When Devin Gillis attended Vancouver Film School in the writing program, she passed the most beautiful, but tiny flower shop, Floba Design Studio, every day on her way to class and thought to herself "That'd be a cool place to shoot a movie." She got the shop's blessing, then wrote and pitched Oopsy Daisy for one of the four films her producing class would make. It was not selected. Devin said "Fuck it. I'll do it myself." As a full time student, she added producing her own short film onto her plate. Oopsy Daisy went on to win over a dozen awards, screen at The Big Apple Film Festival in New York City, and is still used as an example by her teacher.
But, apparently, Devin decided the story wasn't over yet. So, the following year, over one weekend, she produced another two shorts following the leading lady from Oopsy Daisy, Rosemary. The next two films both went on to premiere at The Iron Mule Short Comedy Film Festival in New York City.
All the films can be watched in any order and without context of the others; however, it's strongly advised to watch Oopsy Daisy first, then Rug Burn, and finish with Nothing Mattress.
Oopsy Daisy, The first story follows Rosemary, a hopeless romantic, employed at a flower shop who is put in a difficult situation when a guy asks her to send flowers to someone who isn't his girlfriend.
Rug Burn, Freshly fired from the flower shop, Rosemary is hired at a rug store where she meets another volatile couple. In spite of everything she's witnessed thus far, Rosemary still holds onto faith in true love.
Nothing Mattress, Finally, Rosemary's own romantic future is put to the test at her new job working at a mattress store which is going out of business when her first love walks in.
Have you met her? Rosemary's heart clocks in every morning but her head rarely does. It's hard to upsell a rug when you're mentally rehearsing your vows to a stranger who smiled at you on the bus. Flowers wilt, customers wait, and Rosemary daydreams. Retail, it turns out, has very little patience for hopeless romantics.
On set, "Oopsy Daisy" was misspelled on the clapper several times, a blooper you can spot throughout the BTS photos. The tradition continued faithfully into post-production. When asked about the matter, Devin shrugged and responded "oopsy daisy!"
Every Devin Gillis project starts with the same question. "Where would be a cool place to shoot a movie?" It's an instinct from her photography background, where she plans shoots around the location first and lets the space shape everything else. Oopsy Daisy was born from walking past Floba every day, and the trilogy kept that tradition alive.
Though, fair warning to anyone romanticizing this method, Floba was beginner's luck. The rug store and mattress store put up a much bigger fight. In fact, the mattress store never materialized at all, which is why Rosemary's final gig became a foreclosing mattress store. We shot in an empty event space and hauled in our own mattresses, which are far more difficult to wrangle than you might imagine.
The location is never the backdrop. It's the starting point. Sometimes it's also the villain.
Devin also styles her films, and it's one of the most important parts of her process. Wardrobe is another way to layer in story and character, and the trilogy features pieces from small, independent brands like Praying, Kenza Iatrides, Pina Jewels, House of Sunny, Sundae School, and Jyosei Shop.
Every choice is deliberate. Soft, cozy textures and lived-in wrinkles for the sleepy dreamworld Rosemary floats through, graphics that telegraph who a character is, jewelry that hints at taste and connection, and color that carries the emotion and longing under each scene. Curious about the styling process? Reach out anytime.