Kickstarter

Be a part of movie-making history! Participate in the production of the short movie “Ellie's Head”. Your pledge will help make Ellie's world a frightening reality, and bring her entertaining story to life and to DVD.

The Plot
“Ellie's Head” is a short horror film about an emotionally challenged elderly woman named Ellie, who exists in complete mental isolation. Her story begins when she finds a chest buried near the Chicago river.  Ellie unlocks the box and makes a wonderful discovery: inside is a rotting human head. It's love at first sight.  She takes her new-found friend, named Henry, home to live with her. Ellie isn't going to be lonely anymore; now she has someone to talk to, and apparently, someone who will talk back.

Origins
I wrote the first draft of “Ellie's Head” almost 2 years ago, and have been struggling to bring it to life for over a year. My idea was to make a short horror film that could be shown at The Music Box Massacre: a 24 hour horror movie marathon held once a year just before Halloween at the Music Box Theater here in Chicago, Illinois. I wrote this film specifically for this group of film-goers and horror-aficionados, but I believe that it will be original enough and endearing enough to submit to other festivals.

An image of Ellie first came to me one cold and rainy Chicago afternoon when I found a fleshy cow-skull sitting on top of a trash can. I recognized this as an important omen, so I grabbed the skull and dropped in into a plastic shopping bag.  Later that night I found myself carrying a cow head while taking a short-cut through a deserted ally. The image of an old lady carrying a human head with her as she sifted through trash cans popped into my mind, and I knew I had to tell the story about this fragile woman old woman and her only friend. And I knew that i had to make this film as a submission to the "Massacre”.

The Project
It has taken me 2 years to get the project off of the ground almost entirely because of financial hardships. I have access to almost all of the equipment needed to make the film, but what I don't have is the money for all of the remaining expenses. It is impossible to make a film (even of this modest size) without the funds to feed the crew or for gas to drive them to set. I first discovered Kickstarter 2 months ago and now I finally have a chance to fund this movie.

This is a completely unpaid project, so the only incentive for people to work on this film is the food (the opportunity of being part of a fantastic project is another incentive), so the majority of the budget is allocated toward the catering for the cast and crew for 8 days of shooting. I have a great group of talented people who are all anxiously awaiting for the shooting to begin, and they are excited because they all believe in me, and they believe in the story and its title character. And all I owe these people is decent food. The rest of the money will go toward transportation costs, a small amount of equipment rentals, some remaining props, electricity, and the incentives and rewards that you will receive for your financial generosity.

The Shoot
The 8 days of shooting is set to begin on July 23rd for 4 days, with the following 4 days of shooting to resume on August 13th. Nearly all of the pre-production has been completed, with the exception of casting. The only other issue to be resolved in pre-production is deciding which camera to shoot on.

Wish Listing
I have several different consumer grade cameras readily available to me to shoot with, but part of my wish-list, if we raise more funds beyond the original goal, is for the rental of a better camera. Some options I'm considering shooting on are the Cannon 5D, 7D, or even possibly the Panasonic AF100. The rental of any of these cameras will cost money, but will improve the visual quality of the completed film. Another item extra money will allow for is even more food to feed an even larger crew! Right now I have the food expenditure budgeted for the smallest crew possible, but I'd love to have a full crew on set, providing the best and most efficient production possible.

Gratitude
I'm glad that you spent the time to check out my project “Ellie's Head”, and I hope that you find it interesting and rewarding enough for your financial support. Remember: everything counts in large amounts. Thank you.

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