u/i4film

We opened casting for our short political thriller before we had a single dollar raised, mostly to see if the story had legs. 1,500 submissions later, we had our answer.

A GOOD LIE is about a struggling mayoral candidate who stages a street attack with his estranged son as the victim. The lie works. Then it doesn't.

A few things we figured out along the way:

— Casting before funding was a gamble that paid off. The volume gave us real leverage when approaching talent and crew.
— We're shooting on cinema gear through our university rental house, with BU locations standing in for a fictional Massachusetts city.
— The crew is the same team from my debut short, which went through the New England festival circuit and got backing from Patty Jenkins.
— John Fiore of The Sopranos donated to the campaign, which felt like a sign.

We're 12% funded on Seed & Spark, 16 days left, all or nothing at 80%. If you're not in a position to pledge, a follow on the campaign page counts toward unlocking rewards, we're at 59, trying to hit 250.

Link in comments. Happy to talk casting strategy, the all-or-nothing model, or anything else.

We opened casting for our short political thriller before we had a single dollar raised, mostly to see if the story had legs. 1,500 submissions later, we had our answer.

A GOOD LIE is a Succession-influenced short about a struggling mayoral candidate who stages a street attack with his estranged son as the victim. The lie works. Then it doesn't.

A few things we figured out along the way:

— Casting before funding was a gamble that paid off. The submission volume gave us real leverage when approaching talent and crew.
— We're shooting on cinema gear through our university rental house, with Greater Boston area locations standing in for a fictional Massachusetts city.
— The crew is the same team from my debut short, which went through the New England festival circuit and got backing from Patty Jenkins.

We're crowdfunding on Seed & Spark, 12% funded, 16 days left, all or nothing at 80%. If you're not in a position to pledge, a follow on the campaign page counts toward unlocking rewards and costs nothing. 59 followers so far, trying to hit 250.

Fundraiser link in comments. Happy to talk casting strategy, the all-or-nothing model, or the script!

Hey everyone, I’m a filmmaker from Massachusetts and I'm crowdfunding my short film A Good Lie. Thought this might resonate with some of you.

It's a drama/thriller about a son who lets himself get staged as a mugging victim to try to save his father's failing political campaign.

I've been working in film for a few years, drone operating on an Emmy-winning production and some time on a Netflix production. Made a short last year that got into some New England festivals and now I'm trying to do something a bit more ambitious.

The response so far has honestly been kind of wild, over 1,500 people auditioned for fewer than 20 roles, and John Fiore from The Sopranos (Gigi Cestone) has come on to support the project, which still doesn't feel real…

We're on Seed&Spark at 11% with 23 days left. The way the platform works, funds only get released once we hit 80%, so the early push really does matter. Pledges start at $10 and go up through score tracks, behind-the-scenes stuff, and producer credits if you want to go deeper. I’ll post the link in the comments, as I can’t add it in here.

Shooting in June, aiming for festivals in Spring.

Happy to chat about it if anyone's curious!

Our crowdfunding campaign for A Good Lie, my upcoming short film, has reached 11% completion🙌🏻

With 24 days left, I am eager to share why I believe pledging, following, and sharing our campaign is essential:

1. The film industry is saturated with commercial productions, but true cinema lies in scrappy, character-driven films that evoke emotion.
2. My debut short film, In Other Words, exceeded crowdfunding expectations despite my lack of prior experience, doubling our original ask and garnering the support of prominent figures in the film industry.
3. A Good Lie is a human-made project, focusing on traditional storytelling techniques and meticulous planning, committed to making a real story to share with a real audience amidst the recent surge of AI.

I invite you to be part of my filmmaking journey, as collaboration is at the heart of this process. Every pledge, regardless of size, will significantly support our project's success, our journey, and independent filmmaking!

Thank you🙏🏻

Patty Jenkins supported In Other Words, my first short film. It screened at regional festivals. Now I'm reuniting the same DP (Best Cinematography, Commonwealth Film Festival) and cast to make A Good Lie.

A politician stages his own son's assault to win a city council race. The son agrees to it. Nobody in this film is purely a villain, that's the whole problem.

It's a proof-of-concept for a completed feature screenplay. I'm writer, director, editor, composer, and producer.

29 days. $680 of $9,150 raised. Boston-based. We shoot in June.

Happy to talk script, the feature, or what it's like wearing five hats on a shoestring!

Patty Jenkins supported In Other Words, my first short film. It screened at regional festivals. Now I'm reuniting the same DP (Best Cinematography, Commonwealth Film Festival) and cast to make A Good Lie.

A politician stages his own son's assault to win a city council race. The son agrees to it. Nobody in this film is purely a villain, that's the whole problem.

It's a proof-of-concept for a completed feature screenplay. I'm writer, director, editor, composer, and producer.

27 days left in the fundraiser. $680 of $9,150 raised. Boston-based. We shoot in June.

Happy to talk script, the feature, or what it's like wearing five hats on a shoestring!