Kickstarter

Kickstarter Staff Pick and Featured project on the Kickstarter blog, 7/3/12!

Welcome Humans! 

Thanks for visiting our Kickstarter internet fund raising thingy. We’re excited about telling you about our short filmed entertainment, Bakersfield, Earth! If you love comedy and sci-fi (with a bump of social commentary) then you’re going to love Bakersfield, Earth and, with your help, we can make it a reality.

So what’s this movie about? 

Did you know that aliens live in Bakersfield, California? Crazy, right? One of them is Guy Bowman. Guy arrived in 1970 in the body of a cross-dressing hippie. Our film is set in 1990. Guy lives in a middle class neighborhood with his son, Toby. This film takes place at a community meeting for a local women’s group, Mothers Against Evolution, that is against teaching evolution in Bakersfield public schools. Guy is against teaching evolution because his species created humans. Naturally, the women in the group are not amused by Guy’s presence, especially Judy, the leader of the group and the neighborhood’s resident Alpha Female. 

Who gives a rat’s ass about an alien short film? 

Believe it or not, I’m not from Los Angeles. Shocking, I know. No, I’m from Kansas. And among the many things to be proud of (steak, football, Dorothy) there’s plenty to be embarrassed about.  For instance, in 2005, the Kansas school board decided to include “intelligent design” in its science-based curriculum. Intelligent Design is a decorative name for creationism: the “theory” that mankind was established by a divine being. One school board member stated evolution is "biologically, genetically, mathematically, chemically, metaphysically and etc. wildly and utterly impossible." When I read quotes like this, I begin to think of the comedic potential behind the conflict. When Guy decides to attend the meeting he forces the women in the group to look closely at their own prejudices regarding faith, gender, sexuality and identity. Some of them even change their minds.

What will your funds go towards? 

I’ve worked hard writing this script and, now that I have my “dream team” of actors, I feel confident enough to ask you – perfect strangers – for money. Our Kickstarter funds will help us bring the technical and production and design elements up to a level that will best serve the story. With your help, we’ll have enough money for equipment and location rentals, food and costumes. And Red Vine licorice. We have to have Red Vines on set!

About our team…

Ethan Sandler, Guy.  Ethan has written for Whitney and My Boys and performed in The Bourne Supremacy and the TV series Psych, Will & Grace and Sex and the City.  His current solo show, Artificial Fellow Traveler just closed a run in both Los Angeles and New York.

Missi Pyle, Judy.  You may recognize Missi from her many roles in TV and film including last year’s Academy Award winner, The Artist.  Missi was also in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Big Fish and, Guy’s personal favorite, Galaxy Quest. 

Artemis Pebdani, Mabel.  Artemis and I worked previously on my short film, King County.  She’s appeared in How I Met Your Mother, Modern Family and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia where she plays a woman named “Artemis.”  Go figure.

Brian Gattas, Fred. Gattas is well recognized for his TV work which has included performances on The Office, Community, Dexter, Brothers & Sisters,Will & Grace, and Arrested Development. He is also just finished shooting Lovelace and Sofia Coppola's next film, The Bling Ring.

Natasha Rose Capener, Sally.  Natasha is a USC theatre graduate and Los Angeles native. She can be seen in Barely Legal and Dave's short, King County. Last year, Natasha worked as an improv host for Dreamworks at Universal Studios Singapore. 

Naomi Grossman, Gladys.  A former member of the esteemed Groundlings Sunday Company, Naomi also created Carnival Knowledge: Love, Lust, and other Human Oddities, a hit solo show in LA that traveled to fringe festivals in both Edinburgh and New York as well as London’s West End. Naomi also appeared in the feature film, Table for Three, and most recently, landed a recurring role on FX's American Horror Story.

Janet Chen, producer.  Janet is a Los Angeles, Earth based independent producer and filmmaker.  She studied film at the University of California, Irvine and has worked on films featured at festivals including the Los Angeles Film Festival and South by Southwest.  She is a fan of cult television shows, including Buffy, the Vampire Slayer and The X-Files.

Check back for updates.  We’ll introduce you to more of our awesome cast and crew as we get closer to production.

Rewards!

Besides making films, my other passion is portrait photography.  I’m not talking about some hipstagramatic snapshot with my iPhone.  I use a medium format Hasselblad camera that shoots a 2 ¼ inch square piece of film.  Yes, film.  And I make the prints myself in a darkroom.  I've included some examples of my work on this page.

So, besides the usual offers of copies of the film, credit and our eternal thanks for donating, I’m also offering special rewards including original, signed portraits of my cast and personal photo sessions.

Wow.  Thanks for reading this far.  You humans are so cool.

Film Credits:  

Camera:  Art Santamaria

Music:  Gentle Marimba by Alistair Cameron.