See Short Film ‘My Last Martini’ Starring Wendy Robie at Real Twin Peaks 2026

If you are headed to the Real Twin Peaks 2026 event, the North Bend Theatre in North Bend, Washington is holding a special screening of My Last Martini on Friday, February 20. This short film starring Wendy Robie and Mickey O’Sullivan was adapted from a short story by Barry Gifford and directed by Rob Christopher.

“MY LAST MARTINI: STORIES” BY BARRY GIFFORD

Barry Gifford is an American author, poet, and screenwriter known for his distinctive mix of American landscapes and film noir- and Beat Generation-influenced literary madness.

He published a series of novels about Sailor and Lula, two sex-driven, star-crossed protagonists on the road. The first of the series, Wild at Heart, was adapted by director David Lynch for the 1990 film of the same title.

He also wrote the script to the “Blackout” episode for Hotel Room, the HBO anthology series directed by Lynch. Gifford then went on to write the screenplay for Lynch’s 1997 film, Lost Highway. Ben and Bryon from Twin Peaks Unwrapped spoke at length with Gifford in 2017 for their podcast – hear the full interview.

According to Publishers Weekly, his book “My Last Martini: Stories” is a collection of seven-mostly old and reworked-stories that leapfrog from Europe to Africa to Cuba. The title offering is an anecdote about a chance encounter in a Parisian bar with an irrepressible female who, like the narrator, has had one martini too many.

The San Francisco Chronicle first published Gifford’s short story, “My Last Martini,” on February 3, 1998 (see the end of this article). The book containing this story and others was published around June 2000.

MY LAST MARTINI SHORT FILM BY ROB CHRISTOPHER

Above is the trailer for Christopher’s film which is described as: “There are certain secrets that you only reveal to a complete stranger in a bar. One evening at an elegant cocktail lounge, a frustrated writer breaks a self-imposed rule and decides to have a third martini. Moments later he is joined by a mysterious woman who drifts over from the next booth, looking for a good listener.”

The 15-minute film includes Wendy Robie (Twin Peaks, Relative), Mickey O’Sullivan (Room Tone, Handle With Care), and Madrid St. Angelo (Chicago Fire, ER). Produced by  John Otterbacher (RiffRaff, Moving Parts) and Aaron Wertheimer (Not If I See You First), Christopher Rejano (Signature Move, Knives and Skin) served as director of photography under Rob Christopher’s direction.

Following Christopher’s work on the documentary Roy’s World: Barry Gifford’s Chicago, author Gifford invited him to adapt other stories.

Filming took place at Bryant’s Cocktail Lounge, a historic bar in Milwaukee, Wisconsin that Rob regularly visited for nearly a decade.

“Filmmaker Luis Buňuel once wrote that bars ‘are the perfect places for the meditation and contemplation indispensable to life,” said Christopher in an interview with Screen Magazine. “When all the correct elements are in place, there’s something about the atmosphere in a bar that can lead to surprising epiphanies – and encounters. That’s what’s really at the heart of Barry Gifford’s short story. So adapting it for the screen and filming it at Bryant’s is the proverbial no-brainer.”

The short film was previously screening at a number of festivals include the comprehensive David Lynch retrospective at the Music Box Theatre in 2025. Author Scott Ryan held a 20-minute question and answer session with Twin Peaks star Wendy Robie and director Rob Christopher about her work in the short film.

Ryan and and Emily Marinelli also interviewed the duo for their podcast, It’s Our Time.

Cameron from David Lynch’s World also spoke with Rob about the short film.

“MY LAST MARTINI” AT THE NORTH BEND THEATRE ON FEBRUARY 20, 2026

This film will be screened at the North Bend Theatre on Friday, February 20 beginning at 1:45 p.m. It will be followed by the pilot episode and episode 1.001 of Twin Peaks.

Day passes for $30 each are available for screenings on Friday, Saturday and Sunday during Real Twin Peaks 2026 in Snoqualmie Valley, Washington.

“MY LAST MARTINI” FROM SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE | FEBRUARY 3, 1998

On Tuesday, February 3, 1998, the San Francisco Chronicle published Barry Gifford’s “My Last Martini” in advance of Valentine’s Day. They invited readers on February 13 to write their own short story about Valentine’s Day. Click the images below to enlarge.