Liliana Tandon is an Indian American actress, writer, and producer. Her latest project (Writer/Producer/Lead) “Break/Fix,” a short film about bi-racial identity and beauty standards, premiered at the Oscar-qualifying Cleveland International Film Festival. Liliana plays the lead role of Maggie in the Lifetime thriller “Handyman from Hell.” She is also in post-production for an adventure-romance feature titled “Discovering Love” (Writer/Lead). Liliana has two other feature films on which she was the writer/lead which had network television premieres: “Harmony in Paradise” and “A Ring for Christmas,” co-starring Lorraine Bracco (The Sopranos) and Michael Gross (Family Ties). She created “Period Piece,” an award-winning comedic web series that explores women in different periods of history… having their periods. Seasons one and two have over 1.6 million views on YouTube, and were featured on Cosmopolitan, Seventeen, Women’s Health, Marie Claire France, India Today, and many more. “Period Piece” won Best Original Comedy Web Series on Elizabeth Banks’ comedy site WhoHaHa. She is a graduate of New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, where she studied at the Stella Adler Studio of Acting.
What it the title of your film in BIFF 2024?
Break/Fix
What was your first experience with film and how did it influence your first project?
When I was 18, I was lucky enough to fly to LA (my first time flying alone!) and work as a Production Assistant on a rom-com called “Nesting.” I lived with my friend’s aunt and found a rental car company that would rent to under 21, and felt truly like an adult for the first time. The cast and crew were so welcoming and patient with me as I was learning. It was the best first set experience! I was inspired by the community they built and how much fun everyone had: I mean, c’mon, how lucky were we that we got to make a movie?! My first project was a web series entitled “Period Piece,” which explores women in different periods of history… having their periods! I made it with all my extremely talented friends and we had an absolute blast making it, and I hope I can continue to feel that way on every project I create. You can watch “Period Piece” at www.periodpieceofficial.com.
Who is (are) your favorite filmmakers?
This is an incredibly difficult question for me to answer! I watch a LOT of movies and like a lot of different types of films.
However I can say I am currently feeling excited by Greta Gerwig, Justine Triet, Ariane Louis-Seize, and Dev Patel.
What are you working on that no one knows about?
I have a lot of projects in the works! While “Break/Fix” is not a proof of concept, I’m calling it an inspiration of concept, as the characters and themes have inspired a feature: a grandmother-granddaughter heist movie! I am also working on a thriller with my husband and a horror comedy that I am co-writing with my friend Zach Solomon.
Who would play you in a movie? What’s your go to movie snack? What’s the film title that best describes your life?
I don’t know who would play me in a movie, but the person I’d most like to play their daughter in a movie is Sandra Bullock. So basically I guess I’d want Sandra Bullock circa 1994 to play me in a movie!
Go-to movie snack is absolutely very buttery popcorn.
The film title that best describes my life is “Psycho.” Just kidding! I’ll go with “Big”: though I’ve never been a child in an adult’s body, I have big love for my husband and family, big friendships, and big plans for my career and life.