In a world divided by competing desires, Wishful Thinking explores our belief that getting what we want will make us whole. Through an absurd dark comedy, the film asks what would you sacrifice in pursuit of happiness?
Wishful Thinking explores the tyranny of desire: How 'wanting' gives our lives purpose, yet can turn us into monsters. The film asks whether happiness comes from getting what we want or whether we already have everything we need to feel complete. Is happiness truly an inside job?
Four strangers are selected for Wishful Thinking, a mysterious program that promises to grant each of them their deepest desire. Guided by its charismatic founder, Mary Jean Wolf, they undergo a series of strange, euphoric exercises meant to unlock what they truly want.
But when Felix, a grieving widower, cannot name his wish, the entire process stalls. Frustration turns to terror when Greg Hosk, the program’s first great success story, storms in determined to expose the devastating cost of getting everything he ever wanted.
As the group’s dreams collide with grief, rage, and survival, Felix must confront whether happiness comes from having our desires fulfilled, or from learning how to live without them.
If there is one experience that connects all of us, it is the act of wanting.
We all know what it means to desire something so deeply that we become convinced that obtaining it will change our lives forever.
A career. Love. Money. Recognition. Security. Happiness.
We chase these things, fear we will never receive them, and sometimes discover that getting exactly what we wanted creates an entirely new set of problems.
I have often thought how much easier life would be if I wanted nothing. There would be no disappointment, rejection, bitterness, or feeling that I had somehow failed because life did not unfold according to plan. Of course, without desire, I would probably never get out of bed.
That is the strange tyranny of wanting: it gives our lives momentum, but it can also keep us from seeing the lives we already have.
Because beneath every desire is a belief about what fulfilling it will prove, repair, or finally make possible. We do not simply want the THING. We want the FEELING we believe it will give us. We become convinced that we cannot be whole, worthy, safe, or happy until we possess the thing we desire.
Wishful Thinking explores that contradiction through a darkly funny, suspenseful story about a group of strangers who win a lottery promising to grant their deepest desires. What begins as an opportunity to transform their lives becomes a confrontation with what they value, fear, and what they are willing to sacrifice in order to be happy.
The film asks whether happiness comes from getting what we want, or from questioning the belief that we need it in order to feel whole.
Wishful Thinking is absurd, unsettling, deeply human, and, yes, funny. We need funny right now.
We are living in a moment when people are increasingly trying to get what they want by destroying what somebody else wants. The film is a reminder that beneath all our competing desires lies a more fundamental need: to be seen, understood, and connected to one another.
I believe a good story can help us see each other a little more clearly. Sometimes, all it takes is a group of people together in a dark room, laughing together and sharing a tale.
CRAIG DE LORENZO: writer/director. Craig De Lorenzo is a writer, director, editor, and actor whose work blends dark humor, psychological tension, and emotional honesty. Drawing on more than two decades as a professional performer, he creates character-driven stories exploring desire, identity, connection, and the beliefs that shape human behavior.
A graduate of Carnegie Mellon University, Craig has appeared in numerous television series and brings an actor’s instinct for behavior and performance to his work behind the camera. His directing credits include Caryl Churchill’s acclaimed play A Number at Abrons Arts Center in New York City. As an editor, Craig’s credits include the feature documentary Bitcoin America, the narrative feature Dancing Nowhere, and numerous short films. He also edited the award-winning shorts Double Happiness and Will You Take This Dog?
OLGA VASQUEZ: cinematographer Olga Vázquez, AEC, is a queer cinematographer born in Barcelona and based in New York City. Her narrative work includes Asking For It (Fuse TV) starring Janeane Garofalo (Wet Hot American Summer) and Stephanie Hsu (Everything Everywhere All at Once), Zeke starring Hassan Johnson (Flatbush Misdemeanors) and Stephen Cofield Jr (Harlem), and Hooked starring Catherine Curtin (Stranger Things, Insecure). Vazquez also has lensed a two-part docu-series called Gaming Wall Street, which had its world premiere on HBO Max. Past films have screened at the Urban World, the Venice Film Festival, the Moscow International Film Festival, the Woodstock Film Festival, the Seattle International Film Festival, and the Austin Film Festival, among others.
ROLLINS STUDIOS/ANTHONY ARGENTO: producer. Founded by Anthony Argento in 2010, Rollin’ Studios is a Brooklyn-based production company that serves as an extension of Broadway Stages, supporting independent filmmakers by providing access to locations, crews, and resources.
SHARI ALBERT: executive producer .Shari is a writer, director, and performer with more than 30 years of experience in film and television. Her film Double Happiness screened at Lincoln Center’s New York Jewish Film Festival and at more than 15 festivals nationwide, winning Audience Awards at the Soho International Film Festival, Philadelphia Jewish Film Festival, and Denver Jewish Film Festival. A 2022 participant in The Writers Lab, she brings seasoned creative judgment, extensive industry experience, and a deep commitment to character-driven storytelling to Wishful Thinking.