Who We Are - Meet the Team

The core team of Stutter consists of Sebastian Weissbach (Writer and Director) and our two leads and producers Oskar Brown and Judith Shoemaker. 

We are an experienced team of film professionals from Berlin (Germany), who have all been working in the film industry for years - we are also close friends. Together we have been making numerous short films, but with Stutter  we are producing our first ever feature film. And for that we are going to need your help.

Making a feature film brings unique logistical challenges, especially on a no budget scale. Trying to bring our ambitious vision to life, means that we will have to find the perfect shooting locations, book spaces, and hold our team together.

We need your support for precisely these logistics, in order to make Stutter look as compelling and pristine as possible.

Through so many years of making short films and little sketches together, we have really refined an efficient and artistic process with ambitious yet realistic expectations as to what we can and can't do. Stutter has been handcrafted to work along these lines and showcase our strengths, 

We are ready for the challenge of a feature film and you can help us bring this vision to life!

What We Need & What You Get

We are a group of filmmaking professionals, well versed in acting, writing, producing, filmmaking, and editing. We own all of the equipment needed to make a film - but locations and logistics are a different matter altogether. 

Every cent contributed to Stutter, will directly go into making this project better and ramping up the scale of our production.

In the past, we have shown time and time again that we can craft incredible work even on a shoestring budget. So every little bit goes a long way!

Every single supporter will upon completion receive a private streaming link - so no matter your contribution, you will be able to watch Stutter once the film is finished (most likely in mid 2023). 

With our various support tiers, you can also earn your place as a producer on our team, 

Funding and Perks:

• Funding a feature film for a mere 3.000,- Euros seems fairly unrealistic and we are well aware. So you too can rest assured that we have no intentions to make our entire film from scratch on that budget. Camera, lenses, lights, hard drives, work force - all of that is taken care of. 
  Our funding goal will merely enable us to extend our reach with locations and shooting times and be able to rent out cafés, bars, clubs, offices, and other locations. 
• While some of our perks are immaterial (like credits, digital thanks, and our undying love), you can also earn signed prints, posters, or script pages.
  We are also planning a live premiere (in Berlin) - with the option to acquire a ticket with a donation 
• What if we don't reach our entire funding goal? Then we will make do with what we have and perhaps have to move scenes around. Fewer locations, fewer shooting days, longer hours. Even if we don't reach our funding goal, rest assured that your support will still help elevate our film. And feel free to follow our project to get regular updates on our progress. 

Stutter - Synopsis

The feature film Stutter is a dark psychological thriller about guilt, trauma and desire.

Following the tragic death of his wife, Jon struggles with feelings of guilt when he starts an affair with the enigmatic Red. 
As he comes closer and closer to Red in a psychologically probing and mutually abusive relationship, Jon begins to question what exactly happened the night his wife killed herself. With the Stutter, a haunting echo seemingly everywhere around him blurring the lines between reality, perception, and trauma, Jon is caught in an ever expanding tumour of mysteries - with Red in its centre. 

Why Your Support Makes a Difference

While Berlin is a great and creative city, filming in Berlin comes with its unique challenges. Such a vibrant creative place makes it easier to find collaborators, but more difficult to find adequate shooting locations. 

Every bit of support that goes into the campaign will go directly into the production and the realisation of our vision. And getting a better location, an extra shooting day (or just a few extra hours), and managing all the logistics makes all the difference for our project.

• Stutter is a psychological thriller about guilt and trauma, telling the story of a broken man wrapped in the imagery of a dark horror drama
• It is inspired by the films of Arronofsky, Lynch, and Hannecke
• Our team is experienced and ambitious - and we have proven over the years that we not only work well together, but can create compelling films with a small team. 

Writer & Director - Sebastian Matthias Weißbach

Sebastian is an actor and director, has won multiple awards for his short films and works as an acting tutor at Catalyst Institute Berlin. He is 36 years old, a native Berliner, and filmmaker behind Stutter.

Actress & Producer - Judith Shoemaker

Judith is an actress from Berlin with stage experience since her childhood, dozens of film credits and is one of the heads behind the theatre company Monstress Mess. She spearheads the production of Stutter and will be playing the female lead Red.

Actor & Co-Producer - Oskar Brown

Oskar is an actor, comedian, and writer from South Africa. He has come to international acclaim with his play Between and will be playing the part of the protagonist Jon. 

Risks & Challenges

Making any film of any length is challenging - shooting a no budget feature brings its own unique risks and challenges. How can we guarantee quality and consistency across so many shooting days? 

We really aren't worried about our work on the day and producing professional scenes on the day, but keeping that momentum going throughout the shooting period and across multiple breaks will be more difficult. Which is also while our pre-production has started early and our strategic planning is in full swing. 

We are now in the process of gathering a young and motivated cast, consisting of people that we have worked with in the past. Our filmmaking style is all about trust, confidence, and collaboration.

And while we work efficiently, we always have a backup plan, in case something goes wrong. Planning ahead has been among our greatest strengths for shorter projects and we hope to transfer this level of flexibility to our feature production as well.

Obviously your help goes a long way here. With your support we can get more flexibility, more security when it comes to our bookings and logistics, we have the freedom to get more rental gear (if needed), and our shooting schedule can look more generous. All of which will directly translate into the quality of the final product.

Other Ways You Can Help

If you cannot support us financially, there are plenty of ways that you can help us still (and we do appreciate all of them):

• Share our campaign on social media and make others aware of the Stutter
• Follow our creators @smweissbach, @judith__shoemaker, and @theoskarbrown for regular updates
• You can check out Cinéma Fatale on YouTube and share our previous work to spread the word
• You own a bar? Restaurant? Airb'n'b? Abandoned airport? Any interesting location? Just hit us up and we will get back to you ASAP
• You want to lend us a helping hand for pre-production or the shoot? Reach out and we will get back to you ASAP