The Quick Story
Jack (11) has always wanted to have her very own fish. She has studied, prepared, and researched in order to be a responsible pet owner, eventually wanting to become a marine biologist. Except that owning a full fledged aquarium is expensive and her mother, Julie, is concerned that it might be too large a responsibility for her young daughter. But her Grandma, Patti, has a plan. Together they go on a quest to find the equipment to build the ultimate aquarium, learning about life and their relationship along the way.
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Why this matters
This film is the next step towards achieving my goal to direct films. Not only will “Forever Fish” serve as a calling card for the style of filmmaking I want to achieve, but it will also explore the greater themes I plan to confront in my films; intergenerational relationships between female family members, cycles of the natural world and how they affect us, as well as grappling with the ephemeral nature of memory. Many of the stories I want to tell have a female protagonist, often working in science, who has to face questions that cannot be quantified or resolved- questions about connectivity, life, and loss. I want to share stories that center around smart women and be the change I want to see in the film industry.
Becoming a director, regardless of gender, is difficult, but the statistics are much more staggering when it comes to female directors. Female directors only directed 4% of the top-grossing films between 2007-2017. Writing a script and then creating a film is a difficult endeavor and often the complexity and resources needed can seem insurmountable, but that is what I have always loved about filmmaking- it is a team effort. Everyone can contribute.
Where does your donation go?
So, making a film is a difficult endeavor. Here's a list of some of the things your donation could go towards.
- An awesome rented camera package with beautiful lenses to help us achieve the look we are striving for.
- Rented Dolly tracks and lighting to give our film a dynamic and stylized feel.
- Wardrobe and Makeup to make our actors stunning.
- Our SAG New Media ID, so we can pay our wonderful actors for their talents!
- A Fish Wrangler, to make sure our film is ASPCA approved.
- LOCATIONS! We have some great ones lined up!
- Food and payment for our wonderful crew.
- And my personal favorite SET DESIGN! Jack's bedroom is inspired by the Great Barrier Reef, so we will be creating and building our own version of that.
I have been a freelance production designer ever since I graduated from USC's School of Cinematic Arts. I have worked on countless short films, music videos, episodic online shows, and web commercials. I know how to make a little bit go a long way!
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(We will be making fake coral reefs such as this, for inside of Jack's Bedroom)
The Vision
I am a firm believer in bright, colorful films. Filmmakers such as Michel Gondry, Jean-Pierre Jeunet, and Wes Anderson are specific directorial inspirations for me. Fortunately, the world under the waves is bright and colorful! We will be using backdrops such as the Long Beach Aquarium, the San Pedro Aquarium, a fish store, and a wonderful house location with wall paper galore!
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The Team
"Forever Fish" is truly a family affair.
Emily Peters (Writer Director)
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Emily found her love for filmmaking at Wellesley College where she double majored in Cinema and Media Studies and Art History. Following graduation, she applied and was accepted into the Masters Program at USC, earning her MFA in Film Production with an emphasis in screenwriting. Since graduation, Emily has worked as a production designer on multiple award winning short films, commercials, narrative features, and music videos, while continuing her true passion, writing. Emily’s screenwriting was accepted as part of a highly competitive Alumni Screenwriting Workshop. Passionate to tell unique stories that only she can tell, Emily is an active writer and director, while combining her love of production design, screenwriting, art history, and film.
Jeremy Royce (Cinematographer)
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Jeremy graduated from USC’s school of cinematic arts in 2013. His work has been nominated for a student Academy Award and student Emmy and has earned him multiple awards for directing and cinematography. Jeremy’s debut feature film ‘20 Years of Madness’ premiered at the 2015 Slamdance Film Festival in Park City where it won the Jury Honorable Mention. Jeremy currently works as an LA based freelance director / cinematographer and teaches part time at USC’s School of Cinematic Arts.
More coming soon!
