The bond between siblings is a system of its own: it can be as enigmatic as it is candid. Hal and Harper share their own semantics and semiotics, born and raised in Los Angeles. But when their father announces that his girlfriend is expecting a baby, the troubled childhood that Hal and Harper never quite allowed to resurface suddenly moves to centre stage. A series by Cooper Raiff, the first four episodes of which can be seen at IndieLisboa.
Canais TVCine series preview.
Hal & Harper is a tender, quietly devastating miniseries about the fragile architecture of family and the ways love can both sustain and undo us. At its centre are the messy, profound bonds between siblings. Set in Los Angeles, it follows Hal and Harper – two deeply codependent adult siblings – as they navigate relationships, friendships, and the emotional residue of a complicated childhood. When their father announces the arrival of a new baby, brother and sister are forced to confront both their past and the uncertain shape of their present, trying to not desperate about the future.
Created, written, directed by and starring Cooper Raiff as Hal, alongside Lili Reinhart (a truly unforgettable and extraordinary Harper) and Mark Ruffalo (their loving and haunted dad), the series unfolds as an emotional rollercoaster – by turns chaotic, funny, and deeply moving (and at times bringing you to tears). The bond between Hal and Harper is symbiotic and visceral: a source of comfort, but also constraint.
Shot in just 50 days from a 300-page script developed over six years, this 9-episode miniseries favours subtle gestures over melodrama, capturing the unspoken tensions that shape family life. At the festival, the first four episodes will be screened, with the remainder to be available on TVCine channels.
A moving exploration of memory, identity, and connection, Hal & Harper lingers long after the final frame. (Alexandra Ferraz)
