Director's Statement
In the summer of 2017, I was mugged on my walk back home from campus. I came out of the incident physically unscathed, but paranoia and anger soon emerged in its wake.
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I wrote the script for this film as a response to this event. From the Top follows a young musician who struggles to move forward after a mugging triggers paranoia and self-doubt in him -- specifically, over his capabilities as an artist. The film can best be described as a psychological drama, and it upholds my desire to explore the anxieties of the queer experience through film.
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The ideas behind this film have been percolating in my subconscious for a year or so, but they address thoughts and questions that have been lurking in the corners of my mind for as long as I can remember. The film looks into queer masculinity, and examines the self-doubt that emerges in young gay men when they fail to adhere to the mold that society has set forth for them. As the film progresses, our protagonist tries to understand how the world sees him, only to arrive at increasingly unnerving conclusions.
What Will Your Donation Go Towards?
From The Top is the first short film we're pursuing independently outside of USC. Without many of the amenities that the university usually provides, there are a number of costs and resources our team is looking to cover through this campaign, and we've calculated those to the tee.
Here's a breakdown of our budget:
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After extensive meetings with our crew and line producer, we're confident that this budget will allow us to execute the vision we have for this film.
The Team
Writer/Director/Co-Producer/Actor
Neal Mulani
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Raised by a father from Mumbai and a mother from Boston, Neal spent his childhood at the crossroads of two cultures, as film helped him cope with the anxiety and peculiarities of growing up bicultural and queer. His most recent short, Fish Tank, screened internationally after playing in competition at the Independent Film Festival of Boston, as well as being acquired for sales at the Marché du Film in Cannes this past spring. Neal has previously interned for Dylan Clark Productions, Lionsgate, and Plan B Entertainment.
Producer
Fiona Kida
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Born and having spent half her childhood in Tanzania, and the other in Nashville, Fiona became exposed to seeing life through different lenses from a young age. Enveloped in the way filmmaking could voice the most unheard stories, she grew passionate to make films that depicted underrepresented communities in a human, truthful light. She now studies Film & TV Production at USC's School of Cinematic Arts, and minors in Business Entrepreneurship. She has written and directed a short film that was nominated for a student Emmy. Fiona has interned at NBCUniversal, Pixomondo, J.J. Abrams’s production company Bad Robot, and worked as an Associate Producer at Google's Creative Lab in NYC. She just completed producing a USC senior thesis film that has entered the festival circuit.
Producer
Angelina Feronti
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Born and raised in Oklahoma as a Korean-Italian, Angelina turned to film as a way to explore unorthodox voices and stories in a visual medium that can reach wide audiences. She now attends USC as a double-major in Film & TV Production and Cinema & Media Studies. Deepening her interest in independent film, she interned for Oklahoma’s largest film festival, deadCenter. Since moving to LA, she has interned for Electric City Entertainment and Sony Pictures Television Networks. She most recently spent her summer interning for TriStar Pictures, assisting executives in developing voice-driven commercial film. Currently she is working on an animation project as well as producing two short films.
Line Producer
Liam Campbell
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Liam Campbell is a filmmaker and producer living in Los Angeles and raised in Columbus, Ohio. He developed a background in videography and cinematography at a young age, recording his friends skiing and skateboarding. In 2015, Liam came to USC, where he realized the power of stories and has maintained a focus in narrative film production and development. In his time as a student at USC, Liam has helped develop two feature films, both of which were put into production. He has also produced both undergraduate and graduate-level thesis films at USC. Liam has previously worked on research and development for the upcoming Hulu series The First, managed schedules and communication for top executives at a mini-major studio, and interned at Stampede Ventures where he learned from former Warner Bros. President, Greg Silverman.
Director of Photography
Maria Alvarez
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Maria Alvarez is an internationally recognized Cuban-Dutch cinematographer. She is currently studying Film & Television Production at the University of Southern California. Her passions for film are centered on raising awareness for diverse stories in front and behind the camera. Her work has screened at dozens of festivals such as the Los Angeles Film Festival and Cleveland International Film Festival, won awards from institutions such as Google, and screened in museums like MoMA. She spent 2017 working as a Camera Assistant on the newly released independent feature, The Kindergarten Teacher, which premiered and won the Directing Award at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival. She just worked on Against All Enemies, which was shot by Academy Award nominated cinematographer Rachel Morrison.
Editor
Emily Hadley
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Born in China, Emily Hadley was adopted at a young age and spent her early childhood in Arizona, then later moved to Washington state. Majoring in Film & TV Production at USC gave her opportunities to explore the various parts of her life that didn’t align with the usual narrative that comes with being Asian. This is also what drew her to editing - the ability to take pieces that might not seem to fit, then turning them into something thought provoking and beautiful. She edited Neal's first short, Fish Tank, as well as a senior thesis film, and after graduating in December, she works as an assistant editor for E! News at NBCUniversal.
Songwriter
McCall Kimball
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Born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, McCall spent her teen years playing open mics and songwriter showcases in Southern blues clubs. At 18, McCall made the move from Atlanta to Los Angeles to attend USC’s Popular Music Program, where she refined her sound by melding her traditional blues background with contemporary pop and electronic influences. Following up collaborations with MYRNE, Grant, and MELVV, McCall released her debut single “Why I’m Here.”
Other Ways You Can Help
If you are unable to donate but still want to support our film, please spread the word about us! You can do this by sharing a link to our campaign on social media or using IndieGogo sharing tools within the site. It would mean the world to us.
Thank you for your support,
From The Top Team