Indigo Valley is a drama set in a desolate and isolated landscape. The story explores the complicated relationship between two estranged sisters, Louise and Isabella.
Indigo Valley is the first feature film from filmmaker Jaclyn Bethany. The short film, shot in Iceland in summer 2017 was made as a proof of concept for the feature. The short is currently enjoying a festival run, after well attended screenings at the American Film Market and the European Film Market.
The story of Indigo Valley was developed and pitched at The Cannes Pitch This! Sponsored by Shorts TV, Edinburgh Talent Lab BFI/Pitch First Feature, FEST: New Directors/New Films in Porto, Portugal and Nashville Film Festival. Jaclyn was recently selected to develop the project with Kate Bosworth and Michael Polish at the inaugural Montana Institute of the Arts.
The Vision:
As an artist, I am greatly inspired by dramatists such as Chekhov, Strindberg and Tennessee Williams. In many ways, Indigo Valley can be described as A Streetcar Named Desire for the millennial generation.
Indigo Valley, like Gone Girl and Jane Campion’s Top of the Lake, examines the dark and inner psyche of the human mind. More specifically - Indigo Valley explores a woman at the center of a deep, psychological conflict.
Our three characters have a desperate need to survive and thrive - both realistically and metaphorically, with or without each other. With this in mind, Indigo Valley is extremely relevant, as a story showing human nature, jealousy and lust - all human emotions that most have experienced.
Visually, we are inspired by films such as Lars Von Trier's Melancholia, Andrea Arnold's Wuthering Heights, Ingmar Bergman's The Passion of Anna, Andrei Tarkovsky's The Mirror and television series such as Jane Campion's Top of The Lake and The Kettering Incident.
We have been extremely fortunate in the team that we have been able to bring together to create this film. With a few of the original team from the short film and some new additions, we are excited to introduce some of the key actors and Heads of Departments who will make this vision come to life. Our director, producer and cinematographer are all female - a rarity in this industry.
A native of Jackson, Mississippi, Jaclyn Bethany is an actress and filmmaker, a "rising star" of the film world. With her company BKE Productions she has produced, directed and written numerous short films that have played festivals worldwide. As an actor she has appeared in the feature films I Saw The Light, Worry Dolls, Miles and several festival favorite short films.
Ms. Bethany holds a B.A. in Acting from Fordham University, an M.A. in Screenwriting from The London Film School and and M.F.A. in Directing from the prestigious American Film Institute. Her AFI thesis film, The Delta Girl stars Isabelle Fuhrman, Caitlin Carver and Ashley Bell. It will premiere at a prestigious Oscar qualifying festival later this summer.
She is also the co-editor of online female arts driven publication Constellation, where she curates an ongoing female filmmaker portfolio.
An American-British hybrid, Courtney Harmstone has been working professionally in film since she graduated with a BFA in Film Production from The Florida State College of Motion Picture Arts. Following this, Courtney has worked in a variety of positions in the film industry, from social media marketing and distribution to editing award winning documentaries and commercials.
Since graduating from The London Film School and University of Exeter, Courtney has worked in the U.K. in the film industry, from feature films to short projects - her favorite being, Indigo Valley short film.
Currently, Courtney works at a media company, Alpha Grid, a Financial Times-Owned company as an Associate Producer/Director, where she works with high-profile clients making branded content and attended the World Economic Forum.
Mikhail is a Los Angeles-based producer, born and raised in St. Petersburg, Russia. His 10 years of professional experience includes work for several international TV-channels and productioncompanies. Mikhail’s work on narrative features, documentary films and news broadcasts have been awarded both domestically and internationally. He received his BA from the Russian State University of Cinematography, aka VGIK, (Russia) and MFA in producing from the AFI Conservatory (USA).
Irene is a London based filmmaker born and raised in Mexico with an Icelandic background. After a BA in film studies in Paris (2006- 2009) she enrolled in the London Film School in 2011, at the LFS she specialized in cinematography and directing. She has lensed over fifteen short films including six pieces by Jaclyn Bethany. She is passionate about cinematography as a way of portraying thoughts and emotions.
Rosie Day is an award-winning young actress. Dubbed a ‘Screen International Star of Tomorrow’ by Screen Daily and a BAFTA Rising Star 2017 by InStyle, she’s starred in Golden Globe nominated Outlander as Mary Hawkins, co- starred alongside Sarah Jessica Parker in the rom-com All Roads Lead to Rome, and Stefanie Myer’s (Writer of Twilight) new movie Down a Dark Hall alongside Uma Thurman, for Lionsgate. Rosie was one of the leads in Butterfly Kisses which won this year’s Crystal Bear, at the Berlin Film Festival. She has recently returned from shooting one of the leads in Sky One’s new comedy/drama Living The Dream alongside Phillip Glenister and Lesley Sharp. She is working alongside James Mcavoy, Gemma Arterton and Paddy Considine, in the 2018 Watership Down remake, for Netflix and the BBC. And Neil Gaiman's Good Omens also for the BBC.
Brandon Sklenar previously starred in the Japanese/American co-production Temple for Netflix. In addition to Tribeca darling Mapplethorpe, Brandon can soon be seen in Magic Lantern, revered international filmmaker Amir Naderi’s next directorial effort. This Fall, Brandon will premiere in Adam McKay’s Dick Cheney biopic Backseat with Academy Award winners Christian Bale, Amy Adams, and Sam Rockwell. Up next is a lead role in London Calling, a noir crime thriller that weaves the British gangster genre with the American western.
We are raising $55,000 to cover the production costs of making Indigo Valley. Making a feature film is expensive and every donation makes a difference, and When you donate to Indigo Valley, you are helping our dream become a reality. After raising some of the funds on our own, we have turned to crowdfunding to complete the fundraising process.
The $55,000 will help support the cost of equipment, departmental budgets, feeding the (very hungry) crew and also helping to cover the additional costs of production. To help offset costs we have been lucky to secure SIGMA lenses as a sponsor and hope to welcome more sponsorship.
Money will also be allocated for post-production, which will be completed in Los Angeles and London. See a more detailed chart below.
When you donate to Indigo Valley, you are not only investing in a feature film - you are putting money and support a feature film by three female filmmakers. It is an important cultural moment for women in film.
We have tailored a series of perks that we can offer for your generous donation, all of which are personalized for the film that range, from 10 dollars to 10,000!
One perk we can guarantee - when you donate to our film, we will be forever grateful! Your investment is not only in the production of Indigo Valley, but also in our future as filmmakers, and the knowledge that we have your support will inspire us to make the film the best it can be.
A few words from the Director, Jaclyn Bethany:
When I started working on this project, it started like all creative endeavors: with an idea. I began to shape the story and the characters- newlywed couple Louise and John, and Louise’s sister and the protagonist of the story - the displaced, and destructive Isabella.
When John and Isabella meet, their unexpected similarities become intertwined and intoxicating leading to a volatile emotional and physical relationship that ultimately, puts everything at risk. When things begin to go wrong on the most remote section of the journey, the characters are stripped - they begin acting and not thinking - it makes us, as humans, question who we really are.
When I wrote the first draft, it felt like the most raw, vulnerable and true thing I had ever written. When I shot the narrative promo, I had the same feeling, but also a remarkable feeling of joy and accomplishment. A great deal of that comes down to the extraordinarily talented and dedicated people that are working alongside me on this project.
From this point forward, I knew that we could make Indigo Valley into something really beautiful and moving, attracting a diverse audience worldwide. —Jaclyn Bethany
A few words from Producer, Courtney Harmstone:
When Jaclyn first pitched Indigo Valley to me, I instantly felt a connection to her vision, the story, and the characters. During our discussions about the film, Jaclyn mentioned a couple of my favourite films and stories: Force Majeure and A Streetcar Named Desire - both deeply troubling plots but absolutely stunning portraits of raw humanity. With these tone pieces in mind, and Jaclyn’s storytelling, I was drawn into the world of Indigo Valley and knew I wanted to produce this film.
The combination of the dark and intense themes and the dramatic tension makes Indigo Valley not only an exciting read but also an extremely in-depth view of the psychological darker side of the human soul.
Jaclyn and I decided to create a short film as a prelude to the feature. By end of June of 2017, Jaclyn and I raised $14,000 USD through Kickstarter in nine days (out of twenty- five). The short not only proved that this story has an audience, but also that it can inspire young talent to work together towards a vision.
I am extremely excited about the future of this dark and intensely interesting piece of work and am thrilled that I am able to work with a team of young and talented filmmakers who are so dedicated to their crafts.
Here are some images from the short film, as well as images from Jaclyn's body of work.
If you are a seasoned Kickstarter supporter, you'll know that films take a while to be completed! Here is our timeline!
We plan to shoot Indigo Valley the second week of August 2018. Post-Production will begin in January 2019 and we are aiming to submit for festivals in the fall, for the circuit in 2020!
If you would like to learn more about the project, please feel free to reach out to either Courtney or Jaclyn.
Contact: indigovalleyfilm@gmail.com
If you are keen to get involved, but don't want to donate via the kickstarter, please contact either Courtney or Jaclyn on the email below:
Contact: indigovalleyfilm@gmail.com
What if we don't meet our goal?
The money never leaves your account until we reach our projected goal: $55,000. However, we know with your support this won't be the case and we will make our goal!
What do I get in return?
You get to help us make the film! But you will also get a reward. Check them out!
When do I get to see the film?
We will be able to share it with you as soon as it is complete, our projected premiere date is the fall of 2019 or early 2020. We will keep you updated every step of the way!
Risks and challenges
The project is an ultra-low budget feature, with a crew of up-and-coming filmmakers, which is why we have come to use Kickstarter to procure financing, from people who believe in our vision.
Some of the major challenges associated with making a feature film, however, are things such as getting equipment, feeding the crew and making sure that we are all extremely safe on set. The budget we are raising on Kickstarter will cover the bare minimum needed to help with production. We are hoping that from this feature film, that we will be able to create a dramatic and powerful feature film, proving to that we, as young filmmakers, can make it happen. This cannot happen unless we raise the $55,000 on Kickstarter. Without this money, we will not be able to make the film the best it can be.
This is a very special story we are all committed to working on without pay, and our sole commitment is to the art of making this film and bringing this unique story to life. We are all working on it because we believe in it, and hope you will to. Making a first feature is a dream for any filmmaker, and we are confident that with your help, we can make it happen.
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Funding period
- (30 days)