Sundance Institute

Give Me the Backstory: Get to Know the Turner Brothers, the Filmmakers Behind “FreeLance”

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by

Lucy Spicer

12.19.25

In a case of art imitating life, the Turner Brothers’ series FreeLance — whose first episode is premiering as part of the Episodic Fiction Pilot Showcase at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival — follows a 20-something aspiring filmmaker as he joins a house full of creatives all looking to make their mark. Hilarity ensues as the friends take on odd jobs to pay their rent and fund their dreams. “We built this from our lives, two Midwest kids figuring it out with a crew of friends who were doing the same,” say Julien and Justen Turner. And that Midwest identifier is important. The Turner Brothers are from Illinois, and FreeLance takes place in Ohio — a far cry from locales like Los Angeles that attract young content creators in droves. 

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