The Story
It Gets Dark too Early is a tragicomedy that tells the story of Valerie, a self-proclaimed vampire newbie, who knocks at the door of the much older and wiser vampire called Chrysanthemum, the grumpy vampire of the neighborhood.
Valerie snoops around Chrysanthemum’s house, and to his surprise is fascinated by his weird collection of objects and stop-motion films. After that, Valerie doesn’t want to leave, and the two characters awkwardly try to understand their intentions as the story progresses, and even become friends at some point. The fun ends once Valerie faces the consequences of what being a vampire truly means, and needs to confront the reason behind her loss of identity.
Valerie doesn’t feel human anymore for a reason, and we come to understand that it wasn’t a vampire who hurt Valerie, it was a man.
Meet the Team!
We are Capilano University students who are currently working towards finishing their 4th year in the Motion Picture Arts Program. We have worked together on numerous short film projects with this being one of the last films we get to create together and really showcase what we've learned in the last few years. We are a dedicated team that is passionate about storytelling. We will be posting more updates about our team throughout the next coming weeks.
![]()
Budget
Our camera and lighting equipment will all be provided by Capilano University. However, we're still looking to raise $2500 to go towards production design, locations, and feeding our cast and crew.
![]()
The Impact & a Message from the Director
This is a story about trauma. More specifically, about sexual assault. It’s about overcoming identity dissociation and learning we are not products of our past trauma. Your identity is yours, and no one can take that away from you. That’s a theme that truly speaks to me due
to my own story, but also too many other people I know. And as a director, I want to make sure that I’m not only speaking my truth but also speaking to the audience. I usually call people around my age (Gen Z) the “I want to die” generation, not because we’re the only ones with mental health problems, but the way we use humor deflect pain. And that’s why I wanted to make a tragicomedy. I believe there are many similarities between vampirism and the guilt and self-hatred one can feel because of depression and trauma. And I want this film to talk about those subjects but to also bring hope. Valerie is not healed at the end of the story, but she has hope, and that’s the first step. This is not a story about how trauma makes you stronger. Trauma makes you traumatized, that’s all. It makes you sleepless and weak. However, it is a story about recognizing that you’re not less of yourself because of it, and making yourself stronger by stepping out of a dark place and dealing with things that aren’t your fault.
Other Ways You Can Help
If you are unable to donate but still want to support our project:
- You can help us spread the word by sharing our campaign with your friends and family!
- You can follow us on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/It-Gets-Too-Dark-Early... or on Instagram @it_gets_dark_too_early to stay up to date on our journey as we bring this short film to life.
Music composed by Kai Kubota-Enright
Concept Art by William Wu
![]()
