Kickstarter

What's The Story?

Hollywood. 1933. The stomping grounds of hardboiled private eye Nick Sledge during the height of the Great Depression and the days leading up to World War II. He’s the hard-drinking, red meat chewing, cigarette smoking, guns blazing and serial womanizing type of man that the term “Rock Star” eventually was created to describe.

He’s also the go-to man when times get rough, and industrialist Bryce Wainwright hires him on to investigate a series of murders involving hookers with their hearts torn out. But Sledge’s lovelorn secretary Velvet suspects that Wainwright may actually be the public persona of international cat-burglar The Bat, who has been committing daring museum robberies across the city.

Meanwhile, police captain Albright tries to beat him to closure on the case with two of his flunkies, wisecracking officers Dunning and Kruger. Further complications involve a cult that worships Cthulhu, femme fatales, nazis, ninjas, zombie hookers and surprise cameos from people that no one has ever heard of.

Other than that, it’s pretty basic.

Okay...So What's The Game?

The Hard Dick is a bawdy neo-retro tribute to the hard-boiled detective flicks popular in the 1930s. And if you've seen some of the offerings from that era, the raciness of The Hard Dick isn't all that much more exaggerated (especially if we're talking Pre-Code entries).

The project itself will be six fifteen-minute cliffhangers designed for viewing on mobile media, with an eye for recreating the banter, tone and look of Pre Code Hollywood. Special attention will be put on replicating the Cinecolor look and other technical aspects that define movies shot in the era. The style of humor and attention to period detail is inspired by Mel Brooks' Young Frankenstein (but on a vastly smaller scale, of course).

How Do I Know The Comedy Will Deliver?

The Hard Dick was given a test drive before a live audience at the Blue Room Theatre in Chico, CA. It enjoyed a successful three-week run and received good reviews, solid word-of-mouth and plenty of return attendees.

Well, That's What You Say...

Test drive it for yourself...I've uploaded the full show to Vimeo:

LINK

Now granted, the camerawork provided there is straight out of the Ed Wood school of filmmaking (shot under rough conditions and pieced together from three different nights), but it provides a good example of the material itself.

NOTE: The banter between characters will be delivered more in the Howard Hawks mode...more evocative of the period. Delivering in that style before a live audience isn't efficient, in that delivery is paced according to audience reaction.

Where Will This Money Go?

Funds raised for this project are earmarked for production of the series, including drafting a solid cinematographer, editor and sound designer. Also costumes, props and set construction, plus such miscellaneous production needs as feeding the cast and crew during shooting. The $3,500 is a basic goal...any funds over that will be applied to increased production values.