I Need your help
Will you stand with me? I need your help to complete a documentary film that is scheduled to be released in Indianapolis on Saturday, March 23rd, called We Are Family. Specifically, I need your help to make the story come alive through financing a sound track and final video production costs.
Here's the Trailer for the We are Family documentary.
Why the story should be told
Racial divides continue in our nation. But in the darkness of division there are stories of hope. The We Are Family documentary tells the inspiring story of how a basketball team from an urban school in the heart of Hoosier basketball country united around an impossible dream, how they forged a bond as family and how they inspired a whole community.
After Arsenal Tech High School in downtown Indianapolis won the Indiana High School Basketball Championship in March 2014, Bob Kravitz, a journalist for the Indianapolis Star wrote:
“Landmark State Title proves inspiration to entire Tech community”
“From the time they are young, these kids who attend Indianapolis Public Schools are told they can't. Parents try, teachers try, mentors try to lift them up and out of their circumstances, but the lowly graduation rates at schools such as Arsenal Tech do not lie, nor does the alarming drop-out rate.
On Saturday night at Bankers Life, though, the talented and composed young men of Arsenal Tech believed they could do something very special, something that hasn't been done since Broad Ripple earned the IPS' last state title in 1980. And they did, knocking off Lake Central, 63-59, winning the Class 4A state title, showing everybody, yes, they could.
Sixty years ago this week, Milan won one for all those small schools.
Saturday night, Tech won one for all the schools and the students who have been told they aren't good enough to ascend the greatest heights.
Remember the Titans.”
The We Are Family documentary seeks to “remember the Titans” by telling the story of that season. It explores the impact of this victory on the lives of the players, coaches, school and Indianapolis Public School community five years later. It proves that the relationships that are built when a team comes together as a family really do endure.
I believe that this story is important because it tells the truth about what happened – and what can happen – in inner city schools. I know this personally. For thirteen years our family lived in Indy we were a part of Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS). Our kids attended IPS schools. And the IPS community became a family to us. This is my way of saying “thanks” to and standing in solidarity with IPS.
You can learn more about the history of my involvement in IPS here: https://sunnyshorestudio.com/2018/11/01/jason-and-jenny-dorsey-tried-education-reform-in-indy-before-it-became-a-popular-political-project/
You can learn more of the history of the project here:
I’ve been working on this project for the last four years. We had done a lot of work on the documentary. Now I need your help to raise $25,000 to pay for a sound track and final video production costs to bring the project to completion. Will you help me tell this story?
Kickstarter Campaign Costs and rewards
To raise $25,000, I am launching a Kickstarter “crowd-funding” campaign on November 1st, 2018. The way Kickstarter works is that people sponsor a creative project through an on-line donation and receive a reward in return. If the project meets its goal that money will be debited. If the project does not meet its goal then that money is not debited. In other words, it is all or nothing!
Budget for the WE ARE FAMILY Kickstarter project
- $ 8,000 Musicians/Composers
- $ 2,000 Sound Track Mix/Mastering
- $1,000 Documentary Trailer
- $7,500 Video editing
- $3,250 Production Costs
- $ 2,000 Rewards Cost
- $1,250 Kickstarter Percentage, 5%
Rewards for giving to the WE ARE FAMILY Kickstarter project
- Friends who support this project at $10 will receive a digital version of the sound track.
- Friends who support this project at $40 will receive a digital version of the movie.
- Friends who support this project at $100 will receive a digital version of the “uncut” movie: bloopers, extra footage, etc.
- Patrons who support this project at $200, $400, $600 and $800 get a beautiful print of one of my brother Jed’s paintings. The print size varies with the level of financial support. Jed is a full-time artist who lived in Indy and was a big fan during that Championship season. He is offering us prints of these two paintings at his cost. To learn more about Jed and his art to to: www.Jeddorseyart.com
This one is titled "The Golden Hour"
This one is titled "Good Morning Indy"
Producers who support this project at or above $1,000 will receive the following:
- Named in the credits of We are Family as a Producer.
- Invitation to a VIP documentary release party in Indianapolis, IN on Saturday, March 23rd, 2019
- Public thanks at the release of the documentary in Indianapolis, March 23rd, 2019
Mega Producers who support this project at or above $5,000 will receive all of the above plus:
- A week long (7 days) stay at Sunnyshore Studio on beautiful Camano Island, WA. The first floor of the studio is an art gallery where we showcase paintings by our family of artists. The second floor is an apartment with kitchen, bed, and living area space. Camano Island, located an hour north of Seattle, is within driving distance to Seattle, Vancouver, BC, the Cascade and Olympic Mountains, etc. Learn more here: www.sunnyshorestudio.com
- An Identity Discovery Session and Five Life Coaching sessions with me (Jason Dorsey). In my work as a Presbyterian pastor, I have developed a curriculum that helps people understand their identity and step boldly into their calling that I call “Identity Mapping”. The Identity Discovery Session is a two hour session where I listen to your story and help you name your Identity. In the five Life Coaching sessions I help you identify your roles and responsibilities in each sphere of your calling: personal, family, work, community and place. My wife, Jenny Dorsey, is a trained coach and assists me in both the Identity Discovery session and the Life Coaching sessions.
The Team
I’ve assembled a great team of video editors/producers and musicians/composers to complete the documentary. I want to tell the story in a way that packs a punch. I’m thrilled that some of the contributors are Arsenal Tech alumni.
I'm serving as the Director/Producer
David Lichty, Video and Audio Editor
Julian Dorsey, Tech Alumni, Production Assistant
Tremayne Rayner, IPS Alumni, Video Production, Film Trailer
Osoking Mezzy, Musician
Eron Harris, Musician
Nabil Ince, aka Seaux Chill, Musician
Malcolm Jordon, IPS Alumni, Musician
Caleb Buse, Musician/Composer
Daniel Dorsett, Tech Alumni, Musician
Boyhood Bravery, Bloomington based band
featuring Tyler Kneiss, Tech Alumni
Steve Wicks, Audio Technician, Musician
Jeff Sparks, Consultant
Two ways you can stand with us
1. Contribute to the Kickstarter Campaign: Thanks so much for supporting this project with a financial gift.
2. Advocate for the Kickstarter Campaign: Advocate for the project by:
- sending a personal e-mail/text to five friends with the kickstarter link asking them to stand with us in this project.
- sharing the kickstarter project on your social media platforms.
Thanks for standing with us on this project!
Risks and challenges
There is a lot of work left to do to finish the project. If we are able to meet our Kickstarter Goal I will be able to compensate our musicians and video and audio editors. Raising these funds will empower us to push full steam ahead. If we don't raise the funds, we're still planning to complete the documentary, but it will be much more of a struggle to do so.
Another challenge is that we have a lot of moving parts especially in working with our musicians and composers in creating the sound track. We believe that March 23rd is a very doable goal to release the film in Indy, but we are also aware that things can come up that are unforseen. We fully intend to release the film on March 23rd, but also want acknowledge that that date could be pushed back.
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Funding period
- (30 days)