The Story
“How far would you go for your family?”
Synopsis:
At a 24/7 gas station, 16 year old Col must prostitute himself to passing truckers to earn a meager living for himself and his 12 year old brother Noah. With nothing but each other, Col struggles with the consequences of his dangerous life for himself and his younger brother and must decide how much he’s willing to give to protect Noah from the harsh realities of the world.
Description:
24/7 is a 12 minute drama short film about youth, family, poverty, and the weight they can burden us with.
The Project
24/7 is a story about the things we do for the ones we love. We want to highlight the depths and disparity that relationships can bring within the context of poverty, and how the cycle of abuse is far more complicated than it can seem. Our story can give people a glimpse into a life most likely far different from their own, a kind of life they may have judged or looked down upon. We want our audience to see themselves in these characters, to care and fear for them, so that they might come away from our film with a new understanding of the uglier parts of so many people’s everyday lives.
The title 24/7 refers not only to the gas station that our film takes place around, but how the struggles of our main character are not ones he can take a break from. Having to take care of family, struggling with poverty, simply facing yourself in the mirror - these haunt us, all day, every day.
The Team
*for more info on our team check out our social media*
Writers:
Paige Lau & Devyn Kerr
Production & Direction:
Producer . . . . . . . . . . . . Scarlet Sol
Line Producer . . . . . . . . Brianna Yrene Ramirez
Director. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .El C. Concepcion
1st Assistant Director . . . . . . . . Hugo Palacios
Camera:
Directors of Photography . . . . . . . . . Matilda Plaza & Javier Montes
Art:
Production Designer . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Heather M Kuhlmann
Art Director. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Spencer Wendt
Editors:
SarahDomkuski, Grace Forrestal, Jackie Elliott, & Cynthia Hernandez
Who are we?
We are a group of students from a variety of backgrounds and disciplines at Columbia College Chicago coming together to create a project we are all passionate about. For some of us, this will be our thesis project, culminating our years of experience into one final film before we venture out to pursue our passions in the industry. For others, this is a project to hone our skills before creating thesis projects of our own. For all of us, this is a way to practice the craft that we love, express ourselves artistically, and create lasting relationships that we will bring to the professional world.
What can you do?
Every dollar helps make our project better. When you donate, you will see every dollar represented on the screen in the quality of our work, whether it is going to art, cameras, or taking care of our cast and crew so that they can do their best.
What if I can’t donate?
No problem! We understand in these hard times that not everyone has the ability to give precious resources away. All we ask is that you spread the word! The more eyes on our project, the more likely we’ll be able to reach our goal and create the best film possible. If you’d like to help out in any other way, please reach out to our team and let us know!
The Budget
Locations:
When not shooting on our built sets, we will be shooting at only one location, a gas station, but these are hard to acquire. Every dollar will go towards securing a safe and appropriate place for our cast and crew to shoot our film.
Food:
We hope to provide tasty, hot food to our cast and crew to keep them warm and energized during our intensive production.
Art:
The Design and Art Dept Team is honored to bring depth to Col and Noah's world, exploring the spaces and emotional states they inhabit. Secured funds offer the opportunity for custom built sets of the gas station bathroom and their home interiors, as well as securing the looming glow of the 24/7 neon sign. Raised funds additionally will be invested to cover intentionally tailored Set Dec, Props, and SFX Makeup costs.
Other Production Costs:
Transportation, specialty equipment, actor pay, and a safe warm place to rest between takes are just a few of the many other costs of a production. While these are all behind the camera, they are just as important as the costs in front of it, and go toward making a better film.
