Title: On a String
Director: Isabel Hagen
Starring: Isabel Hagen, Ling Ling Huang, Dylan Baker, Frederick Weller
Runtime: 1 hr 18 mins

What It Is: A Juilliard-trained violist, Isabel (Isabel Hagen) navigates the New York City freelance classical music scene, performing gigs that often draw her into the personal lives of strangers—all while living in her eccentric family’s apartment.

What We Think: Sometimes, when the best traits of an artist are woven together in perfect harmony, something entirely new is revealed. This time, it’s the promising and captivating talent of Isabel Hagen in her feature directorial debut, On a String, which recently premiered at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival—and it’s a refreshing burst of originality and mirth.

Shot throughout NYC with a naturalistic lens, the film shines under its well-placed string symphonies, showing us that the bow on Isabel’s violin isn’t the only thing in need of balance. She must also navigate where her personal life is heading—grappling with its stresses, humor, and, ultimately, its synchronicities.

From the opening scene, the pacing is spot-on. Despite a few minor editing hiccups, the performances from Hagen, Huang, Baker, and Weller—as well as Jamie Lee, Karen Blood, and Oliver Hagen, to name a few—will undoubtedly draw you in. The writing is no less impressive. The screenplay blends beautifully observed human awkwardness with hilariously deadpan interactions and heartfelt warmth. Fans of Frances Ha and Shiva Baby will likely fall in love with this one—and with Isabel Hagen herself.

There’s a strong, organic sense of authenticity pulsing through the frames of On a String that makes me excited to see where Hagen’s film career goes next. She’s clearly a true multihyphenate artist with a distinctive voice on the rise. I’m not fishing for pull quotes, folks—this is a film where the writing, directing, and performances are as complementary as a string trio, with laughs landing right on cue.

Our Grade: A; By all means, On a String is one of the best films I’ve seen this year. A truly memorable and revelatory debut from Isabel Hagen, it’s packed with charisma and poignancy, supported by a stellar cast. I absolutely loved this film—once it gets a wider release, I implore you to go see it.