FROM NOW UNTIL WE HIT OUR GREEN LIGHT

GOAL ALL PLEDGES ARE MATCHED 100%

"Sometimes you take a shine... don't even have to smile..."

A lonely man sits at a bar top of oak, and sips from his stout, his scruffed mustache housing the foam left behind. He takes a moment, avoiding his eyes in the mirror across from him, and just before too long speaks... "I was sixteen..."

His story is told.

Through vignettes of blurred memories, we listen.

His Irish accent narrating... sporadic thoughts and delicate moments as we dip into scenes of experience.

Bikes clicking down the road. Shoals crunching beneath our feet. Starry skies in the eyes of another.

This is the land that became home.

And the girl he met, the one who could speak to his dead mother.

CALL THIS LAND MOTHER is a story woven from memory. The journey of Tim Duffy, who, as a boy, left Ireland for the unknown shoals of America. Having lost his mother, the heart of the only home he’s known, he walks on uncertain ground, searching for the gentle echoes of familiarity - the whispers of home that linger in foreign soil, the shoals where he waits.

On these rocky waters he meets Leya, a mysterious straight faced girl who oversees a tree of bones, and rides a trusty bike. As they grow to one another through the summer, she reveals she can hear Tim's mother, and becomes the opportunity to say goodbye.

This world is large.

There are states and counties and countries - land - and they are all separated by bodies of water and lines and fences and even more - land.

Drift off from this screen for a moment, and think of home. Think of the doorknobs you twisted and seats you sat in and skies you ran beneath. Think of the faces that greeted you and pushed you. Sometimes safely. Sometimes harshly. Always determining your now. This place is you and was you. And by no shocking presumption, I will expect you to have at one point or another: left.

To have gone and explored. Perhaps by choice, or perhaps by circumstance.

And you landed.

Your feet had to.

They had to land flat and firm,

and it was you who found home anew.

Regardless of distance, of borders, from sea to state - all land is new.

From small town to big city, we find ourselves stumbling into new land, new ways, new cultures - whether we stay in our lines or go beyond.

Simply Googling the word "immigration" gives you countless stories of pain, exhaustion, and frustration.

Each a singular life, fighting for safety and hope, all over the world.

With almost 15% of the population, the United States of America holds the world's largest foreign-born population. My mother, and her side of the family, are among this number.

There are countless stories of immigration in media, rightfully so, and in the approach of our story we want to show a perspective not often viewed. One that my mother and her siblings experienced, and that is of the child who ventured to new land and a new home.

We have decided to not explicitly explore the time, or reason, for the family's departure in this film: it is not about why they left their home for a new land, what matters is that they have.

In this perspective we strive to not focus on the cause of the immigration process, but the effects of the change and the reality of becoming one with a land and culture that is not inherently theirs - and in turn the space available in all of us to welcome those from outside into our own lands.

To subvert the stigma of why, and focus on the ability to welcome, and if CALL THIS LAND MOTHER can be a drop in that bucket, it must be made.

If you have noticed, the bottom right of our headers on this page read "still from lens test with Atlas Lens Co." ^^^

These cropped stills are exported from our Crowdfunding Video above (which if you haven't watched yet, I recommend you do :) and if you have watched, I ask 'why not a second time?'). As we approached the video for this campaign we thought it would be a perfect time to experiment with our shooting format:

AtlasScope Vertical Anamorphic

This is an experimental format that gives the background separation of an anamorphic look, while maintaining a square portrait focus on subjects.

For this test, our friends at Atlas Lens Co. were generous enough to donate a set of their gorgeous Orions to work out any kinks, and explore this format.

And explore we did.

Why AtlasScope Vertical Anamorphic you ask?

We want this film to embody memory. The visualization of one's perspective. The location and background of a moment seeping through, while focusing on that which is in front of us.

We debated with shooting full frame digital for sometime to get that wide background and focused subject, but found digital full frame to be inherently too sharp and too clean.

When we looked at anamorphic lenses alone, they covered our wide factor - but lacked the centralization we were looking for.

AtlasScope however covers both of these.

Through it's compression we find a rich textured tone, maintaining a lived in image of vibrant color along with the beautiful bokeh, rolling off the depth of field, and a perfect aspect ratio of 1.66 that encompasses the land as much as it centralizes the subjects.

A perfect display of memory.

OLD TIM MURPHY................Tim Duffy

Tim is a first-time actor, and an immigrant from Ireland. Moving to America at the age of 26, Tim has spent his life establishing a home and raising a lovely family in the state of Washington.

CALL THIS LAND MOTHER was written for Tim by the writer/director Ducky, after a meeting through friends.

This will not be Ducky's first time working with first-time actors. His previous award-winning short film EVERYTHING HAPPENS starred his mother and father, which was written for them, and who were also first time actors.

YOUNG TIM MURPHY................Unknown

LEYA................Unknown

We are still searching for both our Young Tim Murphy and Leya.

Casting is no easy process - there is never a wrong candidate, but there is a right one, and it is important we take our time to find someone that gives us that proper feeling.

Casting sessions are underway, and we will update this page as we make our decision.

Quentin Lebeau - Producer

Quentin is a multimedia producer and creative, with a focus on film marketing. He is Seattle-based, with experience working at Seattle International Film tival (SIFF) and American Genre Film Archive (AGFA), and is also the co-founder and Marketing Director for Seattle Film Society (SFS). He has worked in a variety of production roles on feature films, shorts and commercial projects, most recently serving as the Producer for SOFTBOY (2025). More on Quentin can be found on his website at qlebeau.com

Emma DeVore - Producer

Emma is a producer and creative, focused on seamlessly fitting the logistical puzzle pieces together that bring ideas to reality. With her passion for the arts, her experience in community organization, and her years as a teacher, Emma brings a critical eye to the logistical side of creativity, helping the team bring their dreams to reality, while making sure nothing gets lost in the cracks. This is her first film production, and she's very excited.

Tommy Meisel - Producer

Tommy Meisel was interested in movies from a very young age. He has written, edited, and directed both narrative and documentary short films. His debut narrative short film "When The Man Comes Around" screened at film festivals throughout the United States, and he is currently on the film festival circuit with his follow-up surrealist fantasy short film "Softboy." Tommy is a founding member of the Seattle Film Society where he serves as Programming Director. Outside of film he likes sailing, a light rain, the Pasta Da Vinci from Cheesecake Factory, playing the piano, and old maps. Tommy is currently based in Seattle, Washington.

Delilah Sheridan-Pangburn - Assistant Director

Delilah Sheridan-Pangburn is a burgeoning and passionate filmmaker in the Pacific Northwest where she was born and bread. She has a deep love for the exploration of human nature and the strange, dark and mysterious happenings of our world. After a few years spent studying and working in the film scene of London, England, she has returned to Washington State to immerse herself in the ever evolving and deeply mystical film community that continues to thrive in the great PNW. While she has taken up a plethora of roles on a handful of films, her love lies in the realm of First Assistant Directing, and Documentary Filmmaking. Her latest works include the shorts INFERNO, BOY TROUBLE and TURNING POINT. Her documentary ONCE UPON A TIME IN DERBY is currently in the film circuit where is has won Best Short Documentary at the Poulsbo Film Festival. 

Matthew Devlin - Director of Photography

In their fifth collaboration, best friend to the director, Matthew is a cinematographer from Nashua, New Hampshire. His work spans from short films (EVERYTHING HAPPENS, STUD, FOCAL POINT, SONG OF THE HERO) to music videos (CAPITAL VICE'S HATMAN, REV'S UNKNOWN, TRENTON'S THROUGH WALLS) and feature films (PARANOIA, NOWHERE TO RUN). His passion for his images runs deep to ensure every frame he touches is a narratively lead image. More on Matthew can be found on his website at devlindop.com

Owen Andruchow - Music Composer

Owen is a Seattle-based composer who writes interactive and linear music for film and video games: previous collaborations include work with Rising Reels Productions, Rockfire Games, Superframe Media, and several indie film makers and game developers in the Seattle area. Most recently, Owen joined a team of composers to help score an upcoming feature film premiering on the Lifetime Network. He has a deep passion for the art of story-telling, and cherishes any and all opportunities to help bring creative visions to life with musical underscores. More on Owen can be found on his website at ohnonotes.com

Cole Pestana - Sound Designer, Editor, and Mixer

Cole has a diverse history as a sound designer, editor, and mixer in both the film and music world. Him and Ducky, the director, have collaborated three times before in this relationship on both EVERYTHING HAPPENS and the upcoming short film STUD. They also came together for Cole's band CAPITAL VICE'S award winning music video HATMAN - which was directed by Ducky, and was also shot by Matthew Devlin.

Andrew Ducky Dutkiewicz - Writer and Director

A lover of cinema and literature, Andrew Ducky Dutkiewicz is a first-generation American originally from Connecticut. He is primarily interested in reality, and it's balance with the unknown, focusing on finding the tonal balance of real world consequences, and the mysteries in the corner of our eye. He has recently released an award winning horror/comedy music video for the song HATMAN, by the Austin band CAPITAL VICE. His latest short film EVERYTHING HAPPENS is a shoe-string story starring members of his family in an objective and chaotic suburban adventure, it is currently in the festival circuit where it has won The Audience Award at The Bridgeport Film Fest. He is currently in post-production on a science fiction short titled STUD. Find more on Ducky at byducky.com - a longer statement on this film is below.

To help you understand our goal, and that your pledges aren't going down a tunnel with no end in sight - here is our Production Timeline.

AUGUST - Crowdfund! The page you're on right now! The very significant and important piece to this film! Along with settling decisions on casting and prepare for rehearsals. Crew up. Lockdown locations. Continue pre-production with storyboards, shotlists, analyzation, and more mystical trials that come with filmmaking! Do a little dance!

SEPTEMBER - Rehearse with actors! Finalize pre-production / director responsibilities! Settle on design choices! Rent gear! In the final week of September shoot CALL THIS LAND MOTHER and it's documentarian aspects! It goes smooth. We did so much prep and are prepared for everything! So much prep we’re able to fruitfully create on set! That's a wrap!

OCTOBER - After a couple weeks of rest we get to editing! Further discussions commence with our composer Owen Andruchow as the picture takes form.

NOVEMBER - Editing. We persevere with discipline... and in the end, a picture lock.

DECEMBER - Once picture is locked we bring in Tim Duffy, our actor of Older Tim, to record his voiceover. We mix this voiceover in and send our cut to Owen for him to score in it's entirety. Titles are designed, and in tandem the film comes together and This Land Is Called Mother. We prepare to submit for 2026 Fall Festivals.

There is a smell we all would bottle, unique to each of us.

Flavors that bring us back there, to those pockets of time.

A moment where all slows down.

Chicken cutlets, frying in the pan on the stove - after my Nonna coated the kitchen walls with newspaper to protect her home.

Her home. My mother's home. My home.

I wonder where these lines are drawn... for my Nonna and Nonno and mother and her siblings all would call this Massachusetts house, "home".

And yet they also would call Sicily their home. The land they embodied before immigrating to a quiet town in New England.

As a child, I myself was in this Massachusetts home for two weeks out of the year, one during my winter school break - the other in the summer.

And for those other fifty weeks, I spent my days in Connecticut, in the house my parents raised me in, alongside the houses of my father's mother, my aunts, my uncles, my friends... and of course the home that is school. Which I changed often, resulting in five different buildings to house my education.

Since then, I have lived in many places. I was in Connecticut for the first 18 years of my life - and after that I moved to New York City, then to Los Angeles, then to New Mexico - and I now live in Washington State.

I have seen many homes. I have lived with friends and family. I have run under many skies and drank many different glasses of tap water. And regardless of those initial months of acclimating and loneliness and abrasion,

these places were home.

and they are home.

And this is what I am interested in when I analyze, invent, and daydream CALL THIS LAND MOTHER.

I find wonder in home. In what we deem as this. How we are able to embody new cultures, and sustain our old traditions, whether this be state lines or country borders. How does one carry the routine and love from one land into the next? How do my grandparents go from their home, their life in Sicily to a Massachusetts home, plucking basil leaves out of their garden and into their tomato sauce after their daily Moka Espresso, steaming the rich smell of coffee through their halls?

How do we transfer home, and how do we carry these ties from one place to the next?

CALL THIS LAND MOTHER circulates these memories of a man, those first months in a new land, finding connections from what he once called home to the town he now lives in. Reminiscing with perspective of what happened that summer, and the person who seemingly fell into his lap as he grieved the loss of his past, and his late mother, who died before immigrating.

In this film, I hope to continue an exploration of home and immigration from a human perspective. To look at what the reality of this change looks like for an individual and the new story that will unfold in his life as a result of it.

And that is the heart of this story. To embody this journey. To feel like that sweet summer. To honor the people who embellish the new ground we encounter and make it home. And to display the reality, and normalize the immigrant experience.

This is a tribute to the homes we lose, the homes we find, and the love that holds us between them.

The brilliance of filmmaking is it's elasticity. Each and every element on screen is a choice. The locations, the lighting, the gear that shapes said light, the wardrobe, the set design, the cast, the crew that brings it together, the transportation for the team, the food in their stomachs... every little piece counts, bit by bit.

These pieces are variable, and the more money, the higher quality the pieces.

We would love to create the best experience of this film, both in its production and in watching the final outcome. For our amazing cast and crew to be able to work at better locations with superior crew and pay each of them higher competitive rates for their tireless work. For the audience to take in the best looking shots of the new land Tim Murphy comes to, and get lost in his sun-soaked memory. As more money is acquired, more, and higher quality options become available.

For this reason we have set up our Seed & Spark to be variable.

To bring CALL THIS LAND MOTHER to life we need your help. Please read on to see just where your pledge goes when you join our efforts.

Our Green Light Goal

Seed & Spark has a "Green Light Goal", where the money is secured at 80% of your stated funding goal.

We here are asking for $15,000 - the Green Light Goal of 80% being $12,000.

This is on purpose. This elasticity of filmmaking makes it so that our low-end budget, to make this movie at minimum, falls at $12,000.

This gives us the money to cover our basics, to afford the minimum equipment needed (including the lenses for AtlasScope), to secure workable locations, and to pay most of our crew (the rest donating their time and expertise).

Our Mid-Goal

Our stated goal of $15,000 is our "Mid-Goal" - where we have $3,000 more to secure better equipment, better locations, and even find money in the budget to pay ALL of our crew, rather than some donate their skills and time.

Our "High-Budget" - or "Stretch Goal" - is the number that would extend this film into a whole other sphere of quality.

For our "Stretch Goal" we are looking to hit $18,000.

$3,000 on the other side of our stated "Mid-Goal" would make sure we secure the best variables for CALL THIS LAND MOTHER.

This opens us up to selecting more precise locations, better equipment, more crew members, higher rates for all of our crew, better food on set, festival submission fees that won't have to come out of pocket, and with the film being primarily exterior, the possibility of a FIFTH DAY of principal photography if needed.

NOTE: The Director and Producers are donating their time in each tier of funding.

We want to say thank you to all who have taken the time to visit, read, and pledge to CALL THIS LAND MOTHER. This project could not happen without you.

If you have any questions feel free to reach out to [email protected]