Chris Myers, 27, plans to launch a web series called Guap that explores gentrification and how it affects a Dominican family from Washington Heights that is on the verge of losing its restaurant, because of the changing neighborhood around it.
“It’s about Pedro, his mom and his sister, and they have to figure out how to save the restaurant,” Myers said to DNA Info, adding that the family will have to adapt to change or combat it.
Myers, who plans to draw from his own experience growing up with a single mother on social services, launched a Kickstarter campaign on July 18 and has raised $13,644 since—just $6,323 shy of his goal.
After studying gentrification for more than a year, Myers considered Harlem for the show’s setting, before ultimately settling on Washington Heights. “Washington Heights found me,” said Myers, who will hire primarily Dominican actors. “At first, I was going to write about Harlem, where I have a lot of family and upbringing, but I was overwhelmed by how late-stage gentrification was there.”
He hopes to start filming by the fall.