How it Should Be
13:00 mins
United States of America
In Competition
Written and directed by USC film student Natalie Yerelekian, How It Should Be was the winner of Best Production Design at the 2025 All American High School Film Festival.
Yerelekian, who began writing the script while applying to film school, shared: “The idea of entering an industry that is so hard for women to break into made me think of all the women in the past who paved the way for us."
Writer / Director
Natalie Yerelekian
Producers
Nathan Danese, Zooey Jeong
Cast
Jared Barton — Mark Thompson
Kimberly Prendergast — Charlotte Thompson
Christopher Roskowinski — The Narrator
Skya Theobald — Wendy Thompson
Jordan Ziya — Tommy
Cinematographer
Samuel Green
Editor
Alexa Jeong
About
Natalie Yerelekian
Natalie Yerelekian is an Armenian American filmmaker based in Los Angeles. She's a screenwriter, director, editor, and photographer. Currently, she is a freshman at University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts as a Film and Television Production major with a Screenwriting for Film and Television minor.
She has written, directed, and edited over 10 student short films. Her films have screened in festivals such as Armenian Film Festival, UCLA's Open Mind Film Festival, Calabasas Film Festival, San Diego International Kid's Film Festival, Film Independent Future Filmmakers, and more. She was nominated in the 2025 All American High School Film Festival for Rising Female Star, Best Drama, and won Best Production Design. Other awards include Outstanding Achievement in Film Award at Calabasas Film Festival 2025 and Best in Fest at Planet Female 2025.
