Let’s be honest fellow Jersey City-zens, we’ve all, or mostly all (I would hate to wrongfully accuse the chaste), have had our fair share of one night stands. You know, that drunken night at the bar which leads to waking up in an unfamiliar bed the next morning, and then that dreaded walk of shame home. Numbers may be exchanged, but most likely you never see this person again.

Yes, the joys of a one night stand. But no one night stand is as cute, charming and quirky as the one depicted in the rom-com short, Girl Night Stand. Filmed entirely on location in Jersey City, and packed with a pitch perfect sneak-out-of-bed-to-collect-your-clothes-and-leave scene (one of my favorite parts). Girl Night Stand is the story about Katie, a girl who questions her sexuality after having a first-time-ever one night stand with another girl, Sarah, which leads to a unique outcome. I got to sit down and chat with the adorable and talented writer, director, producer and actress, Jenna Laurenzo. And it was an absolute pleasure getting to know this quadruple threat and fellow Jersey City resident!

How did you get into filmmaking?

When I was in high school, I was really interested in filming people. I was always the person with a video camera at parties and my friends were terrified I was going to have footage that I can one day blackmail them with…which I do.

I’m sure they would pay big money to have that footage destroyed.

Yeah, and so I always thought people were so interesting and funny. I made this two-hour movie, this documentary that followed my friends through senior year. I edited it down to this piece which I premiered at the graduation party.

That’s really great. So what made you want to get in front of the camera?

Honestly, that sort of happened by default of it being easier to do it myself than having to always cast people. And honestly, when you’re shooting something with no budget, and you can’t pay actors, then it’s easier to just do it yourself!

Let’s talk about Girl Night Stand, which I absolutely loved!

It’s a short prequel to my feature, Lez Bomb, that’s potentially an intro to the two girls in the feature [Katie and Sarah].

I was going to ask you if there would be a sequel to Girl Night Stand, so this is just as exciting to hear.

Yes! I do have a feature film called Lez Bomb which I’m in pre-production for. We are currently prepping and raising finances to shoot it. And so I released the short [Girl Night Stand] which is about Katie, who has her first one night stand with a lady [Sarah], then questions her own sexuality. 

Tell me more about Lez Bomb.

The feature is about what happens when Katie brings Sarah home for Thanksgiving. Her entire family thinks Sarah is Katie’s friend, Sarah thinks she is meeting the family and is pissed when she realizes no one knows she’s the girlfriend.

What motivated you to write Girl Night Stand?

When I was coming out, I really struggled finding stories that echoed what I was struggling with, particularly comedies because I like to laugh…a lot. I watched every episode of The L Word and anything I could find on Netflix, but there wasn’t much content to choose from. There’s certainly far more now than there was ten years ago, but there aren’t a lot of comedies. I was tearing through, looking for everything and anything I could, but it just wasn’t there, so I just started writing. I was also kind of angsty at the time; I wasn’t fully out. I actually started writing the script for Girl Night Stand about four or five years ago.

When did you actually film Girl Night Stand?

The short was filmed this past June. And that happened very quickly. I was frustrated with how long it was taking to have my feature made and I had this inkling; if I released a short, it would be a lot easier to demonstrate audience level.

So, you wrote Lez Bomb before Girl Night Stand?

Yeah, very often people will shoot a short that can be made into the feature version, but I wanted to do something that was an intro, but could also serve as a stand-alone piece.

Where are you at right now with Lez Bomb?

The script is done. It won this diversity incentive program award, and that was two or three weeks ago, so with that and the short it has opened up a bunch of conversation for financial backup and we are shooting in the spring.

You play Katie in the film; tell me about your co-star who plays Sarah.

Meryl Jones Williams. She was a fantastic actress who came in. We did three days of casting with a casting director who has amazing taste. She brought in a handful of talented people, but Meryl was the first person to audition. No one was as good as her.

I did some research-slash-stalking on your website; you lived in L.A. for a while?

I was there one summer ago. And I go there every couple of months.

What brought you to Jersey City?

My fiancée lived here before we were together. We lived in the East Village for a year and then she told me how amazing Jersey City is. I lived in Manhattan for seven years. Then I got here, and I kid you not, I love it here more than I ever loved Manhattan. I can’t get enough of it. I love the community vibe. I love that you have the local gelato places making their own flavors. I love that you have these personal, nuanced shops. You don’t have all these brand names scattered across. The murals! I feel inspired here. That’s my favorite part about Jersey City.

How long have you lived in Jersey City?

Three years.

Speaking of Jersey City, there are a couple of trademark JC locales featured in your film, Lucky 7’s and Torico Ice Cream to be exact, is there any particular reason you chose those two locations?

I love the ice cream at Torico’s. It’s so charming and so innocent and I wanted that vibe. And the exterior of Lucky’s is amazing. My favorite part about scouting for Girl Night Stand was looking for the murals that we wanted to be included for the walk of shame moment. It is the most awkward walk of shame, but having those colors juxtaposed with it, made it beautiful.

Now people who see the film, who know nothing about Jersey City, can get a little taste of how amazing JC really is.

Yeah, actually a lot of people ask where I filmed it.

What are your thoughts about the lesbian community in Jersey City?

There’s definitely a community here. Before moving to Jersey City, we were told there were tons of lesbians here, and we thought, “Great! New friends!” I had no idea. I was not aware of that. Even friends who lived in Manhattan told me, “Oh, I’ve been to Jersey City, there’s that bar by the Grove stop…” I forget the name of it…

Pint?

Yeah! I missed out on a lot of that because I got locked down. But there seems to be a lot of brewing here. This whole city is so supportive of celebrating that which is unique, beautiful and true and authentic, and it’s wonderful seeing that demonstrated in the population.

What are your favorite Jersey City hotspots?

We love having the mozzarella at Porta. We love Bucket and Bay. We took a gelato making class there. Our favorite place to grab a drink is Departed Soles. They have gluten free beer and you can see how the beer is made. And the beer is awesome! It’s really hard to find a gluten free beer that’s delicious. And we love to grab cocktails at Third & Vine.

Like I said before, I did a little lurking on your website and I really do think you’re so talented. Your reels are just so funny and entertaining to watch.

Thank you! You’re very kind! There are moments that are straight out of my life and I hope people aren’t watching like, “What the f*ck, Jenna!”

Watch Girl Night Stand now! Click on the link: https://vimeo.com/137395064

To find out more about Jenna, check out her website at: www.JennaLaurenzo.com