Our Story
My name is J. Ambrus, and I'm a film writer, producer, and director. I'm currently beginning pre-production on a new short film entitled GIFT HORSE, which will be shooting in late January of 2012.
This will be an independently financed and produced film brought to fruition by a group of dedicated friends and colleagues of mine from film school and beyond.
GIFT HORSE will technically be my fifth short film, but it is a story that has been near and dear to my heart for several years, and I have only been waiting for the right opportunity to bring it to the screen.
GIFT HORSE is the story of death row inmate, Francis Crowley, a man with a difficult past that has finally reached the end of the line. As the State prepares to execute him for his crimes against society, a strange twist of fate turns the entire procedure on its head, and puts the system of capital punishment itself into question.
The Impact
While many nations around the world have abolished capital punishment, many still maintain this practice as deterrent for especially heinous crimes, as a collective justified moral sentence, and in some cases, to maintain the rule of religious law. While statistical research continues to demonstrate the relative inefficiency of capital punishment as a means to reduce violent crimes, and many societies have deemed it an inhumane approach, it continues to thrive in parts of the world.
GIFT HORSE engages this complex topic on a surface level by introducing a paradoxical event that forces us to question and debate the nature of capital punishment, although the film does not aim to take a stance on any particular side of the argument.
On a secondary-level, GIFT HORSE engages subjects of awareness, life, death, and consciousness.through the curious events surrounding Francis Crowley's execution.
What We Need & What You Get
As a professional independent film, GIFT HORSE will be produced with the utmost attention to detail and using a combination of industry and DIY economic strategy. In the current world of digital technology and widely available professional production equipment, there has never been a better opportunity to produce quality audio-visual works that can stand shoulder-to-shoulder with vastly larger industry productions.
For a fraction of what it used to cost to make a film 15-years ago, it is now possible, with the right training, approach and skill, to produce credible professional films and to distribute them using a wide variety of new media marketing strategies that keep the the work in the hands of the people that made them.
GIFT HORSE will use all collected funds to invest in the rental of lighting/sound equipment, secure locations, acquire cutting-edge camera gear (lenses, attachments), and art direction (costumes, props).
Your contributions will also be put toward the post-production (editing) process, and the subsequent rendering of the final product. .
Any remaining funds at that point will be applied toward circulating GIFT HORSE in a variety of prominent festivals and social media events. None of it will be used for salaries as they everyone working on this project has accepted to contribute in the interest of passion, friendship, and collective creativity.
No effort will be spared to reach the ultimate goal of this and every film; to be seen!
What's in it for you? Apart from having the chance to contribute to honest independent cinema and a great local project, founded and produced by young up-and-coming filmmakers and actors from Montreal, you will receive:
- A DVD copy of the finished project for as little as 0$ or cost.
- Full official credit as an Associate Producer on GIFT HORSE.
- V.I.P. invitation to the wrap party and any in-house screenings we organize
- The respect and unconditional love of a bunch of hard-working artists and pros who want to make the world a better place.
- J. Ambrus, writer, producer, and director of GIFT HORSE will do something silly for your entertainment (anything except from mutilation, death, or sexual favors)
Other Ways You Can Help
Contact us if you think you can help this project, but otherwise we ask only that you SPREAD THE WORD once the film is in circulation. As John Morrison said, "They have the guns but we have the numbers", so we will need all of you to bang those pots together when the time comes. Finally, if you can't contribute financially in any way, please just send us your love and positive vibes. We will need them come the January chill!
Love,
Jason A.
