Lets Finish a Movie!

Rob Parsons...Filmmaker, Father, Brother and ...

Inspiration was something I had never thought I was touched with. My older sister has cerebral palsy. Her smile, her unwavering love, her “I’m going to do whatever they said I can’t do attitude” was were where I found my first moment of, You know what, why not me? They said she would never walk. They were right, she ran.

Then my son came along. After 24 surgeries and seven years of not knowing what was going on, all I had to do was look in his eyes and the inspiration started to pour out of me. It started with my first script, the first full length comedy I ever wrote called “Calling”. 

“Calling” was about a man working at a call centre, who on the day he learns of layoffs, he also finds out his child has a disability. As a call centre employee for 12 years and a son with special needs it’s not hard to see where that story came from.

But that was then, this is now. Now I am a father of one, step father of two others. 

Inspiration is easy when you are surrounded by the innocence and honesty of kids. I have walked a fine line my entire life of going through the motions of normal accepted life, and trying to reach for the moon one inch at a time. 

My stories, our movies! These are a reflection of that...can DO spirit, of going against the odds and showing the world that, you know what, we can do it. And as I write this I can tell you all, we did it. As a team of over 50 people we made our second full length feature. We beat the odds and we made a movie.

They said my sister would never “walk”.

People say it is impossible to make movies and to get into the film industry. 

They were right, why walk? 

We ran together and are about to hand them our movie. 

Can’t? There is no such word.

This Campaign is Simple...

Let em laugh is the only Production Company in NB that has produced two feature length films without financial backing....that means no big backing.   

In summary, We need post production funding to take the already edited 90 minutes of awesomeness over the finish line. It needs to be polished and finessed into a  format that buyers will want to purchase and show!

YOUR contribution will get this film over that line...you will run WITH us over that line of CAN'T...to a strong Can! 

Here's the official trailer!

Here is a  teaser...

What We Need & What You Get

When we wrapped production, the job was just beginning. Editing, picking music and working with score. But there is so much more. And this is where we need your help. This is a two goal campaign. Some of it sounds boring.

POSTWORK

•Sound mix.

Every film has sound, and every film needs to have sound mixed. Part of our campaign fund raising will be used to assist in the costs of this process. To have the best chance of getting this in front of many eyes as possible we have to sound as great as possible

•Color correction.

Again we want you glued to the story, the comedy, the drama, the visuals, and we want to be sure when you look at New Brunswick everything appears as it was the day we shot it. 

GETTING IT OUT THERE

•Now that we have a film we need to get in front of as many eyes as possible. To do that we need to submit to as many film festivals as possible, small and large.

 We want to submit to some major festivals, such as Sundance and South by Southwest and Toronto International Film Fest. 

Then we want to get into as many small/niche festivals as possible. Each festival has a cost for submission and these can add up quickly. Part of your contribution will be going toward these festival costs.

•Marketing. To maximize reach and get word out there we need to have posters, shirts and other swag ready to go at screenings and showings. Rob and cast & crew will be doing Q&As after certain screenings, where we would like to have some items for sale to put back into the funds for this project.

•Sound mix. Every film has sound, and every film needs to have sound mixed. Part of our campaign fund raising will be used to assist in the costs of this process. To have the best chance of getting this in front of many eyes as possible we have to sound as great as possible

•Color correction. Again we want you glued to the story, the comedy, the drama, the visuals, and we want to be sure when you look at New Brunswick everything appears as it was the day we shot it. 

The Perks

We wanted to give back as much as possible. So when you give, no matter the amount please know we love every single person who believes in us. If you donate to this campaign it means you have faith in us and the project, and that is pretty special. And yes, those perks perhaps may have some tie ins to the flick.

Other Ways You Can Help

Some people just can’t contribute financially, but that doesn’t mean you can’t help:

• Spread the news of this campaign. Your twitter, your facebook, google plus, hell when your talking to Aunt Sally say, Hey, Aunt Sally, did you know these guys made a movie. Aunt Sally loves movies to. Spread the word.

• Check out facebook.com/letemlaughproductions link and give us a like. Share the page. The higher the numbers we have the more impactful it will be to studios and funders who want to work with us

• Contact local media and bloggers, ask them if they’ve heard about The Divorce Movie and Let em laugh Productions. The more backers we have, the more the word spreads and the better chance The Divorce Movie has of reaching you.

More Information: Music makes the Movie

Let Em Laugh Productions are proud to announce the collaboration with talented musicians!

“The Playdates (MUSIC NB award nominee), the New Brunswick independent pop band are partnering with Let Em Laugh Productions on their second full length indie film “The Divorce”. Their single, “Kids of Summer” which is currently #1 on the East Coast Countdown will be featured along with a number of their current and upcoming tracks.

Rob Parsons who is the writer and Director of the film says “Having “The Playdates” lend their music, talent and passion to our film is going take this project to an entirely different level. We have said from the moment we started our fans in and outside of the film community are going to be blown away by the end result. Partnering with one of the premier music talents in the region will only help with that goal”.

Parsons continues, “The Playdates write and perform songs that deal with real human emotions and situations that everyone can connect with. That has always been our goal at Let Em Laugh Productions, of course with a few laughs mixed in. The partnering of music and film is one of the most important aspects of visual storytelling, and with a group like “The Playdates” on board you can expect an amazing result.

Julius Malco, the film’s 1st Assistant Director says, “We are honored to have “The Playdates” on board with “The Divorce”. This is simply amazing as we are still a relatively young production company and to have a band with a number of radio hits just builds up our confidence. We have such an inspired group of talented artists and actors, and I cannot wait for the world to see The Divorce on the big screen”.

The film’s producer Elaine Shannon is over the top about this creative collaboration. “When you come from a small province like New Brunswick connections are key to escalating any project from ordinary to extraordinary. This partnership further reinforces how people in this East Coast Province can make the pie bigger for everyone and who doesn’t like a big pie! “

Drummer, Chris Claessen, adds, “Ever since Adam and I saw Blink 182 in American Pie, we had dreamed that someday we could be part of a film. The fact we can do that with local talent adds to how excited we are to be a part of this production!”

Marissa Rignanesi (Twitter: @MarissaLucia) (MUSIC NB award nominee) who starred and wrote music for Let Em Laugh’s previous film “Calling” is also back contributing her musical talent to the film. “Having my music as a part of this film is an honour. To be part of this great local creative team goes to show what “YES” people can accomplish together!, says Marissa about working with the Let Em Laugh Productions team.

Local country rock band, Whitewater (www.whitewaterbandmusic.com (MUSIC NB award nominee) also joins the team with not only a musical track but a cameo appearance in the movie!

Additional music in the film will feature radio personality, musician and one of the lead actors, Gary Stackhouse, (Twitter:@garystackhouse) as well as co-star Apryll Aileen (Twitter:@apryllaileen), and a cameo performance from hip hop artist Phakt AKA Mike Washington (Twitter:@PhaktZilla)!