Michigan-based filmmaker Joel Potrykus has built his career on chronicling the comedic routines and surprisingly complex inner lives of slacker dudes. And Vulcanizadora is no exception. The difference here is that Potrykus’ characters, like the filmmaker himself, are getting older. That means that, for Marty Jackitansky (Josh Burge) and Derek Skiba (Joel Potrykus), the consequences of their actions are getting harder to avoid.

The moment when eternal adolescence slams against the brick wall of mortality is the theme of Potrykus’ latest, a spiritual sequel to his film Buzzard (ChicagoIFF 2014). This is a movie that benefits from knowing as little as possible going in, so just take Potrykus’ word for it when he says that this is his “most personal” as well as his “bleakest” film to date.