Jonathon Groff in ‘C.O.G.’

It’s hard to believe, given the rich fodder of material that can be mined from the numerous, semi-autobiographical short stories written by David Sedaris, that C.O.G. is the first to make the translation.  Written and directed by Kyle Patrick Alvarez, who previously wrote and directed the independent film Easier With Practice with Brian Geraghty (The Hurt Locker) in 2009\, C.O.G. had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival this past January and recently opened the 31st Outfest Film Festival in Los Angeles.  Acquired by Focus World, a division of Focus Features, C.O.G. will hit theaters in limited engagement as well as VOD outlets on September 20th.

C.O.G. tells the story of a sharp, if arrogant, young man named David (Jonathan Groff of Glee fame), and recounts real-life experience from Sedari’s own vivid and colorful youth.  The official synopsis describes the film as being about “David, a young man who plans a summer in the Northwest with his friend Jennifer (Troian Bellisario of Pretty Little Liars), working on a farm. But when Jennifer unexpectedly bails on him, David is left to dirty his hands alone and jump into a series of misadventures that will take him to unfamiliar – and hilariously uncomfortable – places.”

Alongside Groff and Bellisario, the film stars Corey Stoll (memorable as Ernest Hemingway in Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris and most recently showcased in the Emmy-nominated Netflix series House of Cards), Dale Dickey (Independent Spirit Award winner for 2010’s Winter’s Bone), Denis O’Hare (Milk) and Casey Wilson (Saturday Night Live) as the motley crew of working class characters that affect and are affected by David.  Check out the trailer below.