UPDATE: We've Hit our Goal! But...
Hi friends,
We can't believe the outpouring of generosity we've received so far for this project -- thank you all for supporting me, Jack, and the rest of our team! Hitting our initial goal (in a week!) enabled us to really get things off the ground. Now we're hoping to be in a position to be able to hire more awesome crew, like an extra grip and electrician, as well as cover costs for post-production (sound mixer, colorist, composer), so any further contributions will really help make this the best film possible. We've added some fun new perks to share with you.
This is turning out to be a bigger and more exciting project than any of us initially anticipated, and it is due in a large part to all of you!!! Our whole team thanks you from the bottom of our hearts, and we really appreciate anything you can donate to our endeavor!
-- John Brugal (writer/director)
So What’s This Film All About?
It’s about those last ten minutes before an actor walks on stage. Rush of nerves, muttered lines, vocal trills, theater games, confidence fighting a fierce battle against doubt.
As the clock ticks…
And the stage manager yells…
Ten minutes!
Five minutes!
Our protagonist is 35-year-old Tommy Sullivan. A famous TV Star. Nervous and dressed like a pirate. Practicing steps, singing a song, readying himself for a musical. We’re backstage and things look professional…
At first.
But as the short progresses we gradually realize Tommy is in an LA high school.
This full-grown adult is about to act in a high school musical.
When Tommy’s friend Huck Carter, a charismatic movie star, comes to deliver a tear stick, Tommy is hit by the reality of his situation.
Famous parents, insanely talented kids, limited prep…
What if he’s bad?
He stepped in at the last second to help his friend Margot, head of the theater department, but now… is this career suicide?
He spirals.
What started as a beautiful moment turns into a nightmare.
Will Tommy abandon his friend, eschew the craft he loves, and fail to help kids in the show?
Or take a huge risk and go on stage?
Any Specific Theme You’re Exploring?
What a great follow up!
There is.
This film is partly inspired by a true story. But as we developed the project further, we realized it was a reaction to working in the entertainment industry.
To work as a professional in the arts means to engage in a business. And with that comes artistic sacrifice, rejection, and the pressure of earning a living.
This is diametrically opposed to what it means to fall in love with acting, writing, or directing as a young person. When you find that spark, it’s not tied to image or income. It’s about love. It’s a sort of magic.
And that’s what the high school musical represents to Tommy: the magic he lost. Love of craft. Pure expression of going on stage for the sake of nothing but joy.
We want to capture that lightning in a bottle and juxtapose it against the more transactional concerns of industry. To explore the tension of what it means to be an artist in the real world.
What Do You Need Funds For?
Making a film is expensive.
There’s gear rental, lights, camera, crew, sound, make-up, wardrobe, producers, cast, post-production mixers, editors, colorists, film festival submissions…
In short, it requires a big team of highly talented people all working to make the best film possible. Anything raised will help support this team and ensure we can spread the film wide for others to see.
We want to pay our cast a reasonable rate, something that is often not done with lower budget projects, where pay is usually deferred. And while many crew members are working well below their standard rates, we want to compensate them appropriately for their time.
Every donation, no matter how small, will help bring this project to screen. We’re excited to have anyone for whom this film speaks to join the team.
Who Else is Involved?
JOHN BRUGAL is the writer/director of MATINÉE. He’s an LA-based writer and filmmaker who works at the nexus of dark, silly, inventive comedy. As a writer, his work has been published on McSweeney's Internet Tendency and featured on stage at The Groundlings and UCB.
His short films AT 30 WE THROW DINNER PARTIES and KING ALPHA have screened at festivals in 'Murica (America) and been received as "offbeat and surprising." He's interested in pushing the limits of comedy filmmaking and finding new ways to entertain his increasingly judgmental two-year-old son.
MACK FISHER is our Director of Photography. His feature film GOD’S WAITING ROOM was a selection at the Tribeca Film Festival and his documentary short DEAN GOES SURFING was a Vimeo Staff Pick. He’s shot music videos for artists such as Billie Eilish, One Republic, and Aloe Blacc.
TALISA FRIEDMAN (producer) is the author of several plays and screenplays. Her play WHO BY FIRE won the 2021 National Jewish Playwriting Competition, the Tel Aviv Jewish Playwriting Competition, and was one of three finalists for Monumental Theater’s New Work Series at the Kennedy Center. WHO BY FIRE had a workshop production at The Road Theatre in LA spring 2023, directed by Emmy winner John Frank Levey. Talisa is also an actress and singer, and has appeared at The Old Globe, Arena Stage, the A.R.T., off-Broadway, and on TV and film.
SADIE YARRINGTON (producer) is a Los Angeles based performer, choreographer, director and educator. Originally from Michigan, she received a BFA in Dance and BS is Anthropology from the University of Michigan. Post-grad she trained internationally in Cuba and Australia. Since moving to Los Angeles in 2012 she has performed works by Dianne McIntyre, Stephan Koplowitz, Invertigo Dance Theatre and Bodies in Play. Her choreography has been presented at the American Theatre of Actors (NYC), Brand Library & Arts Center, Descanso Gardens, Moss Theater, The Music Center, Bootleg Theater, REDCAT and Lankershim Arts Center. Sadie is a committed educator and creates a safe space for learners to discover their own connection to movement. She is currently the Chair of Dance at New Roads School (Santa Monica) where she has developed a program that honors the physical and neurological diversity of each student.
JOHN HENRY HINKEL is an award-winning independent producer. His previous projects include the Emmy-nominated docuseries THE PLAYBOOK (Netflix), THEY CALL ME MAGIC (Apple TV+), REGGIE (Amazon), and AUGGIE (Samuel Goldwyn Films). Most recently, he produced MORNING JOY, a branded short film with Kawai, which premiered at the 2023 Brand Storytelling event at the Sundance Film Festival and later screened at Tribeca X.