"They stand there screaming with their heads tilted towards the Moon like wolves until everything is out..All the pain, the fear and the suffering until only forgiveness is left."
- A Kiss Before You Go
THE STORY
A Kiss Before You Go is the story of what happens to a young couple after they are forced to experience a defeating act of sexual violence. A year and a half after this experience that tears them apart, fate brings them together again. They are given the rare opportunity to spend one more night together, not only to reminisce, but to hopefully, heal and move on.
THE VISION
We have all loved someone special, whether it be through a serious, potentially tumultous relationship or maybe, just from afar. It seems that everyone has that one person, that if he or she were to walk in the room right now, your breath would quicken, your heart skip a beat, and time would stand still. We want AKBYG to capture the feeling of what it is like to be in a realtionship that crumbles, and then what it's like to see that person you loved again. This film will be a piece of cinema that draws the audience into the relationship unfolding, collapsing and rebuilding on the screen. It is a multi-layered piece that we believe almost anyone will be able to relate to.
THE IMPACT
In this particular case, Henry and Magdalena experience something horrible together and have to eventually, figure out how to move on. Whether it will be seperately or together. Magdalena is the victim or sexual assault and Henry is detained and forced to watch. While we understand that this is a sensitive subject matter, we believe it is very real and important. Carley has drawn from experiences of those close around her and the stories of others to write this film. She is very passionate about telling the story of what happens after a rape has occured. This is one portrayal of what could happen. A story worth telling.
OUR BUDGET NEEDS
There is SO much involved in this film: 8 locations, 3 days, 17 crew members, 5 cast members + extras, rentals to be had, mouths to feed, fake blood to purchase, etc...
I have broken down our budget into rough estimates of what we will need. This is how your donation will be put to use:
![pie]( "pie")
CAST & CREW: DP, 1st AC, 1st AD, Gaffer, Key Grip, Sound Recordist, Sound Mixer, Hair/Makeup, Actors, Stuntmen, Art Director, Editor, PA
RENTALS: Camera and Lighting Rentals for 3 days
LOCATIONS: Underground Jazz Club, Coffee House, Restaurant, Pool, Permits for all
WARDROBE/PROPS: not a lot, but we will need some clothes that can potentially be runied.
CRAFT SERVICES: Feeding our Cast and Crew... kinda important!
PRODUCTION INSURANCE: Safety First!
**note**Carley and I are not getting paid for this project. AT ALL. But we will take a nice hug or fist bump of encouragement!
OUR PERKS
We have a lot of great perks that you can check out to the right --> INCLUDING, original artwork and storyboards by our lovely and talented Art Director, Kelly Lynn McTavish (check her out here: http://www.kellymctavish.com/)
We also have a digital download of the film, a private screening with the cast and crew, t-shirts, posters, and my favorite - copies of the script with original notes from either one of the cast members or the Producer, Director or DP!
OUR PLAN
The goal is to shoot the film in 3 days, June 25th- 27th in Austin. After shooting, we will begin the Post process and hope to have the film finished by late August. Then we will be submitting it to festivals WORLDWIDE. We believe in this film and the potential is has and look forward to seeing it have success in the festival circuit! We hope you do too!
OTHER WAYS TO HELP
WHO WE ARE
OUR DIRECTOR
![Carley]( "Carley")
CARLEY MARISSA moved to Austin from St.Petersburg, FL to pursure her acting career three years ago. In the past year, she has transitioned into a filmmaker, bringing her vivid and emotional visions to life. Her first film 'The Space Between Us', has recently premeired to great critical acclaim. Carley is not afraid to explore subjects that many may feel are taboo, and portray them in such a way that delves into the depth and reality of human emotion.
She also spends her past time buried in books, usually of the YA fantasy fiction variety. Who would've guessed THAT..right?
"Carley Marissa is a dynamic, fearless, and inventive actor. She is an exciting artist to watch develop because she is willing to try just about anything you give her. In the last year Carley has transitioned into a filmmaker. She has delved into it with intelligence, vision, and drive." -Laurel Vouvray, Acting Coach
"Carley Marissa is a fresh and exciting new addition to the Austin film scene. She is one of the most driven and passionate young filmmakers I have seen in a long time. In a time of endless sequels and remakes, Carley's work feels original, truthful, and raw. I have watched her grow and learn at an exponential pace and I'm excited to see what she comes up with if she keep going with this momentum, which I know she will." -Marko Slavnic, Filmmaker
OUR PRODUCER
![Stephanie]( "Stephanie")
STEPHANIE ARD is an actress and producer. In addition to producing this film, she recently had the pleasure of working as an Associate Producer on a national commercial campaign and Associate Producing another short film called Sleepless Cities. Stephanie is so proud to be a part of this film and support the local Austin film scene in a new way. And, she finally gets to put her Baylor Marketing degree to use! Stephanie is an amatuer home-chef, loves to soak up the Austin culture, and play with her cat Swayze!!
http://www.stephaniemishelleard.com/
OUR CINEMATOGRAPHER
![EJ]( "EJ")
E.J. ENRIQUEZ has always had an limitless appreciation for open landscapes, bold colors and fantastical imagery. Hailing from the West Texas city of El Paso, E.J.'s love for filmmaking started early in life garnering various merits for his work.
Most recently those merits include shooting the feature film Big Boy, (2010 TFPF Grant recipient), shooting 2nd Unit for Kat Candler's short film Hellion (2011 Sundance & 2011 SXSW Official Selection), and shooting additional photography for Andrew Bujalski's feature film,Computer Chess (Sundance '13 Official Selection & 2011 TFPF Grant recipient).
Based out of Austin, TX, E.J. is an avid reader of NPR everyday, and all in all enjoys chasing light around, showing it to friends. Over drinks at fancy pants parties.
"E.J. Enriquez has a knack for emotion. His work is extremely beautiful, cinematic and is overflowing with feeling." - Carley Marissa
Check him out at www.ej-enriquez.com
OUR ART DIRECTOR
![kelly]( "kelly")
KELLY MCTAVISH is a primarily visual artist raised in Southern California and Dallas, TX, although she has now come to call Austin home. This will be the second film on which Kelly has done Art Direction. Kelly creates beautiful works of art that utilize mediums including, but not limited to: screenprinting, painting, drawing, sculpture, photography and pottery. Kelly most recently started a business designing and producing custom-made dinnerware (Forest + Folly). She also teaches painting classes and takes headshots for all of her actor friends! Kelly loves spending time outdoors, hiking, swimming in Barton Springs, and playing ultimate frisbee - which is where she met her fiance, Jason. For this film, Kelly will not only be overseeing the Art Department for the film, but she will be creating original pieces of art for our perks! A Kiss Before You Go is thrilled to have Kelly on board and you should be too!
"I like to tangle [these] paradoxical inspirations with the symbiotic relationship between suffering, discovery, and joy." - Kelly Lynn McTavish
http://www.kellymctavish.com/
OUR CAST
![nick]( "nick")
NICHOLAS SAENZ (Henry) is booming in the Austin film scene. Following the conclusion of a lengthy intensive at Chicago's revered ImprovOlympic, he is now in his second year of study with Laurel Vouvray, and quickly joining the ranks among his fellow esteemed Texas actors. The feature film The Man From Orlando showcased two festival premieres in 2012, and his role has garnered much acclaim. His latest short film, BOYFRIENDS, had its SXSW world premiere earlier this year.
![jackie]( "jackie")
JACQUELINE CLAIRE (Magdalena) is honored to portray a woman as strong and resilient as Magdalena in "A Kiss Before You Go." Previously she has appeared in numerous films and television series including a guest star spot on "Friday Night Lights", "Otis Under Sky" (Official SXSW selection 2011), and most recently, "The Dalliance" (Official ECU Selection 2013). She has also been featured in Cosmopolitan Magazine, and is an accomplished painter. For more information visit Jacqueline's website:
http://jacquelineclaire.net/
![david]( "david")
DAVID HARROD JR. is an upcoming character actor from Austin, TX. Formally the frontman for the rock band Bent Eye Bolt. He has been acting in films for the last five years appearing in 20 plus, short and feature films combined. Including the feature film Humans Versus Zombies that frequently airs on Chiller TV. For the last two years he's been studying Meisner technique with Laurel Vouvray, and has studied under many great acting coaches such as Mona Lee, CK Mcfarland and Van Brooks. His love for acting is apparent to all and you can guarantee if he's working on set he's probably in acting class.
Thanks everyone! We love you!
~ Stephanie and Carley
STEPHANIE ARD is an actress and producer. In addition to producing this film, she recently had the pleasure of working as an Associate Producer on a national commercial campaign and Associate Producing another short film called Sleepless Cities. Stephanie is so proud to be a part of this film and support the local Austin film scene in a new way. And, she finally gets to put her Baylor Marketing degree to use! Stephanie is an amatuer home-chef, loves to soak up the Austin culture, and play with her cat Swayze!!
KELLY MCTAVISH is a primarily visual artist raised in Southern California and Dallas, TX, although she has now come to call Austin home. This will be the second film on which Kelly has done Art Direction. Kelly creates beautiful works of art that utilize mediums including, but not limited to: screenprinting, painting, drawing, sculpture, photography and pottery. Kelly most recently started a business designing and producing custom-made dinnerware (
NICHOLAS SAENZ (Henry) is booming in the Austin film scene. Following the conclusion of a lengthy intensive at Chicago's revered ImprovOlympic, he is now in his second year of study with Laurel Vouvray, and quickly joining the ranks among his fellow esteemed Texas actors. The feature film The Man From Orlando showcased two festival premieres in 2012, and his role has garnered much acclaim. His latest short film, BOYFRIENDS, had its SXSW world premiere earlier this year.
JACQUELINE CLAIRE (Magdalena) is honored to portray a woman as strong and resilient as Magdalena in "A Kiss Before You Go." Previously she has appeared in numerous films and television series including a guest star spot on "Friday Night Lights", "Otis Under Sky" (Official SXSW selection 2011), and most recently, "The Dalliance" (Official ECU Selection 2013). She has also been featured in Cosmopolitan Magazine, and is an accomplished painter. For more information visit Jacqueline's website: 
DAVID HARROD JR. 
