7 DAY GIG: THE PROCESS TELLS THE STORY

The script I developed for Film Independent's Project: Involve has been green-lit and we are into the swing of pre-production. 

A punk, an old man, and a chicken gather round for a makeshift shiva after Jay (a Romanian/Guamanian/Catholic/Jew) puts an ad on Craigslist looking for mourners to join him.  7 DAY GIG: A FILM ABOUT THE COMEDY OF LOSS

In this film, I am working on creating a process that reflects the theme and story.

When Project: Involve assigned the topic, "A cultural celebration and a character's conflict within it," I immediately thought about how my great grandmother sat shiva for my grandfather while he was still alive. She was unhappy with his choice of marriage, a gentile from England. However, what interested me the most was not this conflict between religion and love but how confused I had felt after my father died. I experienced a deep craving and longing for some formal way, some map, some structured timeless tradition to guide me through the grief. 

My dad had grown up between two religions, but felt at home in neither one. At his funeral, my sister read her assigned passage and almost burst out laughing. She didn't understand a word of what she was saying. I, for one, found it hilarious when they fired off 7 rifles at his military burial. Despite being a proud veteran, he was a pacifist and hated loud noises. None of these traditions reflected or honored my dad.  

The week after his funeral, life tapped her foot and wound up her watch.  I went water-skiing, I sent out cover-letters, I had job interviews. But the yearning to stop time, to be witnessed, and to connect to a community grew deeper.  7 DAY GIG is my chance to do just that. 

In the casting, shot-listing, location scouting, filming; time will stop. There will be complete focus, as the phone-calls, emails, and daily to dos wait patiently for their turn.

We will be witnessed.  Daily life has a strange relationship to death. We love to gawk and stare at the news... Area man shoots himself when blah blah blah, College student is hit by blah blah blah, Celebrity so and so dies after a long battle with blah blah blah....but when we are confronted with death face to face we often hide. We send pre-written Hallmark cards, hit like on Facebook and say things like "I'm so sorry" (which we all know makes no sense but we don't know what else to say and it's better than saying nothing so we say it anyway).

We don't know how to do the frightening work of simply being a witness to death. My process on 7 DAY GIG will be about witnessing, creating a space for the cast and crew where they can be seen and allowing my own grief to flap in the wind. The film is a chance for me to honor my dad, to channel his sense of humor and share his love of people. 

We will be a community. Every time you make a film, you make a community.  One of the reasons I was so excited to participate in Project:Involve was to connect to Film Independent's fantastic family of filmmakers.

We are currently casting and building the crew. See the breakdown below and let me know if you'd like to join this family dinner. 

JAY / LEAD / MALE / PACIFIC ISLANDER / 20-40

A lonely misfit working through the recent loss of his father. He is struggling to find a way to honor his dad. A Guamanian/Romanian/Catholic/Jew that never feels like he belongs, he is looking for community and will go to strange lengths to find it.  He feels like a failure 80% of the time, the other 20% of the time he is convinced he’s found the key to life.  Actor must be of Pacific-Islander descent. We will be tailoring the age and region of the Pacific Islands to fit the right actor.

THE OLD MAN / SUPPORTING / MALE / JEWISH / 70-85

A warm and patient presence. Although he seems out to pasture, he is keen and committed to helping Jay. He recently lost his wife and is heart broken. Like Jay, he is looking for friendship and a way to move on in the face of grief. He’s not really accustomed to being a bachelor and has a little bit of trouble with things like laundry, hygiene, and nutrition.

THE CHICKEN / SUPPORTING / MALE / ANY ETHNICITY / 20-40

A skinny dude, down on his luck, exhausted from working the streets as a mascot for Chicken Hut, he wants a big break and is looking for an easier way to make a living.

THE PUNK / SUPPORTING / FEMALE / JEWISH / 11-14

A bossy, sharp, authoritative, know-it-all, conservative Jewish girl with style and spunk. She wants to rule the world or at least be the president of her class.

YELTY / FEATURED / FEMALE / ROMANIAN-JEWISH / 50-70

Jay’s grandmother, strong, stubborn.

SOLOMON / FEATURED / MALE / ROMANIAN-JEWISH / 50-70

Jay’s grandfather, sweet, understanding.

THE UPS MAN / FEATURED / MALE / ANY ETHNICITY / 30s

Fit and chipper, the kind of guy who whistles while he works.

ROLLER-SKATERS / FEATURED / ANY GENDER / ANY ETHNICITY / ANY AGE

A team of 9 roller-skaters, they are friendly but they take their practice very seriously.

CAGEY NEIGHBOR / FEATURED / ANY GENDER / ANY ETHNICITY / 30-40

Secretive, running some kind of business behind chain-locked doors.

CELL PHONE LADY / FEATURED / FEMALE / ANY ETHNICITY / 20-40 
Fast-talking, multitasking, slightly-distracted driver with a good heart.

RATE

Copy/Credit/Pay in accordance with the New Media Contract for SAG actors
 

PRODUCING COMPANY

The short is produced by Film Independent as part of the Project:Involve Fellowship in conjunction with the National Minority Consortia for PBS. The film will screen at the Project:Involve screening in the Los Angeles Film Festival with the option to air on PBS.

CAST MUST BE AVAILABLE FOR PRODUCTION AND REHEARSALS April 12, 13, 14, 15, 2013.

YOUR NAME HERE! JOIN OUR CREATIVE TEAM AND CREW

E-mail me for details.

kate.sugarcane@gmail.com 

PRODUCER, Frances E. Chang is a Chinese-Vietnamese-American freelance film producer, screenwriter, educator, and Film Independent Project: Involve alumnus. She has worked on multiple media projects, ranging from music videos to documentaries to narrative films, and specializes in physical production of low budget independent feature films.  Since moving back to Los Angeles after graduating from the University of California, Berkeley, Frances became involved with festival favorites, “Strapped” and “American Primitive,” for which she has even attended the Cannes Film Festival and Market in 2009. In five years of being a filmmaker, Frances’s credits have spread throughout almost forty projects, including five narrative feature films that she has produced. Frances strives to represent diverse, ethnic and underrepresented voices in her projects, both on and off screen.  

CINEMATOGRAPHER, Leah Anova was born in Manila, Philippines to parents who wanted to give their children a chance at the American Dream.  Her father joined the US Navy when she was 6.  As a result, Leah was raised as a Military Brat.  Leah has lived in the Philippines, Japan, Italy and all over the United States.  She has traveled extensively throughout Europe and Turkey.  Living abroad and traveling the world has given Leah a unique viewpoint that continues to influence her approach towards cinematography.  Leah received her Masters of Fine Arts in Cinematography from the American Film Institute.  Since having graduated, Leah has worked on a variety of productions ranging from narrative films to corporate videos.  Recently, Leah has been accepted to Film Independent’s Project Involve 2012-2013.  Her experiences and her wide ranging background, gives Leah a breath of knowledge, the technical prowess and an ability to think on her feet.

EDITOR, Aleigh Lewis is a filmmaker/editor based in Los Angeles working in TV, music video and short film.  Recent TV credits include “Project Runway,” “Bad Girls Club,” “Honey Boo Boo,” and “Project Runway Allstars.”  Her music video for Julia Holter was voted top music video of 2012 by Dummymag.  Past projects include a collaborative project mixing live theater and video installation between Cuban and American artists which premiered at the Havana Film Festival in 2009.  Awards and grants include the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences internship grant, LA Department of Cultural Affairs grant and scholarships from the Disney family and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.  She holds a BA from Oberlin College and a MFA in film from CalArts. 

DIRECTOR/WRITER, Kate Marks is a multidisciplinary storyteller whose work lives in the crossroads of mythic and mundane. Kate is currently finishing her thesis film, MIRACLE MAKER as part of her MFA degree in film directing at CalArts.  Kate is the recipient of the Black Maria Film + Video Jurors’ Choice Award, Sarah Jacobson Film Grant, The Beutner Family Award for Excellence in the Arts, and a Celtx Seeds Award. She is currently a Project:Involve fellow with Film Independent. Her films have screened at Slamdance, REDCAT, The New Orleans Film Festival, The Bahamas International Film Festival, Curta Cinema, The Los Angeles Underground Film Festival, The Newport Beach Film Festival, The California International Shorts Festival, NewFilmmakers New York, GEN X Sing-A-Long and the Blackout Film Festival.  Additionally, Kate has worked as a teacher, performer, clown, dancer, playwright and theatre director in New York City where The New York Times called her “a superb director” and “ingenious.” When Kate was in the fourth grade she was advised to play the flute, but politely chose the trombone. She has been quietly rebelling against cuteness ever since. Kate is a graduate of Brown University where she received honors in playwriting. 

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