About this project
THE FILM
Thieves Run the Night is a 15 minute short film set in Nigeria about two friends (Jack and Friday) as they attempt to get out of a tight situation that puts Jack's conscience to the test. Friday finds himself in a tight spot after he has a fight with a prostitute and knocks her down in his one-room apartment. He fears she may be dead and calls Jack for help. Jack, a former criminal, is determined to do the right thing. All they have to do is figure out what exactly that is.
TRTN explores the irony of grace, and asks the question whether it's possible for anyone to even deserve it at all. This project presents an opportunity to engage with filmmakers in a different part of the world, and to also give life to something special and meaningful that is bigger than just one film.
THE FILMMAKERS
The filmmakers behind this movie are Umar Turaki (my brother in Nigeria) and Ulan Garba Matta, his partner.
Umar Turaki is the writer/director/producer of three short films on two continents. His last film, Yaro, was shot in a small village in northern Nigeria in a local language with a shooting budget of $300. It is currently in post-production. This was the first film Umar made in his home country, and it proved to be a steep learning curve to make a movie in an environment that has very little ground rules, understanding, and appreciation of the ideas behind short films.
Ulan Garba Matta worked as a writer in Lagos, the entertainment capital of Nigeria, before returning to Jos to partner with Umar and start a production company, Weaned Child Entertainment. She has written for comics, magazines, commercials, and television, among them The O Twins, an animated series about a dysfunctional family blessed with twins, currently in development.
Through Weaned Child Entertainment, they hope to create genuine cinematic works that entertain, challenge, inspire, and are true to their African experiences and sensibilities.
With Thieves Run the Night, they are out to make a movie on their own terms, without having to sacrifice quality in any way whatsoever.
THE CREW
Don Nelson (Production Sound Mixer/Sound Designer) is a London-based sound guy who has worked on a wide range of projects, from short films to features, from documentaries to live events. Most recently, he has worked on films such as Clean Skin (starring Sean Bean) and UFO (starring Jean-Claude van Damme).
Joshua Harmsworth (Director of Photography) is a talented American filmmaker who has worked both as a gaffer and a director of photography on both short and feature films. He also served as the director of photography for Umar's second short film, Spliced: How Judith Found Her Muse, shot in Kona, Hawaii.
THE PLAN
The plan is to create a Nigerian short film of outstanding quality. For Umar and Ulan, finding funding for their short film ideas has been a major struggle, as there is very little understanding and appreciation of the short film medium in Nigeria. Nigeria is home to a thriving film industry known as Nollywood, but Nollywood has become notorious for its extra low-budget features and shoddy filmmaking (although this is beginning to change in recent years as a new generation of budding filmmakers is beginning to see the value of craftmanship and excellence in filmmaking). Nevertheless, short films continue to be a foreign concept, and the irony remains that for filmmakers to grow they have to build craft, and what better way to do it than to make short films? Kickstarter presents an opportunity to do that.
We are attempting to raise $8500. This money will go to:
- Renting equipment (such as a good HD camera, lights, and yes, it would be great to have a dolly on set)
- Flight tickets for Don (the sound guy from the UK) and Josh (the DP from the US).
- Fair salaries for the cast and crew.
- Purchasing and making props, costumes, and set dec.
- Feeding and transporting cast and crew.
- Security for cast and crew on location (especially during night shoots).
- Post-production fees (sound design, editing, color correction etc).
- Paying for submissions to film festivals around the world.
THE PROGRESS
Umar and Ulan have found talented actors for some of the parts in the movie, although they are still searching for their main character, Jack.
WHY YOU SHOULD SUPPORT THIS PROJECT
You will be gaining a first-hand, cross-cultural experience into what it means to make movies in other, less developed parts of the world.
You won't only be supporting Ulan and Umar but also a new generation of Nigerian filmmakers who are yearning to make movies that will make a difference for themselves, their people and, hopefully one day, the world.
FAQ
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Kickstarter is a new way to fund creative projects.
We believe that:
• A good idea, communicated well, can spread fast and wide.
• A large group of people can be a tremendous source of money and encouragement.
Kickstarter is powered by a unique all-or-nothing funding method where projects must be fully-funded or no money changes hands.
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Yes, you can pledge from Nigeria using a Mastercard or Visa card issued from any of the major banks. However, we have heard of difficulties in conducting Internet transactions on Nigerian cards. So we've come up with an alternative way of collecting from people that would like to back the project.
Just contact Ulan (08136002427) or Umar (08038996852) and they will direct you how to get your pledge across.
You will still be eligible for a reward if you don't pledge online. Plus, your name will be included on a list of backers, which will go up on the Facebook page of the project.
Have a question? If the info above doesn't help, you can ask the project creator directly.
18
Backers
$875
pledged of $8,500 goal
0
seconds to go
Funding Unsuccessful
This project reached the deadline without achieving its funding goal on December 25.
Pledge $10 or more Pledge $10 or more
A private link to view the movie.
Pledge $20 or more Pledge $20 or more
A DVD of the film and a special thanks credit.
Pledge $50 or more Pledge $50 or more
A poster of the film (signed by cast and crew), a DVD of the film, a soundtrack CD of the film, and a special thanks credit.
Pledge $100 or more Pledge $100 or more
A poster of the film (signed by cast and crew), a DVD with bonus features, a soundtrack CD, a thank you call from the directors, and a special thanks credit.
Pledge $250 or more Pledge $250 or more
A signed poster (by cast and crew), a DVD with bonus features, a soundtrack CD, thank you call from the directors, a special Thieves Run the Night t-shirt (Top Secret), and a special thanks credit.
Pledge $500 or more Pledge $500 or more
A signed poster (by cast and crew), a DVD with bonus features (contains music video and making), soundtrack CD, special Thieves Run the Night t-shirt (Top Secret), thank you call from the directors, and special thanks credit.
Pledge $1,000 or more Pledge $1,000 or more
A signed poster (by cast and crew), a DVD with bonus features (contains music video and making), soundtrack CD, special Thieves Run the Night t-shirt (Top Secret), thank you call from the directors, and ASSOCIATE PRODUCER credit.
Pledge $2,500 or more Pledge $2,500 or more
A signed poster (by cast and crew), a DVD with bonus features (contains music video and making), soundtrack CD, special Thieves Run the Night t-shirt (Top Secret), thanks you call from the directors, and EXECUTIVE PRODUCER credit.
Project By
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Azara Turaki lived in Nigeria for 18 years before settling in the US. She now works as a Grants Specialist with a US Agency, proofing grants for international disasters worldwide. Prior to this, Azara worked with Small businesses and MFI's in South Sudan.
On the side, Azara works on a social entrepreneurship project (her passion) with shea butter producers from Ghana. She also has interests in film and story. She spends time poring over details of small budget indie movies, and sometimes even gets involved in local plays.
