Mustang Film Society’s ‘You Jump, I Jump’ to premiere with Short Cuts

Mustang Film Society, Cal Poly’s very own film club, will be having their short film “You Jump, I Jump” premiere at the 2026 San Luis Obispo International Film Festival. 

Directed by Cal Poly communications juniors Reagan Bones and Riley Petrocco, the short film is a coming of age story centered around a teenage friend group whose first taste of independence unfurls after being left unsupervised by a parent. Over the course of a single night, they explore and unveil different dynamics present in their friendship.

“You Jump, I Jump” will be Mustang Film Society’s third short film featured at the festival as an entirely student-led film production. Films are chosen by having club members vote on their favorite concept based on those who pitch their scripts. 

Bones and Petrocco were inspired to create the film based on some of their own shared experiences and feelings they had as young teenagers. They wanted the film to be a change of pace emotionally compared to short films of the past. 

“We’ve been to a few of the shortcut screenings and they’re all so amazing and some of them can be really intense or emotional. So I think sometimes it can be nice to have a little break when we see one that is more lighthearted,” says Bones. 

Shooting for the film began during the middle of winter quarter and wrapped at the beginning of spring quarter this year. Because of the nature of the film’s story, the cast and crew would often spend hours at late night shoots or in editing rooms until early hours of the morning to be able to bring the script to life. Despite these challenges, the two directors say that everyone involved in the making of the film grew incredibly close by the end of production. 

Before directing “You Jump, I Jump,” Petrocco says she had little to no experience with filmmaking. The extent of her film knowledge had come from watching other films on her own and her personal passion for the medium. She didn’t let this deter her from leading the film’s crew. 

“I asked a lot of questions to the experienced people in the club, like Josh, who’s the president because I didn’t want to waste anybody’s time… I feel like a lot of it is just like any other assignment or event. You kind of just have to figure out what you need in order for this to be successful and just kind of fill the blanks a little bit,” Petrocco says. 

Reflecting on her involvement with filmmaking at Cal Poly, Bones hopes that more students who have an interest and passion for filmmaking will take advantage of the resources available to them and be willing to take creative risks when making art. Petrocco expressed wanting to continue working with Mustang Film Society for future projects.

“It’s really refreshing to be around different people and come together to create such a big thing that we’re all hopefully going to see on screen,” says Bones.
“You Jump, I Jump” will be shown as a part of Cal Poly Short Cuts, along with other student-led short films, at the Fremont Theater on April 27. Tickets can be found here.