This post was updated Aug. 18 at 8:57 p.m.

A new short-form comedy is leaving little room for “Shenanigans.”

“Shenanigans,” written by alumnus Alex Henry, began production Aug. 8 and is expected to premiere Dec. 21, at both UCLA’s James Bridges Theater and Beverly Hills’ Fine Arts Theater. Following two audacious UCLA students attempting to defy societal and familial expectations in 1999, the slapdash storyline creates a jovial space for the young characters to discover themselves, said director Michael Lena.

“I like stories where you see a character really go through something, and they come out the other end a changed person,” Lena said. “Whether that happens from the age of 23 … or it happens at the age of 65, that change – that self-betterment – I think is something that I find satisfying and fulfilling.”

When deciding to take on the film, Lena said he gravitated toward the opportunity to sharpen the period narrative with a bit of current college life sensibility. Aware of the reckless reputation normally associated with fraternity students, Lena said he was determined to transform typically unlikeable characteristics into more relatable ones through the central protagonist, James Dwayne Jr., a UCLA student determined to violate his father’s wishes of working for him after graduation. Lena added that the deuteragonist and love interest Stacey Lee Miller, a psychology student who conducts unlicensed therapy sessions on campus, provided a necessary subplot to enrich the script. The decision to focus on just two characters was extremely intentional without time or funding on their side, he said.

[Related: Alex Henry’s horror-comedy ‘Goin’ Green’ refreshes coming-of-age genre]

“It’s been hard with locations being up in the air … and then balancing Alex’s wishes with what is actually practical … (given) the amount of time we have and the budget we have,” Lena said. “So … we ended up cutting a few things a little bit late in the game, which isn’t ideal, but we’re picking up that fumble and continuing forward.”

Having already directed the short films “Love is Always Losing” and “Lemonade,” Lena said he saw opportunity in the collaborative process of making “Shenanigans” while keeping aspirations for his own future feature film in mind. When provided with the initial script, he observed the need to bring his directorial approach while still fulfilling Henry’s vision for the project with the resources provided, Lena said. Director of Photography Sankalp Dubey said he is actively working on focalizing Henry’s wishes while still adding his personalized cinematic touch.

Dubey said “Shenanigans” has offered unique challenges as his first period piece in creating accurate aesthetics for the late 1990s through lighting and location. To capture the retro feel, Dubey said he is using grain and high contrast to replicate the lens of a digital camera.

“This film does require a different kind of style than what I usually prefer to do, so it is a bit of a challenge,” Dubey said. “But I love challenges, so I think it will be a fun experience.”

Producer Katie Royer said the energized cast and crew have made the production process seamless and enjoyable. Having already worked with Lena and Dubey on previous films and later meeting Henry, Royer said the decision to join the project was easy. Excited by the witty script and the opportunity to film on UCLA’s campus, Royer said she came onto the project about a month late with ambitions of making the film the best it could be.

[Related: UCLA student film buff builds community on campus]

With filming recently started, Royer said the team is looking forward to establishing strong bonds with the crew and seeing the coming-of-age project brought to life. An ultimately feel-good film, “Shenanigans” is the type of comedy that will leave audiences with a newfound sense of introspection, Lena added.

“I hope that people have a lot of fun watching it,” Royer said. “I think that the movie pushes for you to listen to your own inner voice about what you want to do versus anyone else’s expectations of who you want to be, so I think that that’s a great message to put out there, and I hope that gives people a little bit of power.”