Burned
Los Angeles, California | Film Short
Animation, History
Librarians tell a new colleague of the book that burned so many, using motion graphic animation for the true tale-within-a-tale, in this overdue dark comedic film where the witches get to burn back. A little Princess Bride, a dash of Drunk History, all to reclaim the narrative.
Burned
Los Angeles, California | Film Short
Animation, History
2 Campaigns | California, United States
Green Light
This campaign raised $28,560 for production. Follow the filmmaker to receive future updates on this project.
277 supporters | followers
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Librarians tell a new colleague of the book that burned so many, using motion graphic animation for the true tale-within-a-tale, in this overdue dark comedic film where the witches get to burn back. A little Princess Bride, a dash of Drunk History, all to reclaim the narrative.
About The Project
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
Am I a witch?
The actual answer to that wouldn't have mattered for hundreds of years, in numerous countries, in which you or I could have been among the 100,000+ killed for being one. We all know the stories of the trials, but the story of the man we largely have to thank for them has not been told.
Until now.
In Burned, we will be taking back the quill to paint Heinrich Kramer in the light he so deserves for writing The Malleus Maleficarum and highlighting our continued dire need for media literacy. All of this with the help of a bit of humor, ala Drunk History, because we're addressing a book that was taken seriously despite having pictures of women keeping male genitalia as pets in a nest and feeding them oats.
"Men are afraid women will laugh at them.
Women are afraid men will kill them."
-Margaret Atwood
It's time to laugh.
This film is a framed narrative, starting with live action in a dark library before opening hours, where a new librarian asks her peers where she should shelve The Malleus Maleficarum.
Thus starts the seasoned librarians' tale of the book's origins, taking us into Austria, 1485 via a beautifully animated motion graphic novel where hidden snippets of the book itself give the minimalistic backgrounds texture, and some of the biggest names in VO lend their talents.
Women intrinsically feel the rage of injustice so many before us felt under The Malleus Maleficarum. To be able to take that power back feels glorious.
Perhaps even magical.
We hope you'll join us in this correcting of the narrative and revel in being the "Witches that Burn Back." If ever there was a time that the world needed a reminder to question sources,
it's now.
One night last fall, Paula had a dream that she was introducing her new film where she and America Young "got the witches to burn back." Upon waking she knew what she had to write and some of the key teammates that would be involved.
So far, that vision has carried this project along in an almost fated way and we're excited to add that next important ingredient:
you.
This magical circle of humans from various countries is united in our call to serve the power of stories to change hearts that then change minds, to right past wrongs, and to shed light on those who have remained in the dark too long. We delight in using our combined skills to do so.
Should we reach our greenlight goal we'll be able to bring this tale to life with a single shoot day with minimal crew, plus remote recording sessions for the animated portion. Making magic with very little is something Director/Writer Paula Rhodes has cut her teeth doing. Her feature directorial debut, Delicate State, was shot over the course of her actual pregnancy with leads as 2-person crew. It went on to win Audience Choice and global distribution at Dances With Films and is now available on all On-Demand networks as well as for free on Roku and Tubi.
With this project, she's folding in some of her favorite humans, whom you might already know and love, with more being announced each week.
If we surpass our greenlight goal
we will make a lovely film the scrappy way.
If we surpass the campaign goal
it would allow us to add a few more key crew members to make the shoot go smoothly
and not have to cut corners on wardrobe and props.
If we get $5k over our goal
we can upgrade our camera and equipment package to our ideal, enter more fests, and get jaw-dropping costumes and pops.
If we get $15k over our goal
we can get the most gorgeous library location in LA and package the project as a pilot with the resulting series featuring our three Librarians as they shed new light on topics that need it each episode. We saw how storytelling can change hearts this way when Watchmen brought The Tulsa Race Massacre back into the public's awareness, or when Dr. Who humanized the splitting of India and Pakistan.
We are so thrilled that this special script is already getting recognized, making it to the Quarterfinals in ScreenCraft's Film Fund competition, lifting it to the top 21% of all shorts and 29% of all scripts on Coverfly.
Stories can work real magic
by growing empathy
and the world needs more of that.
Thank you for considering joining us on this adventure.
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Equipment Rental
Costs $2,000
Lights, camera, acti - wait... we need those. Help us cover the cost of our equipment and rental truck to get it to set.
Location
Costs $3,000
Our library is essentially a character in the script, so it must be stunning.
Cast & Crew
Costs $15,450
Magic can only happen via a team effort, and in this case the effort includes animation, editing, composing, and around 10 union actors.
Insurance/Permits/Fests
Costs $4,000
"I"s need dotting, "T"s need crossing, things need to be filed and submitted to.
Share this update!
About This Team
I am an actor (paying my bills via commercials, film, TV, and voiceover spanning Barbie to Resident Evil) who branched out into directing 10+ years ago. My feature directorial debut, Delicate State (shot over the course of my actual pregnancy with leads as the entire production crew), won Audience Choice at Dances With Films and got global distribution, while my shorts and web series have won numerous awards, allowing me to wrap myself in a thriving film community.
I'm thrilled to get to play with some of them for this special project and grow it with you.
I can wear a lot of hats, but I still can't bring stories to life without a team, and here are some of the amazing souls joining me on this adventure.
Crew
Lilith from Owl House, Death from Supernatural, and Astarion from Baldur's Gate walk into a scene... and Angie from Resident Evil yells, "Action!"
Cast
More announcements coming each week, tune in.
Current Team
Incentives
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
Am I a witch?
The actual answer to that wouldn't have mattered for hundreds of years, in numerous countries, in which you or I could have been among the 100,000+ killed for being one. We all know the stories of the trials, but the story of the man we largely have to thank for them has not been told.
Until now.
In Burned, we will be taking back the quill to paint Heinrich Kramer in the light he so deserves for writing The Malleus Maleficarum and highlighting our continued dire need for media literacy. All of this with the help of a bit of humor, ala Drunk History, because we're addressing a book that was taken seriously despite having pictures of women keeping male genitalia as pets in a nest and feeding them oats.
"Men are afraid women will laugh at them.
Women are afraid men will kill them."
-Margaret Atwood
It's time to laugh.
This film is a framed narrative, starting with live action in a dark library before opening hours, where a new librarian asks her peers where she should shelve The Malleus Maleficarum.
Thus starts the seasoned librarians' tale of the book's origins, taking us into Austria, 1485 via a beautifully animated motion graphic novel where hidden snippets of the book itself give the minimalistic backgrounds texture, and some of the biggest names in VO lend their talents.
Women intrinsically feel the rage of injustice so many before us felt under The Malleus Maleficarum. To be able to take that power back feels glorious.
Perhaps even magical.
We hope you'll join us in this correcting of the narrative and revel in being the "Witches that Burn Back." If ever there was a time that the world needed a reminder to question sources,
it's now.
One night last fall, Paula had a dream that she was introducing her new film where she and America Young "got the witches to burn back." Upon waking she knew what she had to write and some of the key teammates that would be involved.
So far, that vision has carried this project along in an almost fated way and we're excited to add that next important ingredient:
you.
This magical circle of humans from various countries is united in our call to serve the power of stories to change hearts that then change minds, to right past wrongs, and to shed light on those who have remained in the dark too long. We delight in using our combined skills to do so.
Should we reach our greenlight goal we'll be able to bring this tale to life with a single shoot day with minimal crew, plus remote recording sessions for the animated portion. Making magic with very little is something Director/Writer Paula Rhodes has cut her teeth doing. Her feature directorial debut, Delicate State, was shot over the course of her actual pregnancy with leads as 2-person crew. It went on to win Audience Choice and global distribution at Dances With Films and is now available on all On-Demand networks as well as for free on Roku and Tubi.
With this project, she's folding in some of her favorite humans, whom you might already know and love, with more being announced each week.
If we surpass our greenlight goal
we will make a lovely film the scrappy way.
If we surpass the campaign goal
it would allow us to add a few more key crew members to make the shoot go smoothly
and not have to cut corners on wardrobe and props.
If we get $5k over our goal
we can upgrade our camera and equipment package to our ideal, enter more fests, and get jaw-dropping costumes and pops.
If we get $15k over our goal
we can get the most gorgeous library location in LA and package the project as a pilot with the resulting series featuring our three Librarians as they shed new light on topics that need it each episode. We saw how storytelling can change hearts this way when Watchmen brought The Tulsa Race Massacre back into the public's awareness, or when Dr. Who humanized the splitting of India and Pakistan.
We are so thrilled that this special script is already getting recognized, making it to the Quarterfinals in ScreenCraft's Film Fund competition, lifting it to the top 21% of all shorts and 29% of all scripts on Coverfly.
Stories can work real magic
by growing empathy
and the world needs more of that.
Thank you for considering joining us on this adventure.
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Equipment Rental
Costs $2,000
Lights, camera, acti - wait... we need those. Help us cover the cost of our equipment and rental truck to get it to set.
Location
Costs $3,000
Our library is essentially a character in the script, so it must be stunning.
Cast & Crew
Costs $15,450
Magic can only happen via a team effort, and in this case the effort includes animation, editing, composing, and around 10 union actors.
Insurance/Permits/Fests
Costs $4,000
"I"s need dotting, "T"s need crossing, things need to be filed and submitted to.
Share this update!
About This Team
I am an actor (paying my bills via commercials, film, TV, and voiceover spanning Barbie to Resident Evil) who branched out into directing 10+ years ago. My feature directorial debut, Delicate State (shot over the course of my actual pregnancy with leads as the entire production crew), won Audience Choice at Dances With Films and got global distribution, while my shorts and web series have won numerous awards, allowing me to wrap myself in a thriving film community.
I'm thrilled to get to play with some of them for this special project and grow it with you.
I can wear a lot of hats, but I still can't bring stories to life without a team, and here are some of the amazing souls joining me on this adventure.
Crew
Lilith from Owl House, Death from Supernatural, and Astarion from Baldur's Gate walk into a scene... and Angie from Resident Evil yells, "Action!"
Cast
More announcements coming each week, tune in.