My son had his eighth birthday recently and we had a chance to borrow the film and show it to all of his friends that was at his birthday party and they loved it. I was a little nervous. I said they might not even like it, and say his daddy’s movie is wack, but they loved it.

Underwood describes a small, intimate “test screening” of his work: showing a film he made to his young son’s friends at a birthday party. The anecdote highlights the particular vulnerability artists feel when their work is judged by the people whose opinions matter most personally—family and children—rather than critics or industry peers. His joking fear that the kids might call it “wack” underscores a generational gap and the blunt honesty of children as an audience. Their positive reaction becomes a form of validation that is emotional rather than professional: the film succeeds not only as a product, but as something that can delight and connect within his family life.