BEFORE SATURN RETURNS
Short Film
Project Type: Short Film
Project Status: Pre-Production
Writer/Lead Actor: Cameron Sotiangco
Producer: Masora Fukuda
LOGLINE
The night before graduation at UCLA, Haley, an astrology guru, drags Seth, an astrophysics prodigy, across campus to finish his long-neglected college bucket list before he flies back to Manila. But as the night takes an unexpected turn, the two star-crossed lovers must decide how to spend the final, best hours of their youth.
SYNOPSIS
Haley and Seth’s final night of college turns into an unexpected journey when a seemingly menial encounter becomes an all-night side quest. Haley helps Seth complete the one thing he still hasn’t completed before leaving college: his Epic American College Experience Bucket List.
MORE ABOUT THIS PROJECT
Before Saturn Returns is an intimate rom-com about two seniors whose final night of college turns into an unexpected journey with love and possibilities. Haley and Seth share a love for the stars but little else. Haley, a writer who has never left Los Angeles, believes in the power of astrology, the stars, and the universe. Seth, who moved from the Philippines to study astrophysics in the United States, approaches the universe with logic and realism, dismissing anything that cannot be explained by science.
Haley and Seth took Astrology 101 together freshman year but on the eve of graduation, by what might be coincidence or cosmic timing, they run into each other again. A seemingly menial encounter becomes an all-night side quest when Seth reveals the one thing he still hasn’t completed before leaving college: his Epic American College Experience Bucket List. Haley impulsively volunteers to help him finish the list before sunrise. As the night unfolds, the audience anticipates that Haley, who lives for main character moments, would be the one to fall for Seth; she believes in love. Seth, on the other hand, is type A and more emotionally reserved. Instead, Seth slowly realizes his feelings first, discovering an emotional courage he didn’t know he had. Seth, skeptical of love, finds himself quietly, but deeply, falling for Haley.
Haley must face the difference between romanticizing love and choosing it, while Seth must confront the possibility of rejection. As dawn approaches and their time runs out, Haley chooses not to pursue a long-distance relationship, protecting herself from heartbreak even as the connection between them deepens. Refusing to let the night end with unspoken feelings, Seth finally confesses how he feels, leaving everything on the table before they go their separate ways.
Over the course of a single night, Haley and Seth both change: Haley moves from romantic detachment to intentional choice, while Seth grows from quiet longing to emotional bravery. Before Saturn Returns captures the fleeting beauty of youth and the power of a single night that can shape the course of the future.
Meet The Filmmakers
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Cameron Sotiangco
Writer/Lead Actor
Cameron Sotiangco is a Filipino-American award winning actress, musician, and community founder who was born, raised, and based in Los Angeles, CA. Graduated from UCLA with a B.A. in Sociology in the wake of the pandemic, Cameron has a deep passion for cultivating connections and breaking boundaries.
Cameron’s breakthrough performance in short film “May”, won Best Actress at the Emerald Peacock Film Festival in 2022. Outside of film, she has been writing and producing her own music since 2021 as a means to document her life through feeling and prose. She combined her love of film and music in 2025 with her latest release, “End Credits”, in which she directed and starred in her first music video.
But before all of the artistry, Cameron is a community builder. When she’s not in front of the camera (or mic), she is on set serving matcha for all cast and crew to enjoy. She also founded a free craft club in Los Angeles, Crafty, to reintegrate art back into everyday life, and she partners with local businesses and organizations in Los Angeles to keep the integrity of Crafty accessible and equitable.
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Masora Fukuda
Producer
Masora Fukuda is an award-winning producer based in Los Angeles, originally from Nishinomiya, Japan. She produced Shania Twain’s music video “Giddy Up!”, which earned the 2024 Telly Award for Best Music Video, and has collaborated with talents such as Quincy Jones, Shohei Ohtani, and Pharrell Williams. Internationally, her work includes Netflix’s Alice in Borderland (Season 3), Mirai To Future (2023 Pramana Asian Film Festival), and How To Make Shepherd’s Pie (2022 LA Shorts). Masora also served as Assistant Producer on Happyend (Dir. Neo Sora). She is a 2025 Film Independent Project Involve Producing Fellow.
Your Help
BEFORE SATURN RETURNS is a fiscally sponsored project of Cinematography for Actors, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Your donation will be tax-deductible!
