The film’s world premier is on Sunday June 28 at Dances with Films LA 2026 at 3:00 PM.
By Teri Kinne
Hollywood, CA (The Hollywood Times) 06/28/2026 – Making its world premiere at Dances With Films LA 2026 at the historic TCL Chinese Theatre, Souvenir follows estranged friends Kevin and Dani after a chance encounter sends them on a day-long adventure through New York City. Their mission is odd enough: return the lost wallet of a dead self-help guru. Their path takes them through litigious heirs, suspiciously bad poetry, a mysterious watch, and the unresolved emotional wreckage of two people who once knew each other well enough to do damage.
What drew me in was the unexpected shape of the story. Kevin and Dani are mismatched, but not in a gimmicky way, not in the easy “let’s throw these two people together and see what havoc ensues” way. Their connection feels thoughtful. Realistic, even if not likely. That tension is part of what makes the film work.
As I watched, I found myself resisting the relationship between Kevin and Dani. I kept thinking, I would get that girl out of my life and not let her back in. She is trouble.
Ruby Cruz plays Dani as someone both magnetic and dangerous. She is devious, and I found myself mad at her. Yes, there is acceptance and the possibility of change by the end, but I did not forgive her. That is not a criticism of the performance. It is a compliment. Cruz makes Dani vivid enough to provoke a real response.
Part of that reaction comes from how deeply the film drew me toward Kevin, played with solid skill and quiet sincerity by Eric Berryman. Kevin is likable, on a positive course, and for the most part, honest. He has good intentions. Even when he begins manipulating a situation to his advantage, the turn is surprising rather than alienating. In a strange way, I gained some respect for him. His integrity remained intact because he continues to be kind to his bad friend.
I met Spencer after a Dances With Films panel earlier in the week, where he bravely asked the inevitable question: “What did you think of my film?” My first answer was not especially elegant. “It was weird,” I said, and then let that hang between us while I searched for the better version of what I meant. I am a better writer than speaker-on-the-spot. What I was trying to say was that the film did not rely on tropes. “I was surprised by their relationship,” I told him, meaning Kevin and Dani, “and I didn’t expect where the through story was going.” He laughed, and I had the sense we understood each other. The weirdness was not a flaw. It was the point of interest.
In fact, after that conversation, I read in IndieWire that Spencer had an earlier version of the film and felt it was “good, but too familiar”. That makes sense after seeing the final cut. This version feels like the result of a filmmaker staying with the material until it became more particular, more surprising, and more honest. That is good art: an intention transferred from creator to receiver, filmmaker to viewer. It is a relationship.
And yes, Janeane Garofalo is in it, which is its own pleasure. As a disgruntled heiress to a dead creative, closeted self-help guru of a father, she brings exactly the kind of sharp, bruised comic intelligence that gives the film another layer.
Souvenir is strange, fun, and worthwhile. It avoids the expected trope and finds a more interesting story underneath.
The film’s world premier is on Sunday June 28 at Dances with Films LA 2026 at Historic at 3:00 PM.
Writer/Director: David Ketterer Spencer
Producers: Chandler Wild, Scott DelaCruz
Cast: Ruby Cruz, Eric Berryman, Janeane Garofalo, Mozhan Navabi, Laith Nakli, Willie C. Carpenter
Cinematographer: Arlene Muller
Casting Director: Tara Rubin
Production Designer: Samantha Shoffner
Costume Designer: Mika Eubanks
Editor: James Codoyannis
Sound Designer: Patrick Burgess
Composer: Maxton Waller
Trailer here. Garofalo plays a disgruntled heiress to a dead, closeted, self-help guru of a father,
