Short Summary
Hello funders! Thank you for taking the time to read all about our international crowd-funding campaign. '
Under the hat' is a story about a struggling mosque mu'athen (the guy who calls to prayer at a mosque) and his spiritual journey in understanding the non-religious world before him. Don't we know people who feel this way in our modern world?
It's a universal story but really plays with the concept of East (where tradition, culture and spirituality runs everyday life and views are rather conservative; namely in the Arab world) vs West (where liberal freedoms are part of everyday life and materialistism feeds humanity). Well, it's not THAT dramatic but you get the picture!
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My name is Amal Al-Agroobi and I am a film director and producer who is making the switch from documentary films to fiction films. I joined the film industry in 2012 after a brief career as a scientist and made my first short doc in Dec of 2012, since then, I've made one other documentary. Here are some samples of my work!
'Half Emirati' was the most watched film at Dubai film festival 2012. It also travelled to NORTHERN IRELAND, INDIA, FRANCE, MIAMI, WASHINGTON and NEW YORK (in the USA) and YORK in the UK.
'The Brain That Sings' won multiple awards and the outreach was maximised by a nation-wide autism awareness screening campaign. The film WON in ITALY, QATAR and DUBAI and will now be distributed ALL OVER EUROPE AND THE USA!
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One of my strengths is getting my films out there (which is a perk by the way *Marketing workshop so I can help you do that too). And I will also be doing this with 'under the hat' as we have a potential distributor for the film already!
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My personal drive lies in human interest stories and as a filmmaker from Arabia, I am interested in bridging the gap of understanding and sharing stories from our region with the rest of the world.
We endeavour to get this film out to as many film festivals as possible but most of all, we need to get this film made so please help fund us and also take advantage of some great rewards! :)
What We Need & What You Get
We are crowdfunding for production funds for the film. We hope to raise $20,000 and will be breaking down into the following:
We will applying for other funds as well so ensure that the project gets made and approaching potential investors just in case we don't reach our crowdfunding goal!
BUT for the amount that you donate to the campaign, you can get some fantastic rewards such as a dinner with myself and cast, a day on set or even a role as an extra! Any support will be immensely appreciated. If you are not able to contribute with money, please share our video to help spread the word.
For all you budding entrepreneurs and business executives, this is a great chance to put your name to a film that might make it to international film festivals and get a little bit of press and marketing for yourself or your business.
NEW PERK!!!!
(Added Mon 15th DEC)
POSTER COMPETITION
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This could be YOUR DESIGN - enter our $20 contest now and still win a poster if you don't win the competition. This is a great way for all you designers to get your work out there - Sundance, Berlin, Cannes, Dubai...who knows where the film might go!!!
NEW PERKS!
T-SHIRT and MUG
(added Dec 18th)
NEW PERKS!
LINK TO FILM and MARKETING WORKSHOP
(added Dec 23rd)
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Get a delicious gluten-free/dairy-free cornbread when you select the marketing workshop (conducted online) made by me! You will get to learn all the ins and outs of how I get my films seen and how to get everyone talking about them!
NEW PERKS!
POST PRODUCTION LIVE WEBINAR and DIRECTORS PEN
(added Dec 30th)
HAPPY NEW YEAR everyone! We have some tasty new perks for you. The actual *PEN* used by the director when making set notes and script modifications is now up for grabs.
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ALSO, don't miss the chance to watch the *editing process* during our post production DIRECTLY FROM YOUR COMPUTER! How exciting!
PERK MAXOUT!
(added Jan 4th)
With only 2 weeks to go, we've MAXED OUT on all our perks. That's right folks, we can't give you anything more. Enjoy the rewards we have shared and let us know if there's anything else you need so we can do some swaps!
The Impact
Film is a great medium. And this story marries both the spiritual and modern world so having a strong documentary background, I feel that not only is the film entertaining, but much can be learned about oneself through the journey of this mosque mu'athen. What happens after all when a religious man is forced to open his mind and heart to a new way of thinking?
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My previous films have had enormous success in creating strong emotional responses and discussions amonst audience members. We have been working on this film for about a year and now, we really want to get it made in 2015! Expect to see the film in a years time and we will keep you up to date via email if you contribute to this short film!
Risks & Challenges
As the topic of the film revolves around religion or a religious figure, getting the story right has been a challenge. We have remained respectful in terms of the story but have also introduced a reality that occurs in our modern world.
There is a merit to sharing stories and the reality of what might happen in this part of the world but we have struggled in raising funds for this reason. This is why we are taking the film onto an international platform and hope we get the support from you, the people, who want to see important and entertaining films being made.
Because I've made films before, you can guarantee that the quality will be great; but even I don't know how the film might turn out! Filmmaking is an adventure and a journey and we each have very unique minds and brains. We have a script, cast and crew who can't wait to be involved and hopefully a bunch of supporters from all over the world.
Other Ways You Can Help
Some people just can't contribute, but that doesn't mean they can't help! By sharing the link with others, using the Indiegogo share tools and blasting an email out to friends or family you know who might be keen in supporting this story, you will be doing us a massive favour and we thank you for your support!