Next Gen Horror is Here.
Inspired by films like Host, Stay Alive, and Bo Burnham’s Make Happy, and featuring game design inspired by Resident Evil, Outlast, Until Dawn, Dead by Daylight, and many more, Livescreamers is a “screenlife” found footage slasher film and direct sequel to 2020’s Livescream.
The Janus Gaming team has made their mark on video content creation with a group of eight diverse gamers, and millions of rabid fans. While recording a playthrough of a new horror game, they are quickly thrown into an inescapable haunt as the game begins killing them one by one. Their only salvation lies in working together to escape the game’s surreal haunted castle. But as the game preys on their darkest secrets and egos, their biggest challenge will be trusting each other.
Much like the first film, Livescreamers means more than just a found footage thrill. The film is inspired by opportunistic toxicity in the online gaming sphere, and how content creation turns both fans and creators into monsters.
Director, writer, and producer of Livescreamers is queer female filmmaker Michelle Iannantuono, who is previously known for her feature film Livescream, and other fan films in the Detroit Become Human universe.
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The ensemble cast is led by Michael Smallwood (Halloween Kills, The Righteous Gemstones) as Nemo, a gamer who has grown shy of his audience after a traumatic experience, and Lukas Hassel (Slapface, The Blacklist) as Mitch, the leader of Janus who makes devastating choices to keep his fledgling channel afloat.
Also featured in the cast are Jillian Geurts (Hell House LLC 2), Christopher Trindade (Detroit Evolution), Coby C. Oram, Evan Michael Pearce, MJ Slide, Anna Lin, and introducing Neoma Sanchez.
How To Make This Happen
Our initial goal to make the film is $25,000, in combination with other private financing.
As with all Octopunk projects, the majority of our budget will go to labor - especially in the pandemic, we seek to support our collaborators with a living wage for their gear, talent, and time. We also want to make sure everyone is well-hydrated and fed during our shoot days, hence the catering budget, and we want to cover the hotel and travel expenses for everyone who works with us, so no one comes out of pocket.
And in keeping with our higher standards of production quality these days, any remaining budget is for costumes, props, gear, and other supplies that add to the overall quality that we put in front of the camera. While we relied heavily on the Unreal Marketplace in the first film, for this one we'd like to level up and hire animators and modelers to make as many custom assets as possible.
Beyond that, our budget will go to some incredible stretch goals!
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STRETCH GOALS!
$37,500 - CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE VIDEO GAME
If we raise $12,500 beyond our initial budget, we'll have enough to shoot a full motion video gaming experience! This choose-your-own-adventure interactive movie, inspired by Erica and Bandersnatch, will put you in the shoes of a Janus Gaming fan before the events of the film. Meet and greet the characters from Livescreamers in first person. Uncover their secrets and clues. Get good endings, bad endings, and maybe even a secret ending. It's the perfect tie-in to the film, and all pledges over $50 will get a free copy, should we reach this goal.
$50,000 - LIVESCREAMERS SOUNDTRACK ON VINYL
Take Austin Bytts' sick original score for a spin. For the first time, we will release an Octopunk score on vinyl, and all pledges over $50 will get a copy should we reach this goal.
$75,000 - WEST COAST OCTOPUNK FAN EVENT
You asked for it, so let's do it! For years, we've wanted a chance to connect in person with our west coast community. If we hit $75,000, we will plan an Octopunk Fan Event in 2023 on the USA west coast. We will host a screening of Livescreamers with some of the cast, along with other fun showcases and activities. The funding will cover the flights and lodging of a variety of Octopunk cast/crew, and will cover the fees for theaters and event venues. All pledges over $100 will automatically be entitled to tickets to the event before they open to the public.
$100,000 - ????
We've got some ideas. ;) Get over $75k, and you'll unlock this surprise!
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Risks & Challenges
All crowdfunding campaigns have risks, but I'm super confident in our ability to deliver this film, considering it is a sequel to a film I've already proven that I can make, and has very little demand for locations or crew. Octopunk has proven itself time and time again to deliver on the films we promise, in both quality and speed - from Detroit Reawakening, to Detroit Evolution, to Seven Deadly Synths.
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Other Ways You Can Help
We appreciate all of our community, even the ones that can't donate. If you can, please: