buffalo
Fayetteville, Arkansas | Film Short
Horror, Experimental
A folktale about growing up in Arkansas, family, and a few ghosts, we're excited to capture a riveting portrait of what it’s like to be strange in a serious place, where death and the afterlife is real. Shot on gorgeous Kodak film, it's the latest film from Prairie Creek and it's singular vision.
buffalo
Fayetteville, Arkansas | Film Short
Horror, Experimental
1 Campaigns | Arkansas, United States
35 supporters | followers
Enter the amount you would like to pledge
$3,665
Goal: $10,000 for production
A folktale about growing up in Arkansas, family, and a few ghosts, we're excited to capture a riveting portrait of what it’s like to be strange in a serious place, where death and the afterlife is real. Shot on gorgeous Kodak film, it's the latest film from Prairie Creek and it's singular vision.
About The Project
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
Your friends are entering the next stage of production on our next movie! And YOU can be part of the team with a TAX-DEDUCTIBLE donation ––thanks to the Independent Film Alliance (IFA) Chicago! We're asking our community for $10,000 to finish principal photography and cover the bulk of our post-production costs.
The story we’re telling is…
"A lot of people leave Arkansas, and most of them come back sooner or later. They can’t quite achieve escape velocity.”
-Charles Portis
"One of Arkansas' most celebrated artists, Portis [author of True Grit] perfectly articulates what it's like to be from a small and strange place –– specifically the serious and haunted land that is Arkansas. I've been lucky to discover new places and peoples in my years, but no matter how far I wander off, the gravity of my home always pulls me back, a tether and a reminder of who I am and who I ain't.
In 2017, I traveled back South to visit my grandfather's deathbed. The last words of that Cowboy have haunted me ever since. With BUFFALO, we're looking to archive and explore the emotion of this experience while studying the rural and spiritual landscape that gave way to it. It's a film about my home. It's a film about Arkansas." - Texas Smith, Director + Producer
MOTIFS: Family, Home, Generational Sin, the American South, Gender in Rural Spaces, Spirituality
LOGLINE: In rural Arkansas, a family gathers in the home of the patriarch on his deathbed. It’s the Kids’ turn to say goodbye. The child travels down a hallway to give their parting words as recent past, present, future, and myth begin to collapse in on themselves. Inspired by and using interview + archival footage of the director’s actual family.
AESTHETICS: As Prairie Creek's practice has matured, we've continued to be drawn to shooting on celluloid. This homespun folktale demands as much. We'll be photographing seldom seen landscapes and intimate family portraits and reenactments on a blend of stocks and gauges (Kodak 200T, XX, and Tri-X) making our imagery: B&W, Formalist, Grain, High Contrast, Expressionistic, with Pops of Color.
Our unique docu-fiction, ghost story of a project pulls narrative and visual influences from MYSTERIOUS OBJECT AT NOON (2000), McCABE & MRS. MILLER (1971), MY WINNIPEG (2007), ITALIANAMERICAN (1974), AFTER LIFE (1998), and SÁTÁNTANGÓ (1994).
While festival programming is a complex algorithm, our research shows that the average acceptance rate for quality films is around 13%. With a recent track record of festival success, we're optimistic that we'll comfortably surpass this and be programmed from our roster of 60 targeted festivals, mathematically making it a success.
Some festivals that we have personal relationships with from past screenings or that we're aiming to target are (in no particular order): Chicago International Film Festival, New Orleans Film Festival, Seattle International, Ann Arbor Film Festival, deadCenter, Atlanta Film Festival, Filmland, Indie Memphis, Cucalorus, San Francisco International Film Festival, Slamdance Film Festival, Tribeca Festival, Rotterdam, and True/False.
Learn even more about our work here!
By way of Chicago & Fayetteville (AR), PRAIRIE CREEK is a boutique Ozark production collective crafting authentic, empathetic stories.
Our work has appeared around the world at Academy-Qualifying festivals like Seattle International, Altanta Film Festival, and Chicago International (honorable mention) and on trendsetting sites like Pitchfork, Brooklyn Vegan, Paste, and The Grammy's official website. Tone? Think Jonathan Demme & Kore-eda sitting on a porch, chatting, watching a Rohmer movie together… or at least that's what we were thinking about when the few of us established in late 2019.
In this vibe, (so far) we’ve produced award-winning festival shorts such as CHRONICLE OF A SUMMER DAY (2023), YES! YES! A THOUSAND TIMES YES! (2023), FLETCHER (2020) and more!
Al Topich (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette) writes, "...[CHRONICLE OF A SUMMER DAY is an] incredibly good documentary... The film is described as 'loosely documenting John Caleb Pendleton's 2021 Juneteenth floral installation.' But it feels like it's more than just about arranging flowers. It's about a community of artists coming together creating, a bouquet of remembrance and celebration by using poetry, photography, music, and film in an elaborate, colorful, and effective montage of empowerment."
Matthew Fagerholm (RogerEbert.com & Indie Outlook) writes, “In its delicately nuanced storytelling, sublime performances and keen understanding of human nature, this 19-minute marvel… is a force to be reckoned with. Like [Lynn] Shelton's best work, 'Fletcher' will inspire audiences to look deeply within themselves while re-examining their own approach to relationships and intimacy.”
Complete Overview For the Numbers Folks Out There
The last few years have been a difficult year for a lot of industries. Film specifically has taken a big hit as productions (including this one!), so we’ve pivoted, adapted, and evolved this production to be safe & welcoming for all people who are contributing. With our additional development time, our team has gotten crafty with additional prep, safety training, and budgeting, which has led us to the following breakdown...
A lot of our creative team and above-the-line talent have waived their fees or are taking a scale stipend to allow more funding to go to crew wages, safety protocols, and the overall quality of the project and experience! At this time, $10,000 will allow us to finish principal photography and cover the bulk of our post-production costs.
Let’s Stay in Touch!
Sign up for our newsletter: https://prairiecreek.pro/newsletter
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Equipment & Materials
Costs $3,400
We need your support for art and decorations, equipment expenses, material costs, and more.
Post-Production
Costs $3,400
We will have an extensive post-production workflow, including film processing, editing, and color correction
Share this update!
About This Team
Texas Smith - Director
Texas Smith (they/he) grew up in a town without a movie theater. Now, Texas is a sometimes Chicago-based, Arkansas filmmaker, a proud member of the IFA Chicago, the Arkansas Cinema Society, and DePaul MFA candidate whose films have screened across the US – including Academy-Award Qualifying festivals like Seattle International Film Festival, Chicago International, Doc NYC – and on esteemed music publications like Pitchfork, Grammy.com, and more. In 2022, they were awarded an inaugural CXF artist grant from The Medium by CACHE, and more recently, they were invited by the Baltic Analog Lab to participate in their 2023 cohort and to attend the Telluride Student Symposium. In 2024, they received an IAP Grant from DCASE Chicago for filmmaking.
Daniel Mitchell - Producer
Daniel Mitchell (he/him) is an acclaimed commerical and creative director and producer who co-founded the multidisciplinary film and production collective, BLK ELK. His work has screened at BANFF, Mountainfilm, and Bentonville Film Festival, but right now he is probably sim racing, eating sushi, or spending time with his family.
Morgan Price - Producer
Morgan Price (she/her) is a producer and actor based in Chicago, IL. Her background in theater informs her work in commercial and narrative filmmaking, with a special focus on experimental, ritualistic, and surrealist storytelling.
Adithya Rajan - Producer
Adithya Rajan (he/him) is a filmmaker with a huge passion for writing, directing, and producing. After studying engineering in his undergrad, he was drawn to the world of filmmaking through his passion for visual storytelling. Adithya is very passionate about enabling new voices to reach audiences, particularly those that resonate with South Asian Americans. He enjoys integrating elements of his culture into various genres, ranging from comedies to thrillers.
Current Team
Incentives
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
Your friends are entering the next stage of production on our next movie! And YOU can be part of the team with a TAX-DEDUCTIBLE donation ––thanks to the Independent Film Alliance (IFA) Chicago! We're asking our community for $10,000 to finish principal photography and cover the bulk of our post-production costs.
The story we’re telling is…
"A lot of people leave Arkansas, and most of them come back sooner or later. They can’t quite achieve escape velocity.”
-Charles Portis
"One of Arkansas' most celebrated artists, Portis [author of True Grit] perfectly articulates what it's like to be from a small and strange place –– specifically the serious and haunted land that is Arkansas. I've been lucky to discover new places and peoples in my years, but no matter how far I wander off, the gravity of my home always pulls me back, a tether and a reminder of who I am and who I ain't.
In 2017, I traveled back South to visit my grandfather's deathbed. The last words of that Cowboy have haunted me ever since. With BUFFALO, we're looking to archive and explore the emotion of this experience while studying the rural and spiritual landscape that gave way to it. It's a film about my home. It's a film about Arkansas." - Texas Smith, Director + Producer
MOTIFS: Family, Home, Generational Sin, the American South, Gender in Rural Spaces, Spirituality
LOGLINE: In rural Arkansas, a family gathers in the home of the patriarch on his deathbed. It’s the Kids’ turn to say goodbye. The child travels down a hallway to give their parting words as recent past, present, future, and myth begin to collapse in on themselves. Inspired by and using interview + archival footage of the director’s actual family.
AESTHETICS: As Prairie Creek's practice has matured, we've continued to be drawn to shooting on celluloid. This homespun folktale demands as much. We'll be photographing seldom seen landscapes and intimate family portraits and reenactments on a blend of stocks and gauges (Kodak 200T, XX, and Tri-X) making our imagery: B&W, Formalist, Grain, High Contrast, Expressionistic, with Pops of Color.
Our unique docu-fiction, ghost story of a project pulls narrative and visual influences from MYSTERIOUS OBJECT AT NOON (2000), McCABE & MRS. MILLER (1971), MY WINNIPEG (2007), ITALIANAMERICAN (1974), AFTER LIFE (1998), and SÁTÁNTANGÓ (1994).
While festival programming is a complex algorithm, our research shows that the average acceptance rate for quality films is around 13%. With a recent track record of festival success, we're optimistic that we'll comfortably surpass this and be programmed from our roster of 60 targeted festivals, mathematically making it a success.
Some festivals that we have personal relationships with from past screenings or that we're aiming to target are (in no particular order): Chicago International Film Festival, New Orleans Film Festival, Seattle International, Ann Arbor Film Festival, deadCenter, Atlanta Film Festival, Filmland, Indie Memphis, Cucalorus, San Francisco International Film Festival, Slamdance Film Festival, Tribeca Festival, Rotterdam, and True/False.
Learn even more about our work here!
By way of Chicago & Fayetteville (AR), PRAIRIE CREEK is a boutique Ozark production collective crafting authentic, empathetic stories.
Our work has appeared around the world at Academy-Qualifying festivals like Seattle International, Altanta Film Festival, and Chicago International (honorable mention) and on trendsetting sites like Pitchfork, Brooklyn Vegan, Paste, and The Grammy's official website. Tone? Think Jonathan Demme & Kore-eda sitting on a porch, chatting, watching a Rohmer movie together… or at least that's what we were thinking about when the few of us established in late 2019.
In this vibe, (so far) we’ve produced award-winning festival shorts such as CHRONICLE OF A SUMMER DAY (2023), YES! YES! A THOUSAND TIMES YES! (2023), FLETCHER (2020) and more!
Al Topich (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette) writes, "...[CHRONICLE OF A SUMMER DAY is an] incredibly good documentary... The film is described as 'loosely documenting John Caleb Pendleton's 2021 Juneteenth floral installation.' But it feels like it's more than just about arranging flowers. It's about a community of artists coming together creating, a bouquet of remembrance and celebration by using poetry, photography, music, and film in an elaborate, colorful, and effective montage of empowerment."
Matthew Fagerholm (RogerEbert.com & Indie Outlook) writes, “In its delicately nuanced storytelling, sublime performances and keen understanding of human nature, this 19-minute marvel… is a force to be reckoned with. Like [Lynn] Shelton's best work, 'Fletcher' will inspire audiences to look deeply within themselves while re-examining their own approach to relationships and intimacy.”
Complete Overview For the Numbers Folks Out There
The last few years have been a difficult year for a lot of industries. Film specifically has taken a big hit as productions (including this one!), so we’ve pivoted, adapted, and evolved this production to be safe & welcoming for all people who are contributing. With our additional development time, our team has gotten crafty with additional prep, safety training, and budgeting, which has led us to the following breakdown...
A lot of our creative team and above-the-line talent have waived their fees or are taking a scale stipend to allow more funding to go to crew wages, safety protocols, and the overall quality of the project and experience! At this time, $10,000 will allow us to finish principal photography and cover the bulk of our post-production costs.
Let’s Stay in Touch!
Sign up for our newsletter: https://prairiecreek.pro/newsletter
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Equipment & Materials
Costs $3,400
We need your support for art and decorations, equipment expenses, material costs, and more.
Post-Production
Costs $3,400
We will have an extensive post-production workflow, including film processing, editing, and color correction
Share this update!
About This Team
Texas Smith - Director
Texas Smith (they/he) grew up in a town without a movie theater. Now, Texas is a sometimes Chicago-based, Arkansas filmmaker, a proud member of the IFA Chicago, the Arkansas Cinema Society, and DePaul MFA candidate whose films have screened across the US – including Academy-Award Qualifying festivals like Seattle International Film Festival, Chicago International, Doc NYC – and on esteemed music publications like Pitchfork, Grammy.com, and more. In 2022, they were awarded an inaugural CXF artist grant from The Medium by CACHE, and more recently, they were invited by the Baltic Analog Lab to participate in their 2023 cohort and to attend the Telluride Student Symposium. In 2024, they received an IAP Grant from DCASE Chicago for filmmaking.
Daniel Mitchell - Producer
Daniel Mitchell (he/him) is an acclaimed commerical and creative director and producer who co-founded the multidisciplinary film and production collective, BLK ELK. His work has screened at BANFF, Mountainfilm, and Bentonville Film Festival, but right now he is probably sim racing, eating sushi, or spending time with his family.
Morgan Price - Producer
Morgan Price (she/her) is a producer and actor based in Chicago, IL. Her background in theater informs her work in commercial and narrative filmmaking, with a special focus on experimental, ritualistic, and surrealist storytelling.
Adithya Rajan - Producer
Adithya Rajan (he/him) is a filmmaker with a huge passion for writing, directing, and producing. After studying engineering in his undergrad, he was drawn to the world of filmmaking through his passion for visual storytelling. Adithya is very passionate about enabling new voices to reach audiences, particularly those that resonate with South Asian Americans. He enjoys integrating elements of his culture into various genres, ranging from comedies to thrillers.