Why do cows like Jazz? 

Do they see the instruments as some sort of deity?

Do they just like jazz specifically or do they like all music? 

What does it mean for them to have such a deep love for something they can never obtain for themselves?

Would they have been better off never hearing music at all?

Writer's Statement

In 2024, a friend and I fled the city on a spontaneous road trip. We were two starving artists, fresh out of Princeton University with big dreams and no clear roadmap for how to achieve them. 

Half-way through, a friend from my hometown had her first baby. 

I was already frustrated by how hard it is to be an artist, how much of your future depends on someone else saying yes, and that announcement sent me into a spiral.

Shortly after, the cow obsession began. 

My algorithm began to feed me clip after clip of jazz musicians playing to cows, who stared back at them in awe. 

I couldn’t get that obsessive look in their eyes out of my head. I began to fixate on whether the cows would have been better off never hearing music at all. 

As a struggling artist, I also felt fenced in, waiting for someone to pick me from the herd and let me dance along to their arrangement.

Meanwhile, time is slipping by. My friend’s baby grows ever bigger and the, albeit societally-imposed, window of opportunity to have a family begins to close. 

Cow God draws a clear line between cows and women. You’re either a meat cow (ambitious, objectified, sexualized) or a milk cow (domesticated, fertile, docile). When exposed to music, the cows get a glimpse of what life beyond a pasture could look like. This film asks what that glimpse costs.

This script centers a performer who fears her efforts at a life in artistry will forever go unnoticed.

This film is my way of shirking those fears and chasing what I want. With this film, I carve out space for myself as a mixed woman of color in an industry that profits off of putting individuals into clear boxes. 

The script is, at times, specific to artists, but the underlying fear — that your choices will cost you everything and amount to nothing — belongs to anyone who has ever tried to live a life off the beaten path. 

The cows don't get to choose. Emma does. 

Having the agency to chase what you love makes it not just a gift, but an obligation.

WHAT YOUR SUPPORT MAKES POSSIBLE

Seed & Spark requires we raise at least 80% of our goal in 30 days or we don't receive any funds at all.

Your support gives many members of our early-career, predominantly female and POC team their first narrative filmmaking opportunity in New York City. 

Additionally, we will be participating in the Beyond the Screen Rally, a fantastic opportunity championing intersectional projects that push beyond the confines of mainstream representation and embrace the full spectrum of unfiltered storytelling. To become a finalist, we must: 

• Raise at least 80% of our budget 
• Gather at least 250 followers to the Seed&Spark campaign

The Rally winners will be chosen from among the finalists, who become eligible for the following prizes: OTV will provide up to $25,000 in finishing funds, granting 5 finalists $5,000 each along with access to OTV's industry circles for mentorship.

How You Can Help

Contribute -

• Please consider joining our project financially! See if any of the incentives appeal to you. Check out our wish list if you can lend gear! You can donate any amount, not just the suggested ones. Every dollar counts!

Follow - 

• Follow the campaign on Seed&Spark! Once we hit 250 "followers," regardless of how many people pledge, we'll start unlocking creator discounts for this and future projects.
• Follow @cowgod_movie on instagram and tiktok and engage with posts to help boost the algorithm!

Share the following on your social media -

• Help @gaealawtonlee and a group of diverse independent filmmakers by supporting this buddy dramedy film project #CowGod on @seedandspark! Join them here: seedandspark.com/fund/cowgod

Thank you so much for your support!