Or did it?

"I was watching The Hudsucker Proxy, and there was a truck with 'Sunnyvale' as the name on its side. It seemed like an unusual title," Ricardo says. But he was looking for something to replace the "ridiculous" title he had been using for his script. "Since the movie is darkly comic, the title seems ironic."

Ricardo, a graduate of Lynbrook High School and an Internet technology specialist, used his life savings to bankroll the film he first envisioned in 1995. Sunnyvale is the story of a slacker named Hound who has difficulty juggling relationships with multiple women.

"I wanted to make something that had the quirkiness of Wes Anderson's films, the look of Stanley Kubrick's and the humor of Kevin Smith's," Ricardo says. After graduating from Lynbrook, Ricardo took several screenwriting and film classes at De Anza College before moving to Los Angeles in 1991. While working various jobs, he penned several scripts, including Sunnyvale in 1997.

But filming didn't begin until July 2004. Ricardo would pitch the idea to Hollywood agents, but his lackluster title would always raise an eyebrow. It wasn't until Ricardo supplanted Sunnyvale as the name of his project that it got underway.

He placed advertisements on websites like Craig's List, looking for a crew and actors. Responses to the ad led him to The Company Pictures, which supplied Christopher Goschi, an award-winning cinematographer, for Ricardo's project. Ricardo also found the group of women to play his main character's paramours, and jumped into acting by taking on the main role himself.

It wasn't the only role that was new for him. "I was the only one there who had never been on a film set before," he says. "I had to learn when to say 'cut' and 'action.' " His co-producer says that the experience was a challenge for Ricardo, but he pulled through just fine.

"He bit off a big part to chew," Heidemarie Fuentes says. "I've known him for quite a while, but he just needed a nudge to get started."

Filming took place over eight days in a district of renovated lofts near downtown Los Angeles. Ricardo may have been a filmmaking newbie, but both Ricardo and Fuentes say the crew more than made up for it. "We had a really nice crew, very professional," Fuentes says. "The production quality is really nice."

Ricardo submitted the film to Cinequest, and it was accepted in the Emerging Mavericks/New Visions category. He hopes that the film's premiere will catch someone's eye and possibly allow him the opportunity to get a job on the set of that someone's film. "It's a good calling card," Ricardo says.

He also plans to submit the film to other high-profile festivals like Cannes and Tribeca, though he admits Cinequest might have been an easier festival to break into. "They probably noticed the name," he says.

'Sunnyvale' is playing in the San José State University Theater on March 4 at 9 p.m. and March 5 at 4:30 p.m. For more information and tickets, visit www.cinequest.org.