Short Summary
"The Full Armor" is a 5-minute short film set in World War II, about two soldiers who have just lost their friend and get into a hysterical (in both senses of the word) argument when one finds out the other doesn't believe in God, casting the final fate of their fallen friend -- and, within a few minutes, possibly even themselves -- into doubt. The film will be shot on Saturday, April 16th near Los Angeles, California, USA.
Having a full budget will enable us -- all young, independent LA-based filmmakers -- to make this film look as good as it can, worthy of portfolios, reels, film festivals, and other places where we can prove our skills and climb the ladder of opportunity that's key to building our careers as filmmakers!
Meet the Team!
Writer/Director: David Sackerman
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David Sackerman is a screenwriter and director currently based in Los Angeles, CA. In 2018 he earned an Associates in Digital Film Production from Shoreline Community College in his hometown of Seattle and transferred to Columbia College Chicago, where he earned a BA in Filmmaking in May 2021. After seemingly a lifetime of struggling against poverty, having college plans upended by the pandemic, and learning to function as an autistic member of an artistic community where networking is key, in 2021 David wrote, directed, and produced his first major short film "Big Exit" (coming soon!), a 10-minute workplace comedy. Since moving to LA he has interned as a script reader at Walden Media and worked as a COVID monitor on the FX pilot "Kindred", directed by Janicza Bravo. His favorite smell is pizza and his current favorite artist to listen to while working is HAIM.
Producer/Line Producer: Kevin Matthew Keeling
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Though Kevin went to NYU to study mathematics and engineering, he always had an interest in filmmaking. The biggest issue he faced, however, was figuring out what role suited him best.
In the years after graduation, Kevin worked as a project manager while his partner, an actress and writer, taught him more about the entertainment industry. With the knowledge from her, paired with his skills as a project manager, Kevin realized that scheduling, coordination, and his personality management helped make him a great Assistant Director and Producer.
Since leaving project management, Kevin has worked on short films, shows, and feature films.
Director of Photography: Aram Ramirez
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Growing up, Aram loved watching movies with his father and soon that passion
snowballed into me creating stories on video. Aram attended University of California Riverside and hopes to become the best ever to do it. In addition to his work in the camera department, Aram has written and directed two short narrative films and a short documentary. For his short "Together or Separate", Aram won Best Picture at UCR's 2020 FILMWORKS festival, and for his documentary "Our Resource, Their Home" he placed 3rd in C-SPAN's 2017 StudentCam documentary contest. He owns and operates both his own wedding videography/photography company, Blossom Media Studios, and his own clothing brand, Dripp. He always aims for his newest work to be his best work, always pushing the limits of what he is able to do with every new release.
Production Designer: Rose Krol
Rose Krol is an LA-based production designer. In 2021 she earned a BA in Scenic and Production Design for Theater and Film from UCLA. Since graduating she was worked on various music videos, commercials, and short films, including as a production designer and art director for several commercials from Orange County-based Sparkhouse Films and as a prop embroiderer on the Issa Rae-produced online special "What Say What". Rose loves making meaningful art and sharing important stories.
What We Need & What You Get
This awesome team is hard at work planning and rewriting and drawing various pictures to prepare for production. Now we need your help! By helping us out with a financial contribution you can help us pay for:
Camera and accessories (lenses, tripods, etc.)
Grip and electrical equipment (just because we're filming outdoors doesn't mean lighting isn't a concern!)
Sound equipment
Set design and wardrobe
Location fees and permits
Transportation (people and equipment)
Craft services and catering
Distribution (festival submissions!)
Everything helps, even just a dollar or two. And because we're so grateful for your help, we'll say thank you with cool perks and privileges! (And even if you don't see anything on our list on the right that you're into, stay tuned -- we might just be adding some limited-time surprise items later!)
The Impact
For us, "The Full Armor" is not just an opportunity to recreate a period setting (which is every filmmaker's favorite thing in the universe), but to stage a funny, provocative, deeply human moment that's just as relevant to modern debates on mortality and morality as it is a product of its setting and the contentious attitudes on religion and science that existed in 1940s America.
By following us here and on our social media and by contributing to our campaign, you'll be supporting a community of hungry young people pursuing their dreams, giving days, weeks, and months of their time on a project we believe in. The Full Armor family is growing larger as we near production, and every one of us is been writing, rewriting, drafting, redrafting, planning, and replanning to make sure this film is a success. But we can't succeed without your help! By contributing to just this one Los Angeles area independent film you'll be providing opportunities to a dozen hopeful future Malicks, Gerwigs, Pitts, and Andersons (both Wes and Paul Thomas), as well as providing business to local rental houses, catering services, and other businesses struggling to survive the pandemic.
Risks & Challenges
A year ago I was hoping I would never have to direct another short film under these circumstances again, but unfortunately the COVID-19 pandemic is still happening. We will be filming entirely outdoors, but safety will still be of the absolute highest concern. We're going to be EXTREMELY CAREFUL in following local COVID-19 guidelines, which includes testing cast and crew, isolating as needed, masks when not on camera, sanitizing the set, and following whatever changes occur by the time of our shoot date. Our budget will include an allocation for everything we need to follow safety protocols.
Read more about LA County's film and television safety protocols here:
https://www.backstage.com/magazine/article/film-television-production-feb-2021-los-angeles-covid-19-72568/
And for more information from SAG-AFTRA click here:
https://www.sagaftra.org/contracts-industry-resources/covid-19-safety-protocols/tvtheatrical-covid-19-safety-protocols#prodfaq
The film will also involve the use of firearms, which means that for the safety of the cast and crew we will only be using prop guns that only fire blanks. There will be absolutely no real bullets on set. Blanks can still cause serious injury or death if misused, so we will be hiring a licensed armorer and we will not allow anyone to handle the prop guns without first passing a safety course.
Other Ways You Can Help
If you don't feel like contributing or if you want to but don't have the cash, that's totally fine! You can still help us meet our goal in other ways, like:
Thanks for taking the time to read all the way down to the bottom! Now, let's go make a movie!
