There’s something genuinely exciting brewing for February 2026, and it’s worth paying attention to. Amanda Kramer’s By Design is shaping up to be one of those films that operates in that deliciously ambiguous space between genres—a comedy, fantasy, and romance all rolled into one—which is exactly the kind of creative risk-taking we need more of in cinema. With a runtime of just 91 minutes, this film seems designed to be lean, punchy, and unapologetically its own thing.
Let’s talk about why this is generating genuine anticipation before its February 13th release. Kramer has built a reputation for visual boldness and narrative experimentation, and the fact that she’s bringing together Juliette Lewis, Mamoudou Athie, and Melanie Griffith suggests she’s thinking seriously about ensemble chemistry. This isn’t a film being made on a whim—the creative team behind it (Cold Iron Pictures and Smudge Films producing) appears to have a clear vision for what they want to accomplish.
Juliette Lewis brings an electric unpredictability to everything she touches. Her career has been defined by characters who exist slightly askew from mainstream expectations, and that sensibility feels perfectly calibrated for a film that blends comedy, fantasy, and romance. There’s a fearlessness in her choices that typically signals a director and actor are on the same wavelength creatively. When Lewis commits to material like this, you get the sense the entire production is operating from a place of genuine artistic conviction rather than formulaic thinking.
Mamoudou Athie is another actor who consistently elevates the material he’s given. He’s proven himself capable of handling both dramatic weight and comedic timing, which becomes crucial when a film is trying to balance multiple tonal registers. The chemistry between him and Lewis could very well be the emotional anchor that holds By Design together as it moves between its various genre elements.
Then there’s Melanie Griffith, whose presence adds another layer entirely. She’s a Hollywood veteran who understands the texture of cinema in a way that comes from decades of navigating different storytelling approaches. Her involvement suggests that Kramer is thinking intergenerationally about her cast, creating space for different perspectives and experiences to collide on screen.
The true measure of a film’s ambition isn’t always its budget or box office potential—it’s whether it’s trying to say something that hasn’t been said quite this way before.
Here’s what makes Amanda Kramer such a compelling director for this kind of material:
- Her willingness to embrace genre-blending without apology
- A visual style that feels fresh without being gratuitous
- An ability to extract genuine performances from her actors
- A track record of taking creative swings
What we’re anticipating isn’t just a film but a statement about what fantasy-comedy-romance can be in the current cinematic landscape. So much of what gets greenlit falls neatly into established boxes—this refuses to do that. The 91-minute runtime is also intriguing; it suggests the filmmakers are confident enough in their material to trust that they don’t need bloat or repetition. This is a film made by people who seem to know exactly what they’re trying to accomplish.
The lack of early ratings shouldn’t be surprising—we’re still months away from release. The 0.0/10 on database entries is simply reflecting the fact that audiences haven’t seen it yet. What matters is the anticipatory buzz, the word-of-mouth that builds when industry observers recognize that something genuinely different is on the horizon. By the time February 13th, 2026 arrives, this film will have had months for conversation to build around it.
Why this film matters beyond just entertainment value:
- It represents a commitment to tonal complexity in an era of increasingly safe storytelling
- It brings together actors known for risk-taking and artistic integrity
- It demonstrates that mid-budget independent cinema still has room for experimentation
- It shows that genre boundaries are becoming more porous and interesting
What By Design seems to be attempting is nothing less than a recalibration of what a romantic fantasy-comedy can explore. By blending these three genres, Kramer isn’t just making a film that wants to be taken seriously and entertained—she’s suggesting that maybe we’ve been artificially separating these impulses all along. Maybe the most profound stories are the ones that refuse to choose between making us laugh, making us believe in something magical, and making us feel something in our hearts.
The cinematic landscape of 2026 will be richer if By Design succeeds in its ambitions. And based on everything we know so far—the creative team, the cast, the deliberate pacing, the genre-blending approach—it seems like this is a project that knows exactly what it wants to be and has assembled the right people to bring it to life. That kind of clarity and intention is what separates films that genuinely matter from films that simply pass the time.
