Hipster boy toy Ricky (fresh-faced Nick May) is left alone to house sit when the couple he’s been sleeping with go away for the holidays, telling him, “you be a good boy while we’re gone.” Hurt when he overhears his year-long lovers say they “want a new toy for Christmas,” he tries to find human connection through Internet hookups, drugs, and anonymous sex.

Feeling lonely, isolated, and rejected by his family, Ricky contemplates a Christmas Eve suicide, a plan that he casually mentions to his startled tricks. Will Ricky find someone else worth living for before it’s too late or will his lovers return to find their darkest Christmas present ever?

Writer/director Spencer Schilly (a talent to watch) crafts a quirky, memorable drama on a limited indie budget. May is a sexy charmer, particularly in an early scene where he puts on a jockstrap and cowboy boots and dances around in a hula skirt made out of neckties. The sex scenes are shockingly realistic, but also kissed with a touch of melancholy and a true sense of big-city emptiness amplified by too many casual encounters. The Houseboy is a gritty, unexpected gem brimming with heart, soul, and unflinching honesty.

Spencer Schilly will be attending a post-film Q&A.

ADMISSION:  $10 non-member / $8 members