Recipient of a 2025 JFI Completion Grant
For the last 40 years, the Zelmans, who live on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, schlep to Double Happiness for Chinese food on Christmas - as it is written in the Talmud. DOUBLE HAPPINESS is owned by Richard and Jeanie Wang. The Zelmans were their first customers in 1976. Over the years, they become fixtures in each other’s lives, witnessing the birth of Lillian and Max’s daughter and the death of Richard’s wife. When they reconnect at Max’s shiva, they find solace in each other’s company, and a true friendship blooms. What they don't know, is that they will also find romance in the most unlikely place… each other.
Description provided by grantee.
Shari Albert writes dramatic stories through a comedic lens. The first short film she wrote and directed, WILL YOU TAKE THIS DOG?, won best female content creator at The Bowery Film Festival and has screened at the San Francisco Indie Film Fest, New Ohio Film Festival, NY City Web Fest, and many others. As a writer, she has been a cohort at the esteemed “The Writers Lab” (class of 2022). Her scripts have placed in competitions such as AFF, The Big Apple Film Festival, and Final Draft’s Big Break Contest. She is published in SHE PERSISTED, a book of monologues written by women playwrights by Applause Books. With over 30 years of experience in front of the camera, Shari is now stepping behind it with everything she's learned and absorbed. She lives in NYC with her husband and rescue dachshund, Dr. Watson.