Kae Beaumont is preparing for an upcoming gallery opening to honor her father, the late, strict, realist painter, Vance Beaumont. Standing in his shadow, she fears the abstract paintings she continues to create during grief-frenzied, storm-riddled nights are not what people are expecting.

Or at least, that’s what the Beaumont Gallery art curator, William Richney tells her, reminding her that she should be creating “real” art. Like her father would have wanted. The gallery is, after all, about him. Not Kae. 

Feeling pressured by Richard and an intrusive interviewer who’s covering the upcoming gallery show, Kae is forced to reflect on the tumultuous relationship she had with her father that was unable to be salvaged before his death. 

As she attempts to paint in his style, Kae finds she still can’t escape her natural artistic urges, sparked by the feelings attached to her childhood memories as random strokes of color that appear in her mind’s eye, clouding—or, perhaps, clearing—her artistic vision. This leads her to instinctively, and seemingly uncontrollably, transform every realistic painting into an Abstract expression. 

Although, that urge may very well be the answer to all of Kae’s problems...

We are incredibly lucky to have been awarded the WAVE Grant from Wavelength Productions, an Emmy winning and woman-owned production studio committed to telling "great f*cking stories".

The grant supports 5 first time female and non-binary directors of color.

Check us out in DEADLINE!

Every artist has their own sacrifice. Although I am lucky that I have been able to pursue my artistic passions, being thousands of miles away from family has caused me to question if the struggle of living a creative life outweighs missing out on key moments and memories. While writing Abstract and applying for the WAVE grant, I experienced a familial loss of my own. My aunt’s unexpected death threw me. It felt almost scarily ironic that the topic of grief that supported the script I was writing found its place in my own life. At a time when I was already doubting my place in the entertainment industry as a Black woman, my experiences with grief, at the time, made me feel like giving up—how could I continue doing anything when my aunt was dead? But I couldn’t help but feel like my aunt, who encouraged my artistry, would have wanted me to keep trying. So I did, submitting my application to the WAVE Grant at the very last moment that I could. 

Although I still have many doubts, it was as if a prayer had been answered when I found out I was a WAVE Grant recipient in February 2024. I knew I had made my aunt proud. 

In a time where art programs continue to receive less funding, where the rise of AI is forcing us to question the merit of human creativity, and where most artists are still having to hustle in order to support their creative pursuits, this project hopes to speak to the grieving artists, the confused artists, the afraid artists, the artists who can’t help but continue to create, even when the world makes it incredibly hard to—who write on the bus, sing at work, paint in their mind. 

It is worth it. Every single line.

Color will play an important part in this movie, both in what colors Kae and her father use in their art and what types of feelings those colors represent, as well as in the way we light the film—balancing bright moments of clarity, discovery, and memory with dark moments of sadness, reflection, and obsession.

This film will highlight the unique way Kae sees the world—through bursts of paint strokes that appear on screen—by combining practical and visual effects. Similar to films such as Basquiat, Tick, Tick…Boom!, and Loving Vincent, we want to get the sense that these “visions” convey her artistic process, as well as an expression of the depth and complexity of her feelings.

PAINT TEST SHOOT

Curtesy of Jacquelyn Chin & Matthew Sevush

Filming will take place in New York City!

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Genre: Drama, Coming of Age

Expected Run Time: 10 minutes

Production Company: Brown Warrior Productions & hypochondriac productions

Backed By: Wavelength Productions

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​​NOV-FEB 2024 Development 

FEB-SEPT 2024 Pre-Production 

SEPT- OCT 2024 Production 

OCT - DEC 2024 Post-Production 

DEC 2024-APR 2025 Festival Submissions

Our goal is to submit this film to various film festivals across the U.S. and eventually find a home for it online on a digital streaming platform in order to reach a wider audience.

Backed by the Wavelength Productions, we are grateful to have a $5,000 seed grant  contributed to the making of this film. However, in order to fully realize our vision, we are hoping generous donors like you can help us raise the rest of our $20,000 budget. The funds raised will help us:

• SECURE LOCATIONS: As this short features an art studio as well as an art gallery, we hope to find locations that allow us to invest fully in the artistic world of the film.
• PRODUCTION EQUIPMENT: Ensuring that we have the professional, high quality cameras, sound and lighting equipment 
• TRANSPORTATION: The ability to transport cast, crew, and equipment to various shooting locations.
• SET DESIGN: This film takes an intimate look into Kae’s life and her artwork. We aim to build an unique and lived-in world of our characters, including costumes, aging makeup, set dressing, and practical effects.  
• PAY OUR CAST AND CREW: We have an amazing team behind Abstract and we want to make sure they are compensated for their talent,  hard work, and professionalism. You can directly contribute to providing craft services, water and resources to keep our crew nourished and hydrated on-set.
• PAY OUR ARTISTS: We will be collaborating and commissioning with actual artists in order to create the paintings written into the film. Paint supplies can get costly, and we want our artists to have quality  resources to create beautiful work. 
• POST PRODUCTION: Including potential animation! Hard drives! Fabulous editors, sound composition, and so much more.
• DISTRIBUTION: Festival submissions, digital cinema packages and elements needed to share our art with the world.

FOLLOW our campaign on SEED&SPARK and our INSTAGRAM @abstract.thefilm [instagram.com/abstract.thefilm], where we’ll be posting casting calls, behind the scenes content, and more!

SHARE the campaign with your family and friends on social media!

• Copy and paste this link: seedandspark.com/fund/abstract
• Copy and paste this description for quick and easy posting: "Help filmmaker @alaysiaduncan by supporting her short film @abstract.thefilm on @seedandspark! You can donate here: https://seedandspark.com/fund/abstract or copy and paste this post to share!"

REACH OUT to us via email ([email protected]) if you:

• Want to offer support!
• Have a location you’d think would be a good fit for this film!
• Are a business or know a business who may be interested in partnering with us!
• Are interested in auditioning or becoming a crew member!

& REMEMBER: All donations are TAX DEDUCTIBLE!

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THANK YOU!