SHPTV Preview: “The Promposal”

Upperclassmen at SHP likely remember The Inside Job, the incredible espionage thriller film produced by and starring SHP students during the 2022-2023 school year. Revolving around two spies who work to uncover a web of deceit and deception, it was the first time that SHPTV students took on such a challenge. The film turned out to be a huge success, being shown not once, as originally planned, but twice for enthusiastic viewers of all classes. At the end of this 2024-2025 school year, a new movie will be released: The Promposal. Written, performed, filmed, edited, and produced by SHP students, The Promposal should be highly anticipated around campus.
Directed by Edison Peng ‘25, who starred in The Inside Job, this movie is, naturally, about prom. “We follow a kid called Cooper,” Edison told us. “He’s a stereotypical loser of the school.” Cooper, played by Christian Carcione ‘27, has a crush on his childhood best friend, played by Alexis Verner ‘25. When prom is around the corner, however, the jock, named Jake and played by Sebastian Deras ‘25, asks her out before Cooper works up the courage. Of course, it all goes downhill from there. Other main characters include Charlie, played by Curtis Egan ‘25, Cooper’s comedic best friend and wingman, and Tiffany, played by Shinae Stamos ‘27, “the stereotypical pretty girl at the school,” according to Peng. With The Inside Job already under his belt, as well as several other SHP drama productions such as Sound of Music, Into the Woods, Something Rotten, and more, Peng brings his expertise in entertainment and production to the project.
The script was written by Peng, Kiana Everett ‘26, Cade Carcione ‘25, Patrick Lanfear ‘25, and Sebastian Deras ‘25 over the summer, with inspiration from classic high school tropes. “The first part is basically Disney movie stuff, and the second part is basically when everything goes [awry],” Peng hinted. “[The writers and I] were talking about how Disney movies are so unrealistic. So I wanted to do something with that.” Alexis Verner added, “The movie is all the high school movie stereotypes…but it ends up flipping on itself.” While The Inside Job went for a serious but creative take on a classic story, we can expect The Promposal to defy our expectations in all kinds of eccentric ways.
Currently, the team is in the process of filming and editing. “We’re finishing about one to two scenes every week,” Peng affirmed. The process has been a fun challenge, Verner said. “It’s the people there that make it really fun.” Assuming everything goes according to plan, production will be over in March, and the movie will be released in April. When asked about the biggest challenge the crew faces, Peng lamented, “Scheduling, because everyone’s really busy. Especially since we casted a lot of seniors.” But with flexibility and good communication, the project is shaping up to be something great.
One thing the audience should look forward to? “Hot Pockets,” says Verner. Come to the movie premiere in (hopefully) April of 2025 to discover what that means!