"In the Philippines, legends say that when someone dies, the spirit roams the earth as a moth before moving on to the afterlife."

Synopsis: While struggling to write her dissertation, a young filipino grad must reunite with her family following the death of her lola—and consequently faces the truth she’s been kept in the dark from for so long. 

The birth of Gamu-Gamo came from a very personal place for us. A year or so ago now, Jem (Director) approached me with the idea of making a short that centers around the theme of family but also individuality. Since we are both Filipino, naturally the script features a Pinay protagonist. We not only find our main character, Liezel, struggling between maintaining her independence while facing the expectations of our culture, we also see how that struggle strains her relationship with her mother. A lot of the characters and situations in Gamu-Gamo are drawn from shared experiences between the two of us and our families. That being said, however, we hope everyone—no matter what your ethnic or cultural background may be—can relate to the struggle of staying true to oneself while weighing the balance of family and all the baggage that sometimes comes with that dynamic. - Nadine-Gabrielle Natividad

WRITER'S BIO:

Nadine-Gabrielle Natividad (writer/executive producer) graduated from UNLV in 2016 with a Bachelor's degree in both Film Studies and English Literature. From 2016 to 2019, she wrote content for the YouTube channel "Talltanic," which had over 1 million subscribers. In that time, she also produced three short films, one feature-length film, and is an associate producer/head writer for CRAVE, a feature-length documentary. In 2020, she co-founded Eccentric Artists, a film collective that aims to unite underrepresented voices in creative media. Nadine-Gabrielle resides in Los Angeles where she has worked for studios such as NBC, Netflix, HBO, and AppleTV. She currently serves as the Executive Assistant on the Unscripted/Documentary team for Disney+. If you run ever into her in the wild, it would likely be at a cute cafe in LA reading some trending fantasy novel or the newest bio on Joan Didion.

DIRECTOR'S BIO:

Jemsen Yumico Bollozos (director/executive producer), a 3x Emmy winner and Telly Awards recipient, is a filmmaker based in Las Vegas. She co-founded the hybrid art collective and creative media company Eccentric Artists in 2020, where she serves as the director of creative media strategy. She's an advocate for diversity in film, highlighted by her 2020 ABC Channel 13 interview. Notably, in 2023, Jemsen directed a commercial campaign series for the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, At the Heart of Vegas, showcasing the diverse stories that define the vibrant Vegas community, which earned her 3 Emmys at the NATAS Pacific Southwest Chapter. She was also featured in the 2024 Las Vegas Weekly Magazine, which highlighted her work including her feature length documentary HOME: A Mother of 3000 which won the Best Nevada film at the NWFFest. Currently, Jem is a producer at Frequency Pictures, a production company based in Las Vegas.

To learn more about our crew check out our website to read their bios and look at their work! 

Our goal is to raise $35,500 to cover production costs. Below is a breakdown of our budget and how your contributions will be used!

• SFX | Costume & Moth build - 45% 

• Head of Departments - 17%

• Art Department - 11%

• Talent - 10%

• Camera Department - 9 %

• Locations/Permits - 9%

• VFX - 6%

• Music Composer - 4%

• Indiegogo Service Fee - 5%

• Hot Meals - 4%

• Wardrobe - 3%

• Craft Services - 2%

• Insurance - 2%

Our biggest expense will be building the moth-like creature, a key element of our story. Not only does it weave Filipino folklore into the narrative, but it also creates surreal moments that shape Liezel’s journey through family secrets and self-discovery.

Bringing the world of Gamu-Gamo to life is an exciting challenge that will push our team to find creative locations and practical sets. While many locations will be easily accessible, we are actively searching for a funeral parlor to film the funeral scene. The good news? We already have a casket ready for our beloved Lola to rest in! (╯˘ -˘ )╯

By donating to our film you are helping us tell an important story while also receiving some awesome perks such as:

• Special Thank You Credit
• Signed Film Poster
• Signed Script by Nadine & Jem!
• Filipino Recipe Box (You'll see dishes from the film!)
• SFX Moth Prop from the set!
• Associate or Executive Producer Credit

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SFX Creature design 

(Above) Concept art for the full-body humanoid moth that our protagonist, Liezel, encounters.

Designed by our SFX Team. This Prosthetic Moth is more visually realistic with its fluffy collar and shiny eyes! The use of these prosthetic moths lets us have a more hands-on interaction with our lead. And in order for us to do that, we're gonna need A LOT more of these little guys on camera! Your contribution would help creating a batch (or more) of these possible!

In our film, we wanted to blur the lines of the supernatural, the spiritual, and real life. Gamu-Gamo falls under the genres of part-thriller, part-fantasy. These two descriptors tie-in together best when we step into the "mirror world" which our VFX department has been hard at work to develop!

Gamu-Gamo is such an important story for us—one that is deeply personal yet universally relatable among immigrant and first-generation families. Themes of family expectations, secrets, and self-discovery resonate so strongly within our community. Because of your support, we can proudly share our beloved Filipino-American story and provide opportunities and representation all across our production.  

Making a film is no easy feat—it takes preparation, time, and a whole lot of passion. Our team knows this is a labor of love, and no matter how our campaign unfolds, we are committed to telling this story our way.

Bringing a creature-like moth to life? That idea terrified us at first. But thanks to our insanely talented team, we’re making it happen. This CREATURE is no longer just an idea—it’s becoming real, and we couldn’t be more thrilled to show you our baby! 

Thank you for checking out our campaign! Here are some ways to help us achieve our goal:

• Donate and receive cool perks! (☞⌐▀͡ ͜ʖ͡▀ )☞
• If you're unable to donate, we understand! It would mean a lot if you could share our campaign with everyone you know!  SPREAD THE WORD! Who doesn't love chismis ?!
• Follow us on social media:
  • IG: @eccentricartists.space
  • Facebook

↓ Check out the BTS of our crowdfunding video here  ↓

If you want to know more about Eccentric Artists, visit our site and see what we're about! 

Salamat po!