After a deep loss and academic expulsion, a hard partying-secular Jew, Gabby, finds healing and meaning in Judaism, embracing it fully as a Ba'alat Teshuvah.
Gabby Goldblum is a secular, hard-partying Jewish grad student whose world has unraveled. Still reeling from the loss of her sister Allie, she’s expelled from her master’s program after a string of reckless choices. As a final lifeline one year later, she transfers to a religious program at her aunt’s university — with one condition: she must join Maimonides, a modern Orthodox campus group known for its strict ritual observance.
Gabby arrives skeptical of everything: the rules, the dress codes, the prayer schedules. She’s paired with Shoshana, a sanctimonious Orthodox student whose guidance is more friction than support. Their clashing lifestyles and worldviews immediately spark tension.
Back home, Gabby’s parents are consumed by grief and growing concerned about their disconnect with her. Her boyfriend, Noah, tries to be supportive, but the gap between them deepens as Gabby’s values begin to shift.
Despite her cynicism, Gabby starts to feel unexpected moments of connection, particularly during a lighthearted challah bake where she glimpses joy and autonomy within the tradition. For the first time, she’s beginning to wonder if this world might offer something real. By the end of the pilot, the door to transformation has cracked open. Gabby is still skeptical, still stumbling. But for the first time, she’s not running the other way.
Emily Lerer: Directors Guild of Canada -nominated, award-winning director (Oscar-qualifying Out On Film, Newfest) raised by a synagogue leader in the midwest, where 62 foot tall “Touchdown Jesus” loomed by the highway. Her work explores the messiness of femininity through dramedies and genre-bending stories.
Selected as “Comcast Rising Voices in Indie Film”, her films screened Oscar- and Canadian Screen award-qualifying festivals including: Hollyshorts, Cinequest and Fantasia, where she served on the jury. Her debut feature "Omi" is in festival submissions. Television credits include: "Shameless", "Twenties", and "Pretty Little Liars-Original Sin".
An alum of Sundance Directing TV, AWD Lab, and AFI Directing course, she’s a member of Array Crew, TV Academy, WIF and Producers Guild of America.
Dances with Films - World Premiere 2025
Chelsea Film Festival - NY Premiere 2025
