A poignant coming-of-age short inspired by real events, WE DO OUR BEST makes its premiere this August at the Oscar-qualifying HollyShorts Film Festival, one of the industry’s most prestigious showcases for short-form storytelling.

Written and directed by NYC native Hannah Rose Ammon, WE DO OUR BEST unfolds over the course of a single surreal evening between a mother and daughter navigating the delicate edge of adulthood in the fast-moving world of New York City. Based on a real night Ammon experienced in high school, the film captures a rare moment of connection, one that took ten years for the filmmaker to fully understand, and now returns to the screen with tenderness, complexity, and quiet power.

The story follows a teenage girl and her single mother as they sneak into a Manhattan cocktail lounge after her mom helps her daughter appear older for the night. Beneath the surface of their innocent rebellion is a layered emotional reckoning about the push and pull of adolescence, the slow unearthing of trust, and the startling realization that parents, too, are just doing their best with what they know.

As Ammon entered adulthood, she realized her mother had been navigating life for the first time—right alongside her. That moment of mutual recognition and unspoken trust was both grounding and disorienting. Looking back, it felt as though everything had shifted in a single, unforgettable night.

WE DO OUR BEST explores how even in the messiness of family life, something as simple as a shared moment can offer strength and stability. The film reflects the emotional contradictions of growing up: the desire for independence met with the comfort of care, the illusion of adulthood met with the vulnerability of youth. It also examines how raising children in a city like New York accelerates exposure to adult life blurring boundaries and complicating the dynamic between protection and freedom.

The film is produced by Gaby Leyner, a rising voice in independent film. With a focus on daring, director-driven storytelling, Leyner’s approach perfectly complements Ammon’s emotionally nuanced vision. She recently produced her second film with horror auteur Larry Fessenden. Other credits include Eugene the Marine, directed by Hank Bedford, starring Scott Glenn and Jim Gaffigan. She also serves as Executive Producer on Natasha Kermani’s The Dreadful, an upcoming British gothic horror starring Sophie Turner, Kit Harington, and Marcia Gay Harden.

Shot on location in New York, WE DO OUR BEST is visually intimate, emotionally restrained, and anchored in lived-in performances. As the daughter navigates her curiosity with an older man, and the mother is quietly reminded of her own past, the film resists cliché in favor of small, emotionally honest moments that stay with you.

Ammon, a multidisciplinary artist and storyteller, previously worked with Killer Films and contributed to the casting of Eliza Hittman’s Beach Rats, as well as producing multiple short films. With WE DO OUR BEST, she delivers a personal and universally resonant directorial debut with an original score made alongside her music partner, Jo Wagner.

WE DO OUR BEST screens as an official selection of the 2025 HollyShorts Film Festival, marking a moving and memorable entry into this year’s lineup.