Sean and his mother face each other

THE GOOD
LITTLE SINNER

A short film by writer Sean Hemeon
Directed by Caleb King

17-minute target runtime
Discover the film
Written by Sean HemeonDirected by Caleb KingA queer coming-of-age drama
Sean at the bishop’s office door

The film

A closeted Mormon teen seeks his bishop’s approval for a mission he believes will cure his attraction to men, but when a forced confession leads to his mother’s rejection, he turns to a mysterious young woman whose promise of acceptance may come at a price.

Darkly comedic coming-of-age drama. Set in 2003. Inspired by the memoir The Good Little Drug Lord.

a young man in a white shirt and tie seated among a congregation
SEAN / 19

The Best Little Mormon Boy
In The World.

Sean Hemeon as a child, wearing a blue shirt and tie
SEAN HEMEON · PERSONAL ARCHIVE
02 / Why I’m telling this story
“Meth gave me the freedom from shame I’d begged God for.”

As a closeted Mormon boy, I believed I had to change to deserve love. Twenty-one years sober, I want to show how something destructive can feel like rescue—and what makes that promise so powerful.

Sean Hemeon
Writer · Actor · Recovery advocate

Sean and his mother outside the church
Why this matters now

The need to belong
has never gone away.

At a time when differences in faith, politics, and identity are dividing families and communities, The Good Little Sinner puts a human face on the cost of rejection.

Sean’s story asks what happens when the people who promise salvation make you believe you are unworthy of love—and something dangerous offers the acceptance they withhold.

The short begins with that wound. The larger story, The Good Little Drug Lord, follows the hard-earned journey toward recovery and reconciliation. Together, they offer hope that neither rejection nor our worst mistakes must define the rest of our lives.

03 /

The World

2003
Sean’s bishop in a church office
The church

A redbrick meetinghouse. Beige offices.
Sean is taught that his desire must be overcome. Every intimate question becomes a test of belonging.

A crowd under pink nightclub lights
The club

Bass, bodies, pink light. Sean enters to save someone else and discovers the first place where desire can feel free of shame.

A world where discovering yourself means hiding.

The people who shape his world

Who gets to decide if he deserves love?

Bishop Young, seated in his office

Bishop Young / 40

Sean’s bishop

Charming and ambitious. He controls Sean’s worthiness while concealing desires of his own.

Jolene sitting in her car

Jolene / 50s

Sean’s mother

She confuses protecting her son with enforcing obedience. When he confesses, she chooses her faith over him.

Tina, with pink hair in the glow of nightclub lights
Tina / 19

Pink hair.
Silver sequins.
A promise of acceptance.

Visible only to Sean, Tina embodies meth and the parts of himself he cannot accept.

She interrupts his interview, punctures the bishop’s authority, and offers the tenderness his family withholds. When Sean understands who she is, acceptance and addiction become inseparable.

04 / The filmmakers

A personal story. A shared vision.

Sean Hemeon
Writer · Actor · Producer

Sean Hemeon

An award-winning actor, published writer, and UVA Creative Writing graduate. His screen credits include Husbands and 9-1-1. His forthcoming memoir, The Good Little Drug Lord, draws on his journey from aspiring missionary to federal informant and recovery.

Caleb King
Director · Producer

Caleb King

An award-winning director whose work explores the darker, more complicated corners of the human experience. Known for atmospheric storytelling, his projects include the short film Gardenia (2021).

Kailena Mai
1st AD · Producer

Kailena Mai

A filmmaker and assistant director with over a decade of experience as an actor. Her directorial debut, Bone, reflects her interest in complex characters, antiheroes, and the contradictions of human nature.

John Brodsky
Actor · Producer

John Brodsky

A bi-coastal actor with over a decade of experience in film, television, and theater. His credits include No Good Deed, Your Friends and Neighbors, and Some Kind of Paradise, which premiered at the 2024 Tribeca Film Festival.

James Smith with a cinema camera
Director of photography

James Smith

An award-winning cinematographer whose work spans narrative films, network television, commercials, and music videos. Also a photographer and editor, he brings a comprehensive understanding of visual storytelling to every project.

05 / The road ahead

A short film.
A larger story.

The Good Little Sinner stands on its own while serving as a proof of concept for The Good Little Drug Lord, an eight-episode limited series.

The series expands into Sean’s life as a drug dealer and federal informant, carrying the same intimate themes into a larger crime story. The short’s planned festival journey will connect with independent-film and LGBTQ+ audiences.

Be part of the story

Let’s bring
the film to life.

For production partnerships, festival inquiries, or more information about the project, get in touch.

A close-up of Jesus’s eyes. For once, he is free… for now.