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Hooked

Hooked, a narrative about LGBT homeless youth where the profits go to affiliated charities!

Hooked

Hooked, a narrative about LGBT homeless youth where the profits go to affiliated charities!

1 Campaign |

New York, United States

$172,760 USD by 914 backers

$155,065 USD by 743 backers on Nov 8, 2015

Story

FAQ

Updates 15

Comments 49

HOOKED is a full-length feature film:

Short plot summary: Jack is a homeless teenage prostitute with a smart mouth and impulsive tendencies. He battles through a violent world of reckless johns between New York City and Miami, desperately seeking a better life with his boyfriend Tom.

The story depicts a harsh world where even good intentions can cause ruinous results. Without pointing fingers at any particular group, HOOKED shows how even the gay community is contributing to the perpetuation of the LGBT homeless youth problem. The allegory is not completely bleak, however; hope is found through the humanity in both the leading couple and (eventually) even the married closet case antagonist, Ken.

Why HOOKED?

You may be thinking…. Max, you’re a self-proclaimed international male underpants supermodel... why do you care about a bunch of homeless kids? Well here’s what happened:

About a year ago I published a novel called HOT SISSY about growing up closeted in redneck Florida. It seemed appropriate to make the e-book free for anyone currently still in school, or unable to afford a copy. Within just a few days, hundreds of kids reached out, and even shared THEIR stories.

Turns out I’ve had it pretty easy in comparison to what some of these kids are currently going through. It was shocking how some of these people are being treated just because of their sexual identity. I’m really grateful for the chance to have shared my story, but now I want to use my time to tell some of theirs, and hopefully make their lives better in the process.

Real impact:

The concept is simple: half of the profits from this film will go to benefit various charity organizations whose goal is to end LGBT youth homelessness and abuse.

The core idea is that if the film costs $150,000 and does really well, say making 1.5 Million dollars, your $1,000 contribution would become a $5,000 donation to places that really need your support.
In the USA, LGBT youth are 8 times more likely to end up homeless as a direct result of homophobia. According to the National Coalition for the Homeless, LGBT homeless youth are 7.4 Times more likely to experience acts of sexual violence than their heterosexual counterparts. Over 58% of these kids have been sexually victimized. Their suicide rate is more than two times higher as well. It’s even common for “normal” shelters to simply refuse to serve transgender kids.
It’s apparent that LGBT kids need a place they can go to be safe... to find guidance from people who actually identify with the things they are going through. It’s not special treatment, it’s a necessity.
The shelters that this project supports run on razor thin budgets. Any contribution to them will have a direct affect on the people who need their services. With your help, we can continue to fund these amazing organizations and hopefully even help them expand to ensure that nobody gets turned away.

What we need and what you get:

If the contribution to LGBT Homeless Youth charities isn't enough, check out the PERKS!

The film takes place between New York City and Miami, which is not an easy place to film.
Production will cost a minimum of $100k, with the primary expenses being transportation, locations, hotels, cast/crew
At least $50k will be needed for post production and incentive fulfillment. Check out the perks list to see all of the great offers!
Any overage in funding will go to making the movie even better, as well as producing more engaging web content on my youtube channel!