Special screenings with Berner in attendance are scheduled for Fri\/31 in San Jose and Sat\/1 in San Francisco before the film streams on demand this fall.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The crime drama, co-written and co-directed by Berner, follows two brothers headed toward starkly different futures. Slim (Zach Sowers) sees basketball as a possible way out, while Juju (Reed Shannon) becomes increasingly entangled in the world of bipping, or smash-and-grab car burglaries. Beneath the crime story is a coming-of-age tale about loyalty, betrayal, and life-altering decisions.<\/p>\n
Berner\u2019s music has long chronicled street life through songs like \u201c20 Joints,\u201d while hits including \u201cEl Chivo\u201d and \u201cBest Thang Smokin’\u201d helped expand his audience. Film, however, offered a larger canvas\u2014one that could bring those people, places, and conflicts to life.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a lot more fun, honestly,\u201d he tells 48 Hills. \u201cYou can bring the world together visually, which is what you try to achieve with music videos, but on a whole different level. So I really enjoyed it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Splash City first emerged during the height of San Francisco\u2019s bipping wave, when car break-ins had become a constant presence across the city. Rather than sensationalize it, Berner wanted to tell the story of the people living through it.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a big moment for us when we started feeling the whole bipping wave, and a lot of us were affected by it,\u201d he says. \u201cI felt like, let me just go ahead and tell this story.\u201d<\/p>\n
Berner sees Splash City as the Bay Area\u2019s answer to Juice and New Jersey Drive\u2014films that gave New York and Jersey culturally specific identities on screen.<\/p>\n
Like those films, he wanted to build Splash City around rhythms, slang, and music that could only come from lived experience.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople picture SF as cable cars and this beautiful place,\u201d he says. \u201cI wanted to bring that world that we\u2019ve never really seen before on film to life.\u201d<\/p>\n
Although crime provides the story\u2019s framework, the emotional center of Splash City is the relationship between Juju and Slim. Raised in the same environment, the brothers respond to their circumstances in dramatically different ways, revealing how shared origins do not guarantee a shared future.<\/p>\n
Berner drew on his relationship with his own brother to shape the bond between Juju and Slim. \u201cBrothers have a very deep connection,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Splash-City-2-1024x577.jpg\")
\u2018Splash City\u2019<\/p>\n
That relationship anchors the film in something universal. Viewers may not recognize every neighborhood reference or piece of local slang, but anyone can understand the pain of watching someone they love make choices they cannot control.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Juju and Slim\u2019s story asks how far family loyalty can extend\u2014and what happens when protecting someone begins to threaten your own future.<\/p>\n
Authenticity extended to the casting process. Berner relied heavily on local performers, believing lived experience couldn\u2019t be manufactured. Some actors came through auditions, while others were people he already knew had ambitions to perform.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe majority of them are local,\u201d he says. \u201cAnd that\u2019s what made the film so authentic, edgy, and raw. The biggest thing I\u2019m excited about with this film is breaking local talent. They have a personality and swagger you haven\u2019t really seen yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
The same philosophy extended to the soundtrack. As an artist who has spent decades contributing to Bay Area hip-hop, Berner had no intention of handing scoring duties to anyone else.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, that\u2019s all me\u2014100 percent,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
The soundtrack mixes established Bay Area artists with newer voices\u2014including Mozzy, Young Sight, J. Stalin, San Quinn, and The Hoodstarz.<\/p>\n
Like the film itself, the gritty rap is meant to reflect Berner\u2019s Bay Area. Even so, he doesn\u2019t believe Splash City will leave audiences with a scary view of San Francisco.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is based on some real stuff,\u201d he says. \u201cI\u2019m not going to sugarcoat that, but I don\u2019t think that really deters people from coming to San Francisco.\u201d<\/p>\n
Instead, he hopes the film broadens audiences\u2019 understanding of a city that contains far more stories than its most familiar screen images suggest.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Berner-directs-819x1024.jpeg\")
Berner behind the scenes.<\/p>\n
Life imitated art when Berner attended a recent Oakland screening of his movie. After years of avoiding the experience himself, he returned to find his car had been broken into.<\/p>\n
\u201cI got to my car, and was like, \u2018You gotta be kidding me,\u2019\u201d he says. \u201cBut I smiled and was like, \u2018This is the universe.’\u201d<\/p>\n
For Berner, Splash City is the beginning of a larger storytelling universe rooted in Northern California. He envisions future films centered on cannabis trafficking, organized crime, and the region\u2019s diverse cultural communities.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have such a multicultural universe out here in the Bay Area,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
Becoming a father and surviving cancer reshaped Berner\u2019s ambitions. Across cannabis, music, and now film, he\u2019s focused on building a legacy.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like what I do brings people together,\u201d he says. \u201cI want to live a long time through my work.\u201d<\/p>\n
SPLASH CITY WITH BERNER IN-PERSON 7\/31 at AMC Eastridge 15, San Jose; 8\/1 at AMC Metreon 16, SF. More info here<\/a>. <\/p>\n