What is this project all about?

8th Octave Production presents Prisoner Of Mind, an intense two-character psychological thriller: the story of a troubled Vietnam veteran and his prisoner, set together in one location.  The veteran has come ‘unstuck in time’, so to speak; drifting mentally between the end of the war in the 1970’s, and 2017, where he’s abducted a young Vietnamese-American man.  Prisoner Of Mind is also a commentary on the different kinds of battles soldiers can face, on both familiar and unexpected fronts, long after they’ve returned home.

The film provides an unflinching look at how America seems to have to relearn lessons of how lengthy wars impact our soldiers & their families.  Today we see alarming numbers of suicides, divorces, and disability cases, for Iraq & Afghanistan war veterans.  Even films that provided powerful opinion during Vietnam feel relevant once again.

We feel this story really lends itself to being primarily set in one location; in this case an abandoned building where Mattie has taken Paul after “capturing” him.  If we’re fortunate enough, we’d like to raise a budget to help us hire a seasoned DP and crew who can help us do the film in as few shots as possible.  We’re even entertaining the idea of a single master shot for all of the dialogue.  This would have great dramatic impact, but also require a really sharp, superior crew and superior post-production.

Who are the characters?

MATTIE is a distraught Vietnam Veteran who finds solace at the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, D.C.  Mattie’s meds have run out, and with his next doctor appointment at the V.A. still months away, he’s starting to see visions of his commander, CAPTAIN ADAMS, circa 1973.  Mattie begins to believe Captain Adams wants him to capture and interrogate PAUL, a Vietnamese-American tour guide whose job frequently brings him to the Vietnam Memorial.  Mattie and Paul may find they have more in common than they might expect, as Paul’s family also has a connection to the brutal war which left Mattie broken.

Why are we producing this film?

Pat Turner, who co-wrote the film, describes where he found his inspiration: “While working on a play in the 1990s, the local high school did a one-act about POWs in Vietnam. It was also a book written by one of the POWS, who survived the ordeal. I found it to be an inspiring story of survival, faith and patriotism. While this story had a happy ending, I began thinking about those who can’t find peace, because the nightmares of the war continues. These thoughts encouraged me to tackle this project and make the public aware of what some of our veterans go through daily, whether they were in Vietnam or the current war.”

Who are we?

Pat Turner has been acting professionally since 1997 when he made his debut on stage as Boolie in Driving Miss Daisy. He did more than 25 plays from 97-2004 in East Texas and Houston. Now, he focuses more on screen and television. His most recent projects include Lawyer Brafman in Hillary’s America and Paul in Derelicts. He has a passion for Prisoner Of Mind, because it deals with a subject that means a great deal to him, supporting those who served.

Rich Ting will be playing “Paul.”  His film resume includes:  “Salt,” “Lone Survivor,” “Make Your Move,” and “Deadly Impact”.  Rich’s television credits include: “Rush Hour“ (ABC), “Chicago P.D.” (NBC), “Super Girl” (The CW), and “Waco” (Spike).   With a background in martial arts (1st-degree black belt/Tae Kwon Do/Jeet Kune Do/Wing Chun), Rich has also performed stunts featured in: “Stand Up Guys,” “The Green Hornet,” “Gamer,” and “G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra”.

Rich’s statement about our film includes: “I am extremely humbled and flattered to be a part of this amazing project as it exposes the numerous cultural and societal issues that are currently affecting our country and fellow Americans.  People of all races, ethnicities, and generations will be able to connect to and identify with the powerful message(s) of “Prisoner Of Mind.”

Rich Ting was born in Los Angeles, California.  He was a five-sport athlete growing up and played collegiate football at Yale University, while earning a B.A.  Thereafter, he achieved a dual J.D./M.B.A. degree, switched career paths and has been pursuing interests in the entertainment world.  Ting is proficient in Spanish, Korean, Chinese, Japanese, and Vietnamese.

Jon Coffey plays Captain Adams, Mattie's commander in Vietnam in the 1970's.  Jon has appeared in several independent films and commercials since 2013, most recently a co-production of the Cleveland Cavaliers & San Antonio Spurs that will air in both cities. Jon is also a freelance writer who graduated from Texas State University with a degree in Public Administration and a minor in History. He's currently working on several original scripts.

Director-Producer J.P. McAteer brings a unique perspective to Prisoner Of Mind. In addition to being the founder & coach of Texas Actors Workshop, a film acting workshop in San Antonio, he’s also a journalist/ freelance field producer for major news networks, including NBC, ABC and CBS. He’s served as a Director on several production projects, including an award-winning music video for a Grammy-winning artist.  His contributions to the screenplay for Prisoner Of Mind were informed by a story he did for NBC Nightly News on a Medal of Freedom winner from the Vietnam War.  His first narrative feature is currently in development.

We’re thrilled & honored to have Jo Edna Boldin, CSA as our Casting Director.  Thanks to Jo Edna, we were able to add Rich Ting to our cast.  Jo Edna has been in the Casting Dept of several fantastic films, such as No Country For Old Men, Hell or High Water, Sicario, Office Space, Crazy Heart, Sunshine Cleaning and True Grit, just to name a few.

Trey Meador, (B.A., History) is a U.S. Military veteran, and a technical consultant on Prisoner Of Mind.  A military history enthusiast, Trey has participated in, and helped organize, very detailed and elaborate Vietnam war-era reenactments. He has been invaluable to our project’s efforts to achieve authenticity in terms of content, props and wardrobe.

Brian Nicholas is a Producer on our project.  Brian originally helped develop the character of Paul as part of a Film Acting exercise with Pat Turner (Mattie), at Texas Actors Workshop.  Brian has been dedicated to film & television acting for several years, with more than a dozen credits, including most recently 11.22.63, from James Franco/ Stephen King, available on Hulu

Katia Lara, another Producer, will also be a part of the Art Department for Prisoner Of Mind.  Katia has previously been involved in visual storytelling, as an illustrator, for both graphic novels and children’s books.  As an actor, Katia has several credits in Indie Film, TV and voiceover, and she most recently portrayed Jodie Foster in the NatGeo film Killing Reagan, based on the Bill O’Reilly bestseller.

Mallory Snow’s interest in Producing began after attending the 2015 Cannes Film Festival, where she starred in an official selection of the festival, Binary Stars.  Among her dozen other Indie Film acting credits, are Once Bitten, Twice Shy, an official selection of the Austin Film Festival and Flushed, a finalist at a national 48-hour film festival competition.  She’s enjoyed producing Prisoner Of Mind, because it’s giving her a different point of view on filmmaking, and hopes our film is fortunate enough to become a festival selection as well.

Why do we need the money?

Through your contributions, we will be able to make this project as close as possible to our original vision.  For us, that means hiring an amazing crew, especially a Director of Photography that aligns with our visuals and has the skills necessary to film this project in as few shots as possible. Additionally, we’ll be needing to rent our location, pay for equipment, sound, and post production. We are producing this project under SAG’s Ultra Low Budget specifications, and we’ll be pushing to get enough money to be able to submit to multiple film festivals, which will only help to raise awareness for veterans issues.

Rewards!

$1-$9 – A ‘Thanks’ Credit

$10-$19 -- A ‘Special Thanks’ Credit

$20-$29 -- Behind the Scenes photos/ video blog/ posts.

$30-$49 -- Sticker

$50-$74 -- T-Shirt. Donors will receive T-shirt, plus sticker.

$75-$99 -- Poster. Donors will receive poster, plus t-shirt and sticker.

$100-$149 -- DVD of the movie. Donors will receive DVD, plus: poster, t-shirt and sticker.

$150-$349 -- Signed DVD, by Prisoner Of Mind star/ co-writer Pat Turner and star Rich Ting. Donors will receive Signed DVD, plus: poster, t-shirt and sticker.

$350-$999 -- ‘Associate Producer’ credit on Prisoner Of Mind. Credit runs in closing credits sequence. Donors will also receive: Signed DVD, Poster, T-shirt, Sticker and BTS stuff.

$1,000-$2,499 -- ‘Co-Producer’ credit on Prisoner Of Mind. Credit runs in opening credits sequence. Donors will also receive: Signed DVD, Poster, T-shirt, Sticker and BTS stuff.

$2,500-4,499 -- ‘Co-Executive Producer’ credit on Prisoner Of Mind. Credit runs in opening credits sequence. Donors will also receive: Signed DVD, Poster, T-shirt, Sticker and BTS stuff.

$4,500+ ‘Executive Producer’ credit on Prisoner Of Mind and two invitations to private screening with cast and crew (does not include any travel costs). Credit runs in opening credits sequence. Donors will also receive: Signed DVD, Poster, T-shirt, Sticker and BTS stuff.

Thank you very much for your support of Prisoner Of Mind; we sincerely appreciate you helping us to realize our vision!