As a first-time feature filmmaker, writing and directing is enough to put on your plate, but with “Bunnylovr,” actress Katarina Zhu knew the whole impetus for creating the project was to craft the kind of character she was dying to play. Speaking with IndieWire’s Ryan Lattanzio at Sundance’s IndieWire Studio, presented by DropBox, Zhu was joined by her cast, which includes her friend and peer from NYU and Stella Adler Studio, Rachel Sennott.
Recalling their time in school together, Sennott told IndieWire, “We had to go around in acting school and, like, say a word to describe what energy you gave off. Everyone to me was like, stoner. She could work in a grocery store and be really high. That was mine. But for Katarina, it was like, queen, angel, whatever.”
Though Zhu appreciated this memory, her actual post-grad performance output was hampered by the limited roles available to her, a fact that contributed to her creating “Bunnylovr.” While she didn’t initially think to take on the lead role she was writing, as the process went on, she realized it wasn’t something she could give up to someone else.
“My transition into writing, directing, I think was born out of a lack of seeing myself in the things that I was going out for, in terms of auditions,” said Zhu. “The material that I was reading wasn’t resonating with me, and so I wanted to write roles for myself that felt more authentic to my experience. And so it just naturally made sense for me to play the part.”
While Zhu’s character Rebecca is the predominant focus of the piece, “Bunnylovr” also reflects the weird, toxic men many women come into contact with both living in New York City and online. One of Rebecca’s clients in the film is played by “Hit Man” star Austin Amelio, who faced the unique challenge of filming all his scenes via webcam.
“The logistics were, I was in a very tiny bathroom — tiny hot bathroom — on the webcam. And, yeah, it was weird. We were right next to each other though, but it was strange,” Amelio said of the experience. “Normally, you’re sort of acting with someone, and you’re in their energy field, or something like that, and something’s happening. And, yeah, I guess it was pretty interesting doing it over webcam.”
Jack Kilmer’s involvement in “Bunnylovr” may be even stranger, considering he only has one scene, but it makes a huge impact on the overall film.
“I only came in on the last day of their shoot actually,” said Kilmer, “but Katarina was super generous with her limited time, and sitting with me and talking about the character and the themes, and I was bugging her a lot about it. I wanted to make it memorable and relatable.”
Similarly, Perry Yung, who plays Rebecca’s estranged, gambling addicted father, also wanted to dissect how his character helped pave the way for the problems that his daughter faces throughout the film.
“I thought it was a very important part of the story, right? Because this is where we really feel, I think, the origins of what love is for this character, and it comes from trauma, dealing with trauma,” Yung told IndieWire. “And this particular parent/child love, the parent has an addiction problem, right? So that creates problems.”
Watch IndieWire’s full video interview with the “Bunnylovr” team above.
“Bunnylovr” premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. It is currently seeking U.S. distribution.
Dropbox is proud to partner with IndieWire and the Sundance Film Festival. In 2025, 68% of feature films premiering at the Sundance Film Festival used Dropbox in their film production. Dropbox helps filmmakers and creative teams find, organize, and secure all the files that are important to any project.
