend some of your summer shooting a movie in the Hamptons. So it’s a good starting point. Our main set was the grandfather’s house, which meant that lunch breaks got to be spent together on the pool deck eating takeout and talking. Everyone got along great. It really was a joy. It’s a lot of work, you move quickly, and the days are long. But the work and the people are a lot of fun. This was the sort of shoot that spoils you for other stuff. I’ve been fortunate now with our festival run to get to sit and watch the film on the big screen with pretty much our entire cast a few times. I’m actually a little wistful now, because we’re coming up on the end of the run, and soon I won’t be able to have that experience again. I’ll miss this group of people. I hope to work with them all again.

The $64-question of course, where can How I Spent My Summer Vacation be seen?

We have at least one, maybe two more festival screenings in the US before the end of 2025. The film is currently going through QA/QC at various streaming platforms, and I hope to have it up on Amazon, AppleTV, and others before we turn over to 2026.

Anything you can tell us about audience and critical reception of How I Spent My Summer Vacation?

Critics and audiences have been very positive on it. We’ve been fortunate enough to play a few more festivals with this than with other films we’ve done, so I’ve been able to sit with more crowds, and it seems to resonate with people. I think the ideas and experiences are very relatable. That’s all to the cast’s credit. Raquel creates a very open, sympathetic lead, and I think people connect with this family up on screen. One thing I’m very proud of is that critics have praised the ensemble for their performances. As the writer and director that means a lot to me, because you assemble this team and want them to shine. It’s great to see people appreciate not just their individual efforts but how the parts of the film fit together.

Any future projects you'd like to share?

Well, alongside this feature, we are also wrapping the festival run and distributing another feature film called The Bigfoot Club, written and directed by my good friend Steven Tsapelas. Shawna and I produced the film, and I served as DP on set. It’s a very fun character study. Then it’s back to work on a new script and hopefully launch a new one soon.

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Anything else you're dying to mention and I have merely forgotten to ask?

First, thank you for the chance to share with your readers. Second, I would encourage anyone reading to rate and review the independent films you find along the way. That goes for your films, my films, really any filmmaker’s work. We don’t have access to the publicity engines and marketing of mainstream movies, so word of mouth and reviews left by the audience are really the best way to spread the word.

Thanks for the interview!

© by Mike Haberfelner

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