The Inspiration
My son was born in December of 2009. On one hand, that first year was the most exciting and rewarding year of my life. On the other hand, he was born right in the middle of the worst recession since the great depression. We didn't get hit nearly as hard as a lot of people, but the month he was born, a lot of our income dried up, we faced growing debt and extra expenses, I was working more hours for "temporarily reduced" pay, getting far less sleep, and all the while dealing with the pressures of being a new parent. The pressures! The pressure to be a “good” parent. If you are a parent, you probably know what I’m talking about (and if not, ask your parents. ha). You want your kid to be happy and healthy. You want them to have values and morals. You want them to think of you as someone who has values and morals. You want to be available. You want to participate in their lives. You want to see their first step, hear their first word, feel their first tooth. AND you want them to grow up with everything they need and most of what they want.
And I felt a lot of tension there. If I was working to provide financial security, I felt like I was missing something personal--and I was. I'd leave in the morning right after we all woke up. By the time I got back home, my son was asleep. The person I wanted to be for my son seemed to be eclipsed by the need to provide for him. But if I was there, available, participating, then I had the guilt and stress of feeling like “I should be making money right now.” Finding the right balance was a huge challenge for me.
From that experience, Equity was born.
The Story
A suspenseful drama, Equity is a timely and relevant short film that explores the endless sacrifices parents are forced to make in times of economic turmoil.
Claire is a single mother caught in the throes of the foreclosure crisis. Left by her husband when her son was just a few months old and unable to adjust to living on only one income, she is notified by the bank that unless she can find more money, she will lose her home. Already working extra hours as a nurse at the community hospital and relying on her live-in brother for free babysitting, she is stretched thin and now having panic attacks. Her brother urges her to take a job with people he knows in the city. Knowing the illegal nature of these people, she initially rejects the idea. But with the well-being of her child on the line, the promise of an end to her financial troubles, and no other options available, she is forced to decide how far she is willing to go.
Jack is an absent father whose only connection to his family is the money he sends them. Committed to creating a better life for his daughter and terrified by the economic misery around him, he jumps from job to job, and lead to lead. But his lifestyle has taken its toll. Exhausted by Jack’s coming and going, his wife refuses to let him back in the door. His daughter has grown used to his absence. Still unable to shake his obsession with providing for his family, what must he do to find a way back into their hearts?
Their stories intertwine and collide in a heartbreaking depiction of middle class parents, at the mercy of forces beyond their control.
Where Your Money Goes
Equity is being produced under a SAG Short Film Agreement and is definitely an ambitious project for a humble $5,000 budget. Thankfully, all of the professionals on our team will be generously donating their talents and expertise for little or deferred compensation. However, producing a high-quality film that looks and sounds as professional as anything you might see on the big screen requires many unavoidable expenditures. These include:
-Production Insurance to protect our cast, crew and equipment
-Securing filming locations
-Necessary permits for filming
-Miscellaneous equipment rentals
-Travel expenses and housing for cast and crew not based in NYC
-Post production sound and editing
-On-set grub
-Marketing and publicity
-Submission fees to film festivals
Finally, be assured that any money we raise above and beyond our goal will go directly into making this project even better: better equipment, better post-production support, better marketing, and more festival exposure.
Reasons to Give
--Because you relate to the story in a personal way.
--Because you don’t relate to the story at all, but it sounds pretty cool.
--Because you know us, and like us (enough).
--Because someone has helped you out in the past, and you want to pay it forward.
--Because by donating, YOU have a say in what gets produced and YOU get to choose which projects you'd like to see.
--Because you believe, like we do, that Art should not be an exclusive privilege of the wealthy and well-connected.
--Because you’re wealthy and well-connected. (which is TOTALLY fine!!)
--Because you’ve never done anything like this before, and it sounds like it would be FUN!!!
(AND IT WILL BE!!!)
Once Equity is 'in the can', our main goal is for people to see it! We hope you're moved by the characters and their circumstances, we hope you learn something from a different perspective, and of course, we hope you're entertained. To reach our audiences we'll be entering Equity into film festivals across the country. We hope that the movie is received well and allows us to establish our presence among the actors and artists within the independent film community.
At the end of the day, we’re just looking for people to go on this ride with us. We hope you’ll join us on this journey, and we’ll do everything we can to make it worth your while. With our director’s video blog and ongoing updates through our website (www.equitythemovie.com), you can be as involved as you want to be. You’ll be able to watch us in (almost) real time all the way from where we are now through the festival circuit. We’ll share the good breaks and cringe together when we make mistakes. Wherever we go, we hope you’ll go there with us. Thank you so much for taking the time to read and consider.
Other Ways You Can Help
Tell Your Friends!
If you know anyone that might really enjoy following a project like ours, tell them about us! Know some folks with money burning a hole in their pocket? Let them know about our project, send them to IndieGoGo and to our website, www.equitythemovie.com. Follow us on Facebook! Word of mouth not only helps us meet budget goals, but it really helps us to build interest and momentum once the film is finished and ready to be submitted for festivals.
Volunteer!
If you live in NYC and you'd like to see what it's like to be on the set of an indie short film, we could always use some help. We need assistants to help with set up and clean up for meals, coffee runs for cast and crew, help with equipment and set, and everything in between. If you'd like to help, we can find you a job!
Every little bit counts and probably goes a lot further than you think. We can't do it without you.
Thanking you in advance,
The Production Team-Chance, Francile and George
