Naked Pool Party is officially the hottest ticket in Dallas—and no, we’re not just talking about the lack of swimsuits. Every Pride season gives us the usual suspects: shirtless selfies, glitter in places glitter should never be, and at least one friend insisting they’re “just going for the community.” This year, the queer comedy short stole the spotlight instead.
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Before your imagination starts writing checks the film isn’t trying to cash, no, it’s not porn. It’s arguably more dangerous: a comedy that gay people actually recognize themselves in.
The 31-minute short from Fort Worth’s Dario Studios cannonballed into the local film scene, selling out its Studio Movie Grill premiere so fast organizers had to upgrade to a larger auditorium. That screening sold out, too. Now Naked Pool Party is making an encore splash at the Dallas Eagle.
Frankly, if a movie called Naked Pool Party wasn’t screening at a leather bar, we’d have questions. The premise is every gay friend group’s favorite form of emotional terrorism.
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There’s Frankie (Trevor VanArsdale), the fearless instigator who believes every problem can be solved by saying, “Come on, it’ll be fun.” Oscar (Anthony Ortega) is the anxious one clinging to his towel like it’s an emotional support blanket. Chris (Jorge Oldez) has just been dumped, which means he’s legally obligated to tell everyone he’s “fine” while absolutely not being fine.
Naturally, Frankie decides the obvious cure for heartbreak is taking both of them to their very first naked pool party. Because nothing says “healing journey” quite like confronting your emotional baggage and your body image at exactly the same time.
What unfolds is a wonderfully chaotic cocktail of awkward first impressions, overthinking, unexpected confidence, and the universal gay experience of wondering whether everyone else got hotter while you weren’t looking.
Behind Every Great Gay Idea…
…are two husbands with a dry-erase board. Carlos Suarez and Jorge Jimenez—the married creative team behind Dario Studios—built Naked Pool Party from the ground up, mapping out three distinct emotional journeys before anyone ever dropped a towel.
The inspiration arrived in true gay fashion. First came the electric chaos of Dallas Pride. Then came afternoons lounging at friend David Moore’s Arlington pool, watching an endless parade of personalities stroll through the backyard. Reality was already doing improv. The filmmakers simply wrote it down.
Moore didn’t just inspire the setting—he handed over his house for the three-day shoot and even pops up as an Uber driver, making Naked Pool Party feel even more like a love letter to the local queer community. Allies could never. Suarez also directs with the kind of perfectionism that would make your friend retake an Instagram photo 47 times. Different angles. Different takes. Different splashes.
If someone had to get pushed into a pool six more times because the lighting wasn’t quite right, then darling… back into the water.
“The juice was definitely worth the squeeze on this one,” Jimenez says.
The Villain Era Looks Good on Him
Every gay breakup story needs one thing. An ex everyone immediately boos. Andrew Begay happily accepted the assignment.
“I’ve been on a self-evolution journey the last few years and just going for things that excite me and get me out of my comfort zone,” Begay says. “I did theatre a million years ago in high school, and I remember it lit a spark in me and brought me to life. Getting cast in Naked Pool Party allowed me to get a taste of that again.”
Playing Adam—the spectacularly terrible ex-boyfriend—ended up becoming unexpectedly therapeutic.
“Playing the role of the big bad fuckboy ex-boyfriend was more than just a lot of fun for me; it was cathartic,” Begay explains.
“Being on the other side of that heartbreak playing the heartbreaker felt triumphant, for I knew the character, and playing him felt like exorcising a shadow of my past,” he says.
In other words: weaponizing your trauma for art. Honestly? That’s gay culture. Suarez says “the camera just loves him,” while Jimenez appreciated how Begay gave Adam enough humanity that audiences recognize him. Mostly because we’ve all dated him. Or ignored seven red flags because he had nice forearms.
The Production Almost Lost Its Bartender
Every indie movie has a crisis. This happened before the first scene. Minutes before filming began, the actor playing Fernando—the bartender central to Oscar’s storyline—backed out. Enter Frank Lacherre.
Originally hired as a background extra, he was promoted on the spot, stepped into the role, and delivered comic timing that turned production panic into movie magic. A reminder that in queer communities, someone always says, “Don’t worry, my friend can do it.” And somehow… they actually can.
Why Naked Pool Party Is More Than Just Skin Deep
For all the nudity, Naked Pool Party‘s biggest flex is actually vulnerability. Flashbacks give the friendships emotional weight, while scenes shot on the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge remind audiences this story has real heartbreak underneath all the abs.
“We definitely turned some heads that day,” Begay says. “Some people were really invested in the scene we were bringing to life but didn’t realize we were shooting a movie. Carlos did a great job stitching those shots together and creating something touching, and dare I say heartbreaking, in a movie that’s mainly spicy and hilarious.”
As for spending all day shooting pool scenes…
“If a scene called for someone to be pushed into the pool, hypothetically speaking, of course, we’d have to run the scene several times to give him options for angles, splashes, movement and just the right amount of skin. Those of us with perfectly coiffed long hair had to suck it up — hypothetically speaking, of course.”
Justice for the gays with expensive conditioner. The cast itself mirrors the wonderfully messy reality of queer life in Dallas-Fort Worth, with different bodies, ages, personalities, and experiences sharing the screen without making representation feel like an after-school special.
“As someone who was once deep in the closet, it was very special for me to work with a group of local, talented gay men and allies as we shot the film,” Begay says about the weekend on set. “I feel like we all just meshed so well together. Everyone was there to work and have a great time bringing the script to life. No one acted like a prima donna or dramatic — except when cameras were rolling.”
The film is now heading to festivals with no streaming release in sight, meaning your best chance to catch it is at the Dallas Eagle. Which feels exactly right.
Because whether you’re wearing a harness, a swimsuit, or absolutely nothing at all, one thing is clear: This summer’s hottest gay event might just be the one where the audience keeps the most clothes on.
Source: Dallas Observer