The age-old saying might suggest that 'three's a crowd'. . . But writer and actor Michael Doshier hopes his new film 'Throuple', celebrating its Sydney premiere at Queer Screen Mardi Gras Film Festival this year, will give people a new perspective on throuples and polyamorous relationships.
'Throuple', which Doshier describes as a “polyamorous romantic comedy”, follows a singer-songwriter named Michael who is at a crossroads in his life. “He has big dreams, but he’s totally lost sight of them, so he leans a lot on his best friend and roommate Tristan and her girlfriend for all of his social needs. They are his best friends; he is backstage at all of their shows and he’s a little bit co-dependent on them, so that’s one throuple in his life; but then he meets a gay couple who he starts to have feelings for and so the movie sees him going from one throuple to another, and all of the growth that comes from that moment.”
Doshier, who is a singer and songwriter and makes his acting debut in 'Throuple', started writing the script back in 2018. “I was noticing a lot of gays (at that time) were opening their relationships and looking for thirds or for their partner and them to have fun with one person for a night and that all started happening in tandem and sort of inspired the movie.”
While the lead character and Michael share the same name, Doshier says the film is inspired by his experiences as opposed to being based on him. “I definitely related to the character of [Michael] so much that it felt odd to give him another name. I wouldn’t say it’s necessarily my story, but it derives from this kind of insecurity I had in my 20s about spanning my own truth and declaring what I wanted out of life and that’s kind of Michael’s journey – he has more of an ability do that than what he thinks he does, and that was certainly the journey I had in my 20s – standing up for my truth and going after what I wanted in life whether that be in romantic relationships or friendships, or my career – all of which are touched on through the character of Michael.”
Doshier has written and stars in the film, but he was more than willing to hand the directing reigns to Greyson Horst. “I really wanted to play Michael and I wanted my best friend to play Tristan, and at the time we were primarily musicians. We had not acted before, so the idea that I was going to play myself (meant) I really wanted someone to direct me.”
“It was never a temptation for me to direct myself, but it was really important for me to find the right director. Greyson was incredible, he’s a visionary and there are so many things about this film that are visually and conceptually stunning that I never would have been able to think of and that goes beyond screenwriting. There’s like a 13-minute split screen where you’re able to see 5 characters at once – Greyson thinks outside of the box in a way that I do not. He took my script and blew it up to a really experimental and bold style of filmmaking.”
Doshier has been overwhelmed by the success of 'Throuple'. He describes himself as an artist who came from a small state who just dreamed that his work would hopefully resonate with audiences beyond his hometown and state, let alone on the other side of the world. “I really hope audiences in Sydney resonate with it and enjoy themselves and see themselves in it, and I’m really honoured it has made its way to Australia.”
Check out the 2025 Queer Screen Mardi Gras Film Festival programme.
“I just hope the movie shows five really well-meaning, kind-hearted and good queer people who are just trying their best together to figure out how their relationship works the best. It’s because everyone cares about one another and everyone wants everyone else to be happy.
“('Throuple') shows that something like non-conventional relationships like a throuple or a queer family is not a bold, unrecognisable thing, it’s just adults figuring out what works best for them so everyone involved is living their fullest potential. I hope it makes 'bold' relationship structures feel cute and adorable. That’s my goal.”
'Throuple' plays Event Cinemas (George Street, Sydney) on 15 February as part of Queer Screen's Mardi Gras Film Festival. It's also available on-demand from 28 February-13 March.
