While on the run from hitmen, an IT guy becomes entangled with a femme fatale stripper and her gangster ex's border town gang.
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While on the run from hitmen, an IT guy becomes entangled with a femme fatale stripper and her gangster ex's border town gang.
About this project
Brief Synopsis
Mahogany Sunrise is a romantic, action drama about a downhearted IT guy named Jackson who longs to be a musician. After being sent to a border town for work Jackson stumbles upon a duffel bag full of money. Thinking he’s hit the jackpot he takes the money. He later meets and falls for a charismatic burlesque dancer named Mercedes. But Jackson quickly learns that this new found fortune comes with a price as he finds himself on the run from her ex and his gangbanger crew along with two hitmen who want the money back.
Mahogany Sunrise is a hip, lovers on the run story with themes of greed, arrogance, chance encounters, finding love, taking chances and following your heart to do what you're meant to in life. Jackson and Mercedes are two star-crossed strangers that happen to meet, inspire each other and fall in love. In the end their love must survive greed and the relentless pursuit of those that want to kill them.
Last August we shot promotional trailers as proof of concept. The crew was comprised of experienced filmmakers and actors from the Austin film scene many of which will be returning for the feature. We shot with the state of the art RED Epic digital camera. The trailers debut last November at The American Film Market (AFM). Exhibited to foreign and domestic film executives and distributors the trailers were highly praised assuring us that the film we are trying to make will be a marketable commodity.
Inspiration for writing the story
This is a project I’ve been writing for many years. They always say write what you know and I can really relate to the main character Jackson and his desire to be a musician but feeling that his creativity is being stifled by working in the IT field. A struggle many creative types find themselves in when trying to balance their passions with their necessary day jobs.
Another motivation for writing the story stems from my love of music and wondering what inspires an artist or musician. Also I’ve always been fascinated by fate and chance especially how lovers meet. Jackson and Mercedes are two people from very different lives that meet by chance, inspire each other and fall in love.
The story is loosely inspired by the Mexican Girl chapters of Jack Kerouac's 'On the Road'. In these chapters of the book Sal Paradise meets a Mexican girl named Terry at a bus station in Los Angeles and for the next fifteen days they are "together for better or worse". For those of you that have read 'On the Road' what if Sal had stayed with Terry and they made a life together? Either way their lives were forever changed as their souls collided in this all too big world.
Mahogany Sunrise features lowriders, shoot-outs, burlesque, gangs, hitmen, chase scenes and a much sought after bag of loot. But there’s more to it, ultimately it’s about falling in love, taking chances, realizing your dreams and following your heart to do what you’re meant to in life.
What are we raising funds for?
The money raised will go directly toward the production costs to make a full feature film to include insurance, permits, paying actors and crew, lodging, travel, craft services, props, costumes/wardrobe, editing, music rights, marketing materials and securing locations.
Production is slated to begin this Summer shooting in the Austin, TX area and a Texas border town that has yet to be finalized. We will be shooting with the RED Epic and we have a fully loaded grip truck with all the required camera gear and lights at our disposal.
Here is some behind the scenes action from the promo shoot. This was day 7 a stunt heavy day. In this scene Jackson boldly confronts Chato at his hideout.
Promo shoot production stills:
The duffel bag and the lowrider:
T-shirt Designs
Here are some of the ideas for t-shirt designs. These can be on white or colored t-shirts. Let us know what you think!
1. "Take the leap. Find the muse. And run."
2. "Mahogany Sunrise" - The Gun
3. "All you need for a movie is a gun and a girl." Girl/sun silohuette
4. "Take the leap. Find the muse. And run." Guitar silohuette
PLEASE HELP US SPREAD THE WORD #supportindiefilm!
Other ways to help
Please share the link with your friends and family on Facebook, through emails and on Twitter. Simple acts of retweeting on Twitter or posting on Facebook can really make a difference and help us reach a wider audience.
FAQ
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We are offering you some great reward incentives based on the pledge amount you choose. After creating an account with basic information. To pledge to this project, just click the green “Back This Project” button on the project page. You will be asked to input your pledge amount and select a reward. From there, you will go through the Amazon checkout process. Note that you must finish the Amazon checkout process for your pledge to be recorded. You will ONLY be charged if the funding goal is met.
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Nope. We get to see that, but no one else does.
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All incentives will only happen when our goal is met. So PLEASE HELP US SPREAD THE WORD! Please email, embed, tweet and post this page to anyone and everyone! When we do meet our goal, immediately after our deadline we will start to manufacture and ship all physical merchandise directly to you. The screenings, parties and DVD's will only happen after the film is completed so this will take a lot longer to process. Please bear with us and we will of course keep you posted on the progress of everything.
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Thank you! And YES, that is possible. There's a button you select when you donate if you don't want your reward.
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Absolutely! Since this is all or nothing, we have set our goal on the low end. As with any film, the more money raised the better it looks and the better it sounds. We already have the most important thing which is a great script. We also have a great creative team and talented cast. But exceeding our goal before the deadline would allow us to make a better movie. Kickstarter will allow as much money as is given before the deadline. Plus we want to offset the fees Kickstarter (5%) and Amazon Payments (3-5%) will apply to a successfully funded project.
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YES! Once you pledge to our campaign, you may want to change your incentive reward to a different one, or increase your pledge amount. To do so, go to Kickstarter and sign in. If you go to our campaign page, the green “Back This Project” button has been replaced with a blue “Manage Your Pledge” button. Click it and you can enter a new amount, or choose a new incentive.
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YES! If you would like to pledge to the film but give the reward to someone as a gift, go through all the normal process of making a pledge in your name. For billing purposes, this action must be in your name. After our deadline, we will send a message to you on Kickstarter. Please reply with all the person’s information that is to receive the reward. We will make sure they are the person who receives the reward.
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No money changes hands. Your credit card is not charged for anything. We get nothing and the film does not get made. :( We must not let this happen! PLEASE HELP US SPREAD THE WORD #supportindiefilm!
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YES! All you need is a credit card. You can pledge from anywhere in the world.
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Funding period
- (36 days)