UPDATE:
We reached our goal! Thank you everyone for the support so far. We still have over a week to go and as I mentioned below, we really could use more help. Any additional money raised can go towards lawyer fees, festival submissions, PR materials, website, etc. So let's see where this thing can take us!

Hey! Thanks for stopping by and taking a look at our project.

THIS IS MARTIN BONNER is an independent feature film, currently in post-production. If we look familiar, it's because we did a Kickstarter around this time last year to help pay for our production costs and the generosity of the Kickstarter community is 100% the reason why we've even made it this far.

But now we're close to the end and in need of help again. The film is picture locked and ready to get a final sound mix, color correction and output. We're rushing to get it all done in time to submit to Sundance, Berlin, SXSW and the other major festivals quickly approaching. So please consider helping us out!

WHO ARE WE?

I'm Chad Hartigan and I'm the writer/director. I previously wrote and directed a feature in 2008 called LUKE AND BRIE ARE ON A FIRST DATE, which is currently available on DVD and streaming sites, if you want to check it out.

My producer is Cherie Saulter and she previously produced MEDICINE FOR MELANCHOLY, which played the Toronto Film Festival, was distributed by IFC Films and earned Cherie an NAACP Image Award Nomination. She also wrote and directed her first feature, NO MATTER WHAT, which premiered at the 2011 South by Southwest Film Festival. Triple threat!

We've also got cinematographer Sean McElwee (DANCE PARTY USA), editor Julio Perez (THE MYTH OF THE AMERICAN SLEEPOVER) and composer Keegan DeWitt (COLD WEATHER) so the crew is packed to the gills with generous and talented individuals.

Our cast is equally formidable, headlined by Paul Eenhoorn and Richmond Arquette, with support from Sam Buchanan, Robert Longstreet and Demetrius Grosse. 

WHAT'S THE STORY?

Martin Bonner is a 58-year-old man in the first week of a new job. He is the volunteer coordinator for a non-profit organization that helps guide a prisoner’s transition from incarceration to the outside world. It's Martin's first job in three years and he’s desperate to make a good impression as he slowly climbs out of bankruptcy. A stranger in a new town, Martin lets his personal life take a back seat as the challenge of making new friends and finding new hobbies proves overwhelming to a man of his age. Occasionally, he speaks to his daughter by phone and leaves messages for his son, who has not spoken to him in years, but he mostly focuses on work.

Through this, he finds himself coming to the aid of Travis Holloway, a participant in the program who has just been released after serving twelve years for involuntary manslaughter/DUI. As Travis sets out to find a job, rent an apartment and fulfill the mundane tasks of everyday life that are taken for granted by most, Martin serves as an unofficial mentor and the two find that they have much in common. Travis slowly draws Martin out of his shell as an unlikely friendship blossoms and Martin risks his job by opening up to Travis about his recent crisis of faith and his struggles finding any work outside of the church, with which he has long been associated. Things take a turn when Travis manipulates Martin into playing an unwanted role in his attempts to rekindle a relationship with his estranged daughter, which despite straining this new friendship, forces Martin to confront his own connection with his son.

Find out more at www.martinbonner.com

WHAT'S THE MONEY FOR?

We've managed to get through the entire production and picture edit of this film on a microscopic budget mainly through ingenuity and favors. We've lined up outrageous deals along those same lines for our post sound mix and color correction but they still cost money. We also need to pay for outputs of the film, music licensing fees and festival submission fees. Believe me, this all adds up fast and in truth, we should actually be trying to raise much more than the stated goal, but I don't want to be unrealistic.

We've got some rewards for your help and we'd sincerely appreciate any size donation. It all helps us maximize the potential success of the project and gets us closer to being able to share it with you.

WANT TO CONTACT US?

Feel free to ask any questions at chadhartigan@gmail.com

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TAX DEDUCTIBLE DONATIONS

If you prefer to go through our Fiscal Sponsor with a tax-deductible donation, you can do so through our sponsor, IFP (https://market.ifp.org/newyork/fiscal/DonateNow.cfm?ProjectID=459)