Screenwriter and Director Sal Bardo

Sal Bardo

In this profile series, Revry is highlighting authentic contributors to the LGBTQ media and entertainment community. We ask questions to find out who they are and where they are going in the future. The questions remain the same but the answers tell their unique story. It’s time to explore and celebrate true representation beyond the limits of Hollywood.

Sal Bardo (He/Him) is an L.A.-based screenwriter and director whose work focuses on characters whose fears drive them to discover who they are or redefine their purpose. Sal's films have screened at film festivals around the world and have been viewed over 35 million times on YouTube and Vimeo. In 2015, his short film PINK MOON won the jury prize for Best Short Film at the Big Apple Film Festival. The following year, his music video GREAT ESCAPE was nominated for the Iris Prize, the world's largest LGBTQ short film award. He's currently developing his first feature film as well as TV pilots that spotlight queer and other under-represented characters.

What are you best known for?

As a filmmaker, I'm probably best known for CHASER, which was a somewhat controversial short film that explored issues of sexual freedom and belonging in the gay community in the years just prior to the availability of PrEP. I'm also known for ambiguous endings. And my yellow glasses.

What is the first thing you worked on?

The first short film I wrote and directed was called REQUITED, which was a really personal story that revolves around the question: "How do you get over something you never had?" I wrote it for myself as an actor but ultimately ended up directing it and I never looked back.

What are you working on that no one knows about yet?

I took a few years off to develop my first feature and try my hand at TV writing, but I've been itching to actually make something again. My next short is titled COME CLEAN, a dark dramedy about a young gay guy struggling with OCD who white-knuckles his way through a Grindr hookup and makes a mess of things - figuratively and literally. I wrote it in two hours. It's another somewhat personal story, but it's also about mental health more broadly, and how hard it can feel to make personal connections today. We're shooting next week here in L.A. and I'm excited and nervous. It's like my first film all over again.