Control
Los Angeles, California | Film Short
Comedy, Drama
A depressed woman wants to end her life, but when she begins to write her suicide note, she realizes there are far too many loose ends. She attempts to leave detailed instructions for taking care of every minute detail of her life until her suicide “note” soon turns into a massive binder.
Control
Los Angeles, California | Film Short
Comedy, Drama
1 Campaigns | California, United States
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This campaign raised $9,050 for post-production. Follow the filmmaker to receive future updates on this project.
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A depressed woman wants to end her life, but when she begins to write her suicide note, she realizes there are far too many loose ends. She attempts to leave detailed instructions for taking care of every minute detail of her life until her suicide “note” soon turns into a massive binder.
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About The Project
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
Why haven’t you killed yourself? I don’t mean that as a joke, nor as an insult. I mean it as a real question –why haven’t you? Why haven’t I? Why hasn’t anyone? Surely, you’ve thought about it. C’mon, just once. You were in a shitty place that one time and you thought about what it would be like to take your own life. For a second. You thought about how you’d do it, or the note you’d leave behind. Or how he/she would be so sad if you were really gone. You thought about your funeral – who would be there? Who would cry?
But you didn’t actually kill yourself of course. Why? Is it because you realized your life’s pretty great after all? Or is it because blood grosses you out? Is it because you don’t want to hurt the people you’d leave behind? Is it because you want to see how The Handmaid’s Tale ends?
I know why I couldn’t do it. Sure, there are the moral reasons and the people I love, but there’s also this unbearable feeling of all of the unfinished business I’d leave behind. Who would take care of my dog? Who would tend to my herb garden? Does anyone else know my bank account info? Who will pay my mortgage? Who will know that my garbage disposal is a little finicky and needs to be run a full minute before shoving anything down there?
“Control” is a short film about a woman who can’t stop thinking about these odds and ends. She is determined to end her life, but not until everything – EVERYTHING – is taken care of. It’s a very dark comedy about how some of us seek to control every detail of our lives, knowing all along that this impossible goal is just setting us up for disappointment and failure.
It’s about a woman who starts with a simple suicide note that soon becomes a massive binder of detailed information for how everything left behind should be handled. It’s sad and funny and devastating and shocking.
As someone who has struggled with depression myself, I wanted to make a film that dealt with a very real subject in a dark and comedic way. I want “Control” to continue a dialog about the causes and effects of depression, about the stigma, and about a cure. I am an accomplished comedian. I’ve appeared on shows such as “Parks and Recreation,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” and “The League,” but I wanted to expand my work into a more serious realm and to deal with a very important topic. But, as is true to my own experience, the project still has an air of comedy to it. Because I believe comedy can be found in the darkest of situations, even depression and suicide.
I was thrilled that friend and director Kimmy Gatewood, a veteran of the comedy world and one of the stars in the upcoming series GLOW on Netflix, wanted to direct and co-produce the piece. And we were excited to have the incredible DP Devin Doyle join our efforts. When Devin read the script, he told me “Yeah, this is me,” and I knew that I wasn’t the only one out there with these dark, weird thoughts. We want other people to feel less alone, and to find some levity in their sadness.
We have finished principal photography on the short and we are looking for funds to complete pick-up shooting and post production. We’re very excited about this moving and important film. We thank you for your consideration.
Cheers,
Alison Becker & Kimmy Gatewood
Writer/Actor Director
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Help us go to Festivals!
Costs $2,000
This will pay for festival costs such as travel to different cities, hotel, car, submission fees, posters, digital prints, DVDs, etc
Help us finish our movie
Costs $3,000
We made this film for so little and want to put a professional polish on it i.e. Sound and Color.
Share this update!
About This Team
KIMMY GATEWOOD (Director/EP/Editor) is a director, writer, & comedian best known as 1/3 of the acclaimed musical comedy trio The Apple Sisters. She produced and directed the feature documentary, Nerdcore Rising, which premiered at the South By Southwest Film Festival. She has since made a splash in the digital world having directed and produced for Dreamworks, Nerdist, Youtube's Comedy Week, Jash/Video Podcast Network, Maker Studios. AwesomenessTV, Yahoo!, Vevo, Awestruck, and hulu. She most recently directed a live-action comedy series “Hyperlinked” for Youtube Red/Disney that explores the world of girls and coding. She also directed Rachel Bloom (Golden Globe Award winning “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend”) in a video for Vanity Fair’s first Founders Fair entitled “LadyBoss.” Other directing projects include “Not Safe with Nikki Glaser” on Comedy Central, the Comedy Central digital series “Junketeers,” “Trump vs. Bernie” for Fusion & her series “Milk Factory” for Awestruck, As an actress Kimmy has been seen on Conan, “The B in Apartment 23,” ”Comedy Bang! Bang!,” “The Smosh Movie,” “Jersey Boys,” “Bad Judge,” “Epic Rap Battles of History” and the upcoming series on Netflix, “GLOW” executive produced by Jenji Kohan. When she isn't acting, directing, or producing, Gatewood has a love for music, she sings and plays the guitar & trombone to her 2 year old daughter. @kimmygatewood
ALISON BECKER (Writer/EP/”Woman”) is a writer/comedian/actor/producer who played Shauna Malwae-Tweep, the longest running guest star on NBC's "Parks and Recreation." Alison first gained popularity as one of the pranksters on MTV's hidden camera show "Boiling Points," and she has since appeared on countless television shows, including Showtime’s "Californication," FX’s "The League," HBO's "The Newsroom" from Aaron Sorkin, "New Girl" on FOX, “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Kroll Show,” “Lucifer,” and many, many more. You may also know her as Xandra Dent from Adult Swim's “Newsreaders.” Alison has written for and appeared in Yahoo's "Sketchy," and she has starred in some of the most popular web series ever made, including "Dating Rules from My Future Self,” College Humor’s Batman series, and ESPN’s "Mayne Street" with Kenny Mayne. Becker is also a popular face in many classic comedy videos from Funny or Die and Above Average. You may also remember her from her hosting days on Fuel TV's "The Daily Habit," several shows on Fuse, and as the VJ of the weekly "Top 20 Countdown" on Vh1. Becker just produced a pilot for TruTV, and she is currently developing a feature script at Red Hour. She has been involved with the Upright Citizens Brigade theatre for over 15 years, and she has been a member of four house teams, both improv and sketch. Alison graduated from Georgetown University, cum laude, and she is a member of the high IQ society Mensa. @thealisonbecker
DEVIN DOYLE (Producer, Director of Photography) A two-time Emerging Cinematographer Award winner, Devin Doyle got his start in Los Angeles in the two-year program at Panavision Hollywood. After going freelance in 2008 he worked his way up in the camera department as a film loader, data manager, camera assistant, and now director of photography. His work has taken him abroad to the Virgin Islands, Japan, China, across Europe, Brazil, Peru, and countless locales within the US. As a cinematographer Devin has worked commercially with many national brands including Target, Frito Lay, and Disney. His work has garnered recognition twice from Local 600: first in 2014 with an Emerging Cinematographer Award for the music video "Lancaster Stomp" and again in 2015 for the short film "Fish Friend." Drawing on his years of industry experience Devin continues to shoot commercials, music videos, and long form content. He resides in Los Angeles and is happily married to Amanda Doyle, CSA (Doyle/Fiorilli Casting).
MATTHEW C. JOHNSON (Producer, Sound) is a Los Angeles based producer & director. He recently directed “Beerfest: Thirst for Victory,” a feature film for CW Seed and Warner Brothers’ Blue Ribbon that will also be released as a digital series. He has worked with most major digital studios including Maker, CollegeHumor, Youtube and AwesomenessTV. Other work includes “The Gaggle,” a sketch series based on the book of the same name for Ryan Seacrest and ABC Digital, and sketches for the “Sketchy!” series on Yahoo! Screen. He was the showrunner and director of the Buzzr Games channel for FremantleMedia. He updated classic game shows like “Family Feud,” “Beat the Clock,” and “Password” for digital audiences to wild acclaim and won a Cynopsis D Award for “Best YouTube Original Channel.”
DIGNAN BECKER (“Dog”) Dignan Vincent Becker was born in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn. He has appeared on camera many times, including on Vh1 and Fuse. He enjoys chicken and rice, carrots and belly rubs. He is 11 years old.
Current Team
Incentives
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
Why haven’t you killed yourself? I don’t mean that as a joke, nor as an insult. I mean it as a real question –why haven’t you? Why haven’t I? Why hasn’t anyone? Surely, you’ve thought about it. C’mon, just once. You were in a shitty place that one time and you thought about what it would be like to take your own life. For a second. You thought about how you’d do it, or the note you’d leave behind. Or how he/she would be so sad if you were really gone. You thought about your funeral – who would be there? Who would cry?
But you didn’t actually kill yourself of course. Why? Is it because you realized your life’s pretty great after all? Or is it because blood grosses you out? Is it because you don’t want to hurt the people you’d leave behind? Is it because you want to see how The Handmaid’s Tale ends?
I know why I couldn’t do it. Sure, there are the moral reasons and the people I love, but there’s also this unbearable feeling of all of the unfinished business I’d leave behind. Who would take care of my dog? Who would tend to my herb garden? Does anyone else know my bank account info? Who will pay my mortgage? Who will know that my garbage disposal is a little finicky and needs to be run a full minute before shoving anything down there?
“Control” is a short film about a woman who can’t stop thinking about these odds and ends. She is determined to end her life, but not until everything – EVERYTHING – is taken care of. It’s a very dark comedy about how some of us seek to control every detail of our lives, knowing all along that this impossible goal is just setting us up for disappointment and failure.
It’s about a woman who starts with a simple suicide note that soon becomes a massive binder of detailed information for how everything left behind should be handled. It’s sad and funny and devastating and shocking.
As someone who has struggled with depression myself, I wanted to make a film that dealt with a very real subject in a dark and comedic way. I want “Control” to continue a dialog about the causes and effects of depression, about the stigma, and about a cure. I am an accomplished comedian. I’ve appeared on shows such as “Parks and Recreation,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” and “The League,” but I wanted to expand my work into a more serious realm and to deal with a very important topic. But, as is true to my own experience, the project still has an air of comedy to it. Because I believe comedy can be found in the darkest of situations, even depression and suicide.
I was thrilled that friend and director Kimmy Gatewood, a veteran of the comedy world and one of the stars in the upcoming series GLOW on Netflix, wanted to direct and co-produce the piece. And we were excited to have the incredible DP Devin Doyle join our efforts. When Devin read the script, he told me “Yeah, this is me,” and I knew that I wasn’t the only one out there with these dark, weird thoughts. We want other people to feel less alone, and to find some levity in their sadness.
We have finished principal photography on the short and we are looking for funds to complete pick-up shooting and post production. We’re very excited about this moving and important film. We thank you for your consideration.
Cheers,
Alison Becker & Kimmy Gatewood
Writer/Actor Director
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Help us go to Festivals!
Costs $2,000
This will pay for festival costs such as travel to different cities, hotel, car, submission fees, posters, digital prints, DVDs, etc
Help us finish our movie
Costs $3,000
We made this film for so little and want to put a professional polish on it i.e. Sound and Color.
Share this update!
About This Team
KIMMY GATEWOOD (Director/EP/Editor) is a director, writer, & comedian best known as 1/3 of the acclaimed musical comedy trio The Apple Sisters. She produced and directed the feature documentary, Nerdcore Rising, which premiered at the South By Southwest Film Festival. She has since made a splash in the digital world having directed and produced for Dreamworks, Nerdist, Youtube's Comedy Week, Jash/Video Podcast Network, Maker Studios. AwesomenessTV, Yahoo!, Vevo, Awestruck, and hulu. She most recently directed a live-action comedy series “Hyperlinked” for Youtube Red/Disney that explores the world of girls and coding. She also directed Rachel Bloom (Golden Globe Award winning “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend”) in a video for Vanity Fair’s first Founders Fair entitled “LadyBoss.” Other directing projects include “Not Safe with Nikki Glaser” on Comedy Central, the Comedy Central digital series “Junketeers,” “Trump vs. Bernie” for Fusion & her series “Milk Factory” for Awestruck, As an actress Kimmy has been seen on Conan, “The B in Apartment 23,” ”Comedy Bang! Bang!,” “The Smosh Movie,” “Jersey Boys,” “Bad Judge,” “Epic Rap Battles of History” and the upcoming series on Netflix, “GLOW” executive produced by Jenji Kohan. When she isn't acting, directing, or producing, Gatewood has a love for music, she sings and plays the guitar & trombone to her 2 year old daughter. @kimmygatewood
ALISON BECKER (Writer/EP/”Woman”) is a writer/comedian/actor/producer who played Shauna Malwae-Tweep, the longest running guest star on NBC's "Parks and Recreation." Alison first gained popularity as one of the pranksters on MTV's hidden camera show "Boiling Points," and she has since appeared on countless television shows, including Showtime’s "Californication," FX’s "The League," HBO's "The Newsroom" from Aaron Sorkin, "New Girl" on FOX, “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Kroll Show,” “Lucifer,” and many, many more. You may also know her as Xandra Dent from Adult Swim's “Newsreaders.” Alison has written for and appeared in Yahoo's "Sketchy," and she has starred in some of the most popular web series ever made, including "Dating Rules from My Future Self,” College Humor’s Batman series, and ESPN’s "Mayne Street" with Kenny Mayne. Becker is also a popular face in many classic comedy videos from Funny or Die and Above Average. You may also remember her from her hosting days on Fuel TV's "The Daily Habit," several shows on Fuse, and as the VJ of the weekly "Top 20 Countdown" on Vh1. Becker just produced a pilot for TruTV, and she is currently developing a feature script at Red Hour. She has been involved with the Upright Citizens Brigade theatre for over 15 years, and she has been a member of four house teams, both improv and sketch. Alison graduated from Georgetown University, cum laude, and she is a member of the high IQ society Mensa. @thealisonbecker
DEVIN DOYLE (Producer, Director of Photography) A two-time Emerging Cinematographer Award winner, Devin Doyle got his start in Los Angeles in the two-year program at Panavision Hollywood. After going freelance in 2008 he worked his way up in the camera department as a film loader, data manager, camera assistant, and now director of photography. His work has taken him abroad to the Virgin Islands, Japan, China, across Europe, Brazil, Peru, and countless locales within the US. As a cinematographer Devin has worked commercially with many national brands including Target, Frito Lay, and Disney. His work has garnered recognition twice from Local 600: first in 2014 with an Emerging Cinematographer Award for the music video "Lancaster Stomp" and again in 2015 for the short film "Fish Friend." Drawing on his years of industry experience Devin continues to shoot commercials, music videos, and long form content. He resides in Los Angeles and is happily married to Amanda Doyle, CSA (Doyle/Fiorilli Casting).
MATTHEW C. JOHNSON (Producer, Sound) is a Los Angeles based producer & director. He recently directed “Beerfest: Thirst for Victory,” a feature film for CW Seed and Warner Brothers’ Blue Ribbon that will also be released as a digital series. He has worked with most major digital studios including Maker, CollegeHumor, Youtube and AwesomenessTV. Other work includes “The Gaggle,” a sketch series based on the book of the same name for Ryan Seacrest and ABC Digital, and sketches for the “Sketchy!” series on Yahoo! Screen. He was the showrunner and director of the Buzzr Games channel for FremantleMedia. He updated classic game shows like “Family Feud,” “Beat the Clock,” and “Password” for digital audiences to wild acclaim and won a Cynopsis D Award for “Best YouTube Original Channel.”
DIGNAN BECKER (“Dog”) Dignan Vincent Becker was born in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn. He has appeared on camera many times, including on Vh1 and Fuse. He enjoys chicken and rice, carrots and belly rubs. He is 11 years old.