If Tears Were Gold Short Film
WORLD PREMIERE: McMinnville Short Film Festival
February 27, 2026 - 12pm
Please join us as "If Tears Were Gold" premieres on the big screen!
McMinnville Short Film Festival
Fri. Feb 27, 2026 - 12pm
Oregon Filmmakers Block
Director Adam Sweeney is nominated for "Best Oregon Filmmaker"
If Tears Were Gold - OFFICIAL TRAILER (2026)
A Musical Family Drama
"If Tears Were Gold" is a musical family drama short film based on my experiences caring for my Nana towards the end of her life. She suffered from dementia and sundowners syndrome that caused auditory hallucinations, and she often thought it was my band playing music.
While fiction, "If Tears Were Gold" is largely based on real events. It also features a song of the same name that Nana and I co-wrote together leading up to her 90th birthday. She was so proud of that song! And I'm very proud to pay tribute to her and our musical collaboration with this short film.
- - Adam Sweeney, Writer/Director
SYNOPSIS: A young punk musician returns home to rural Washington State to help care for their aging Nana Sally who is troubled by music no one else can hear. As Sally's dementia deepens, a new song materializes uniting the family with a very unexpected and unlikely collaboration.
January 2026
Hey everyone! It’s been a long road through post-production, but the moment we’ve all been waiting for has finally arrived. I’m thrilled to announce “If Tears Were Gold” will premiere at the McMinnville Short Film Festival on Friday, Feb 27th! Not only that, but the film has been nominated for “Best Oregon Filmmaker” at the awards ceremony. The screening is at noon during the “Oregon Filmmakers” block. I’d love to invite you to head out to wine country with me to watch the film premiere on the big screen!
I can’t thank you all enough for your generous support of this film. It has surpassed all of my wildest expectations, and I couldn’t have done it without your support, the support of our wonderful film community, the support of my family and friends, and of course my amazing cast and crew. WE. DID. IT. And this is only the beginning!
I’m so happy. After 2 years of work, we finally get to experience our beautiful story (and Nana’s song) at its first (of hopefully many) festival screenings! McMinnville Film Festival was the first festival I ever screened at back in 2024, and I left feeling so inspired that I actually had the idea for how to adapt our song “If Tears Were Gold” into a film while driving home from the festival that year. It feels like the perfect place for the film to premiere!
I am absolutely thrilled with how well the film has turned out! It’s beautiful. It’s a powerful story of love and acceptance throughout the generations united around caring for a loved one. You laugh, you cry, and you laugh some more. I tear up every time I see it, and I think our audiences will too.
And the music crushes! There’s our signature song of course “If Tears Were Gold” performed incredibly by our smoke-and-silk voiced lead actress Mary Krantz. My longtime collaborator Tim Karplus and I developed a unique and compelling score. Portland punk band The Shitfits make an appearance, as does my good friend Jacob Jolliff performing on old folk song of mine. And I also snuck in some music by my old bands The Breaking and Gwythaints. In fact, I’m kind of inclined to release the soundtrack as an album. I’ll let you know when that happens!
In the meantime, we have a long list of film festivals around the country (and a few international) that we plan to submit to–including some big ones like Sundance and SXSW. Speaking of which, we are trying to raise a few more funds so that we can continue to apply to festivals. Every $50 raised from here on out is one more festival we will be able to apply to. And we want this film to screen everywhere!
I believe so strongly in this film, in my Nana’s song and in my family’s story. It’s a story of a family coming together across the social and political divide to care for a loved one who needs them. It a story of radical acceptance between generations. It’s a story about finding out where you belong. It’s a story about enduring love that surpasses the bounds of the rational mind. It’s a queer story. It’s an elder story. It’s a dementia story. And it’s a story about the uniting power of music. I think it’s the kind of story people desperately need right now.
I’m encouraged. And I’m grateful. My heart is full. And I can’t wait for you all to finally join me on this journey. We’re just getting started. And I can feel Nana right there behind me cheering us on and singing along.
Much love,
Adam
December 2024
“If Tears Were Gold” is now officially in post-production! Thanks to everyone who donated to our fundraiser, we were able to shoot the film in September. Our incredible cast and crew spent four 12-hour days filming on location at Nana’s old house in Tenino, Washington. Everyone poured so much of their own passion and creativity into telling our story! It has truly surpassed my vision and exceeded all my expectations. I can’t wait for you to see it!
We were fortunate to have access to an ARRI Alexa Mini—a high end Hollywood cinema camera—and we rented Cooke Classic Panchro lenses which are rehoused classic cinema lenses from the 1920s-1960s that give the film a very timeless feel. Some modern films shot on these same lenses include “Bohemian Rhapsody,” “Steve Jobs,” “Killers of the Flower Moon,” and “Carol.”
The lighting and cinematography is absolutely beautiful, and the performances from the actors are incredibly nuanced and emotional. It tells our story perfectly. Here are some still frames from the film so you can see for yourself!
Special thanks is due to Northern Visuals, Desert Island Studios and Gearhead Grip & Electric for donating gear to our production. I’d also like to thank The Holler Fund for a music grant that also helped cover some essential costs. Your contributions seriously elevated the quality of what we were able to achieve during our shoot!
We’re still raising funds for post-production to cover costs of color grading, recording and mixing the score, and to cover film festival submission fees. Please visit our GoFundMe page and help us take “If Tears Were Gold” across the finish line! I’d love to have to film ready to submit to festivals this spring!
September 2024
"If Tears Were Gold" Pre-Production Kickoff Video
Thank you to everyone who has donated! Our shoot for "If Tears Were Gold" was an astounding success, and I'm so excited we now have an official trailer for the film!
We're still raising funds to cover the costs of editing, color grading, recording & mixing the score, and film festival submission fees.
Your donation will help us get this beautiful story onto the big screen!
"McMinnville Short Film Festival: Tiny budgets, small crews, big impact"
Oregon ArtsWatch
"Talking with Portland Filmmaker Adam Patrick Sweeney"
David Bates expands on his ArtsWatch Article
"Tenino grandma’s co-written country song inspires film"
The Daily Chronicle (Centralia, WA)
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