Into the Light

About the Project:

While documenting a conference on elder abuse in 2014, Cameron Wheeless, became aware of a particularly tragic and disturbing case and was compelled to reach out to fellow filmmakers and friends to assemble a filmmaking team to tell this story.

By reaching our goal, not only will this campaign help us to successfully complete the film, but we will also be raising much needed awareness around the subject matter of elder abuse and exploitation. June 15th, 2015 was proclaimed World Elder Abuse Prevention Day. Elder abuse is a significant public health problem in the United States and each year; hundreds of thousands of adults over the age of 60 are abused, neglected, or financially exploited. 

By giving to our campaign, you will not only help us as filmmakers, you will also be helping us as social advocates of this horrific reality.

GET TO KNOW OUR TEAM!

MR. THOMPSON - Michael Martin IMBD        

MICHAEL MARTIN is an award-winning hyphenate theater maker (actor writer-director) and sometime filmmaker. A resident of New Orleans since 2002, he has extensive ties in Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco and Minneapolis, his hometown. Boasting a long list of credits and usually good critical press, Michael has developed a reputation for over-the-top character roles (on film) and difficult leading men (on stage). His next theatrical venture is the title role of King Lear; his next on film: Ethel, the eccentric neighbor lady in Gideon Hodge and Stan Thomas' "Shooting Stars", now in pre-production. Most of Michael's film work as is legal to share online can be found at his Youtube Channel.

MS. BENOIT - Lahiny - Website                               

Into the Light debuts Lahiny’s acting career, believe it or not, she got into acting, hoping to make it big, to raise a budget that will continue her grassroots work in Haiti. She has the looks and the talent, the question was, "Why not?" Lahiny is a writer, organizer, and public speaker. She is a SUNY graduate and twice the recipient of a Long Island University Graduate Assistantship for an M.A. Lahiny taught high school English for the New York City Department of Education and served as an adjunct at Stony Brook University. She is the author of a novel General Authority, the coffee-table photo book Haiti Earthquake 1-12-2010, and a documentary titled Haiti On Demand. Other publication credits include articles with Awareness Magazine, columnist with Haitian Times, columnist with Traffic News To Go Berlin; her recently released work is a critical essay on the survival of African consciousness in the twenty first century.                                   

Director - Cameron Wheeless IMBD

CAMERON WHEELESS is a filmmaker from Austin, Texas.  In 2010, Cameron moved to  New Orleans on a baseball scholarship to the University of New Orleans, where he studied Film Production and Acting. Upon graduation, he started to work in the film industry in as many different departments as he could to diversify himself in every aspect of filmmaking. In 2014, he directed a short documentary, Lil' Satchmo, which is currently still in post-production.

Cinematographer - Brian Hollars IMBD 

BRIAN HOLLARS is an aspiring cinematographer with experience in both film and digital formats. Over the past seven years he has worked on a variety of projects, including documentaries, features, music videos, commercials, photo shoots and promotional pieces. Being an IATSE 478 Member in the Lighting Department on big budget features has allowed him to learn and light first hand with the best cinematographers in the world. His work has garnered awards from the Aurora Awards, Three Rivers Film Festival and The University of St. Francis Film Festival.

A graduate of Ball State University's telecommunications video production program, he currently lives and works in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Sound Mixer/ Producer - Stan Thomas IMBD

STAN THOMAS was raised in Houston, TX with early aspiration toward film making. Having worked in Houston, Nashville, New York City and currently in New Orleans he has gained valuable experience in the industry. His company Rock Elephant Media allows him to achieve his many goals. “I have three main purposes in life, travel and see as much of this world as possible, always be creating art that is inspiring, thought provoking and/or humorous, and help as many people along the way."

Production Manager - Biliana Grozdanova IMBD

Our Needs & Your Perks

The $6,000 we hope to raise will directly go to the funding of our film. We want to pay cast and crew, and there are many layers of expenses that go into the pre-production, production and post-production process of making a film. So far we have been working barebones and out of pocket. 

To create the visually compelling story that we want to achieve, we need to rent a variety of lenses, lights and equipment. Our production crew and actors are local, talented individuals, and as local filmmakers ourselves, we believe in cultivating a sustainable independent film industry by offering paid artistic positions. The shoot will span 5-6 days and there are additional expenses that go into locations, transportation, craft services, etc. 

If we reach our goal of $6,000, 50% of the additional funds we raise will go to one of the following advocacy groups: The New Orleans Council on Aging, The National Center On Elder Abuse, The Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregiving, University of California - Irvine Center of Excellence on Elder Abuse and Neglect, Weill Cornell Medical College - Project on Elder Abuse and Neglect, or The Alzheimer's Foundation of America.

In return for your contribution, you can choose from a variety of incentives. We also want to offer our creative services to meet your production needs if you have an event, music video or promotional project that you need completed. Also, here is a sample of the artwork you can acquire: 

If we do not reach our entire goal, we will have to cut back on certain expenses and continue working barebones, but as we believe in making this film above all and any challenges, we will do everything it takes to complete production. We will then develop additional fundraising strategies for the post-production expenses we foresee.

The Impact

The impact of a successfully funded campaign will result in the creation of a film we are already extremely proud of launching. Now it is up to you to help us get it to the big screen and shown to national and international audiences. As completion of a film is only half the work, we are already developing our distribution strategy. We will target the film festival circuit starting in early 2016 and additionally organize community screenings. Our goal is to partner with as many advocacy organizations as possible, to offer free screenings to the elderly and to inspire audiences of all ages to reflect upon this subject matter.

Risks & Challenges

There are many risks and challenges in filmmaking, as in any industry. We have a very intense shoot planned, with long hours and with both interior and exterior locations. We are fortunate to have an extremely flexible and dedicated crew, prepared for the heavy workload because we all equally believe in the making of this film. The most uncontrollable risk of production in Louisiana is the weather during exterior shoots. If we are unlucky and are rained out, efficiently rescheduling will be our biggest challenge.

The second challenge we are taking into consideration is the translation of the film into multiple languages (particularly Spanish), to broaden the reach within our society and also across our borders. However, the resolution of this challenge is only a matter of time, as our team is multilingual and has the capacity to incorporate translations and subtitles in the post-production process.

Other Ways You Can Help

If you are unable to make a financial contribution to our campaign, we completely understand and truly appreciate the time you have taken to read this far. You can still help us make a difference by getting involved with the cause we are trying to shed light upon. If you want to learn more about the prevention of elder abuse and neglect, please stay in touch with the National Center On Elder Abuse to hear about opportunities and how you can help.

Finally, please take a moment to reflect upon your family, friends, and immediate surroundings. Perhaps you will discover that someone close to you might be suffering from something similar. Maybe that's where you, as an individual, can start making a difference.