Deeply Troubled
Minneapolis, Minnesota | Film Short
Drama, LGBTQ
12-year-old Oliver is an anxious kid who believes his changing voice causes death and destruction. Through dark humor, this neo-noir coming-of-age story portrays kids and teenagers struggling with mental health and gender identity.
Deeply Troubled
Minneapolis, Minnesota | Film Short
Drama, LGBTQ
1 Campaigns | Minnesota, United States
Green Light
This campaign raised $11,075 for production. Follow the filmmaker to receive future updates on this project.
108 supporters | followers
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12-year-old Oliver is an anxious kid who believes his changing voice causes death and destruction. Through dark humor, this neo-noir coming-of-age story portrays kids and teenagers struggling with mental health and gender identity.
About The Project
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
STRETCH GOALS
Thank you all so much for joining us in making “Deeply Troubled”!
AS OF 8/16/2023 3pm CT, WE ARE AT 100% OF OUR GOAL! Here’s what we still need.
If we raise $11,000 we’ll be able to provide a small thank you stipend for the rest of the crew who volunteered their time with us, and for the co-owners at Uptown Balloons who so generously provided their space for us
If we raise $12,000 we’ll be able to provide small thank you stipend for Post-Production Composer, Colorist and Sound Mixer
If we raise $13,000 we’ll be able to cover film festival submissions and promotion ensuring “Deeply Troubled” will reach the largest possible audience
It truly takes a village to make a film.
So many people have lent us their talent, time, connections and resources in the production and post-production of “Deeply Troubled”. There are three days left until our campaign ends, please keep sharing it with your colleagues, friends and family!
12-year-old Oliver is convinced his changing voice causes death and destruction. To prevent further suffering, he goes on a journey to buy a helium balloon, but runs into an old friend and a pushy balloon salesman.
His childhood friend, 16-year-old Melody, works at the balloon store. Though she tries, she's not the best at helping an anxious kid. She has some dark thoughts of her own to deal with, which further troubles Oliver.
Oliver desperately wants to buy a helium balloon to keep his voice high. However, Joe, the manager at the balloon store, wants to sell Oliver the opposite, a mysterious balloon that would keep his voice “nice and deep”.
Oliver has to face his fear and decide which path to take.
It’s a neo-noir world but the energy of the film is adventurous. After all, the story is told from the point of view of a 12-year-old boy. It will feel like we are going on a magical and weird journey with him. Imagine the kids in “Stranger Things” meet the dark humor of “Fargo” with a touch of Kafkaesque Surrealism.
I have struggled with anxiety and intrusive thoughts since a very young age. I believe that one of the biggest factors for anxiety is our desperate desire to have control over our lives, but being faced with a world of unpredictability and devastating news. Politicians make invasive decisions affecting our safety and autonomy, hateful beliefs are causing violence around the country and climate change is a looming disaster way bigger than we are able to comprehend.
Oliver grows up in this world of fear and is just about to face a big change in his own life: puberty. Faced with all this unpredictability, Oliver connects the dots and obsesses over the idea that his changing voice could have some sort of influence or control on unfolding world events. While his parents tell him that he is simply “becoming a man”, he just wants to do his best to save the world. And what will happen when he actually “becomes a man”?
When kids and teenagers like Oliver face struggles regarding their mental health, gender expectations and gender identity, they often have no one to talk to and there are very limited resources. This way their worries become increasingly bigger. Oliver’s story is based a lot on my personal experience, from my childhood and recent years. After a lot of self reflection, I’ve found that dark humor really helps me express the absurdity I felt in those situations.
LOCATIONS
We’ve found amazingly supportive partners for all three of the main filming locations.
Co-owners Edwin and Ana at Uptown Balloons have been so welcoming and kind to us since the first time we walked in their store and told them about our short film. Most of this film happens in a balloon store. They so generously provide their space for us on their only closed day of the week.
We found Lisa’s beautiful space on Airbnb. We were so thrilled when she responded to our ask with open arms and offered to waive the rental fee. Lisa said she always appreciated entrepreneurial souls, as she is one herself.
We met Carson from D&N Studios in early July when his Virtual Production Studio in Minneapolis wasn't even fully complete yet. Super excited about this technology, we spent hours in his studio testing and chatting. Having access to a space like Carson’s right in the heart of Minneapolis is really a dream-come-true to us, we look forward to filming there with the 30’ by 12’ LED Volume.
CAST
After over a month of searching, we have our perfect cast.
Special thanks to Moore Creative for helping us find “Oliver”!
CREW
We have a stellar team that is professional, talented and hard working.
The story has been in the works for three years. We had an earlier version of “Deeply Troubled” that was ready to go into pre-production in March 2020, then COVID hit and the project was on hiatus since.
We have saved some money to kick off production but it’s not enough to cover everything. Our goal is to fundraise $10,000 to cover Crew & Cast, Equipment Rental, Production Design, Insurance, and Lunch & Crafty. See detailed budget breakdown below.
We will be filming with a group of passionate and diverse cast and crew over the course of 2 days in Minneapolis, MN in late July 2023. They all have very different backgrounds in terms of culture, language, ethnicity, and filmmaking experience. As soon as we wrap production, we will move right into post in order to have the whole film completed later in the year.
The project will be greenlit on Seed & Spark only when we reach at least 80% of our goal, please join us on this journey!
Follow the campaign, share our project on social media, and tell your family and friends about “Deeply Troubled”.
Any amount of contribution goes a long way to help bring this story to life.
Thank you!!
– Sebastian Schnabel
Director/Co-Writer of Deeply Troubled
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Camera Package
Costs $2,100
Help us capture the beautiful visuals with a stellar camera package!
Production Design
Costs $1,000
Help us dress the spaces our characters live in!
Cast & Crew
Costs $5,660
Help us compensate our talented cast & crew!
Meals and Crafty
Costs $600
Help us feed the cast and crew with quality meals, snacks, and coffee!
Insurance
Costs $640
Help us keep everything safe!
Cash Pledge
Costs $0
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
Sebastian Schnabel
Director/Co-Writer
Sebastian Schnabel is a writer/director from rural Germany. At age 8, he started shooting first films with his father’s Video8 camera. Eventually he moved to the US in 2014 to pursue filmmaking as a career. The worlds of his films are often dark and absurd, but the shared vulnerability and search for identity of his characters offer warm moments as they meet and affect one another. His recent short film “The Flour That Made Us'' was nominated for the Shibuya Diversity Award at the Short Shorts Film Festival in Tokyo.
Cici Yixuan Wu
Producer/Co-Writer
Cici Yixuan Wu is a writer and producer from Zhengzhou, China - a city of 10 million people. She came to Minneapolis in 2013 to study architecture. In 2018, she and her husband Sebastian Schnabel became filmmaking partners. Their stories reflect their life in the US as a multiethnic couple and as immigrants. Their recent work "The Flour That Made Us" (short narrative) is about a young mixed couple facing the possibility of an unplanned pregnancy forcing them to reflect on their different backgrounds.
Ben Enke
DP
Ben Enke is most drawn to stories that explore the human condition and the emotions all of us share as a collective. He loves both grounded and abstract visuals. Above all else, he hopes to create images that resonate with people, even if they don’t know exactly why they feel the way they do. Ben has a deep passion for all things hockey and Star Wars and a love for fun and unique cars. Guilty pleasure movies are the Fast and the Furious and Pitch Perfect series. Zero shame.
Cheri Anderson
Production Designer
Cheri Anderson has designed horror movies, thrillers, dramas, comedies, and fantasy based films. Her work covers various periods including late 1800’s, 1930’s, 1940’s, 1950’s, 1960’s, as well as, current day. Cheri says “I love the energy of filmmaking and the immense amounts of technical and creative talent coming together to produce a work of art.”
Current Team
Incentives
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
STRETCH GOALS
Thank you all so much for joining us in making “Deeply Troubled”!
AS OF 8/16/2023 3pm CT, WE ARE AT 100% OF OUR GOAL! Here’s what we still need.
If we raise $11,000 we’ll be able to provide a small thank you stipend for the rest of the crew who volunteered their time with us, and for the co-owners at Uptown Balloons who so generously provided their space for us
If we raise $12,000 we’ll be able to provide small thank you stipend for Post-Production Composer, Colorist and Sound Mixer
If we raise $13,000 we’ll be able to cover film festival submissions and promotion ensuring “Deeply Troubled” will reach the largest possible audience
It truly takes a village to make a film.
So many people have lent us their talent, time, connections and resources in the production and post-production of “Deeply Troubled”. There are three days left until our campaign ends, please keep sharing it with your colleagues, friends and family!
12-year-old Oliver is convinced his changing voice causes death and destruction. To prevent further suffering, he goes on a journey to buy a helium balloon, but runs into an old friend and a pushy balloon salesman.
His childhood friend, 16-year-old Melody, works at the balloon store. Though she tries, she's not the best at helping an anxious kid. She has some dark thoughts of her own to deal with, which further troubles Oliver.
Oliver desperately wants to buy a helium balloon to keep his voice high. However, Joe, the manager at the balloon store, wants to sell Oliver the opposite, a mysterious balloon that would keep his voice “nice and deep”.
Oliver has to face his fear and decide which path to take.
It’s a neo-noir world but the energy of the film is adventurous. After all, the story is told from the point of view of a 12-year-old boy. It will feel like we are going on a magical and weird journey with him. Imagine the kids in “Stranger Things” meet the dark humor of “Fargo” with a touch of Kafkaesque Surrealism.
I have struggled with anxiety and intrusive thoughts since a very young age. I believe that one of the biggest factors for anxiety is our desperate desire to have control over our lives, but being faced with a world of unpredictability and devastating news. Politicians make invasive decisions affecting our safety and autonomy, hateful beliefs are causing violence around the country and climate change is a looming disaster way bigger than we are able to comprehend.
Oliver grows up in this world of fear and is just about to face a big change in his own life: puberty. Faced with all this unpredictability, Oliver connects the dots and obsesses over the idea that his changing voice could have some sort of influence or control on unfolding world events. While his parents tell him that he is simply “becoming a man”, he just wants to do his best to save the world. And what will happen when he actually “becomes a man”?
When kids and teenagers like Oliver face struggles regarding their mental health, gender expectations and gender identity, they often have no one to talk to and there are very limited resources. This way their worries become increasingly bigger. Oliver’s story is based a lot on my personal experience, from my childhood and recent years. After a lot of self reflection, I’ve found that dark humor really helps me express the absurdity I felt in those situations.
LOCATIONS
We’ve found amazingly supportive partners for all three of the main filming locations.
Co-owners Edwin and Ana at Uptown Balloons have been so welcoming and kind to us since the first time we walked in their store and told them about our short film. Most of this film happens in a balloon store. They so generously provide their space for us on their only closed day of the week.
We found Lisa’s beautiful space on Airbnb. We were so thrilled when she responded to our ask with open arms and offered to waive the rental fee. Lisa said she always appreciated entrepreneurial souls, as she is one herself.
We met Carson from D&N Studios in early July when his Virtual Production Studio in Minneapolis wasn't even fully complete yet. Super excited about this technology, we spent hours in his studio testing and chatting. Having access to a space like Carson’s right in the heart of Minneapolis is really a dream-come-true to us, we look forward to filming there with the 30’ by 12’ LED Volume.
CAST
After over a month of searching, we have our perfect cast.
Special thanks to Moore Creative for helping us find “Oliver”!
CREW
We have a stellar team that is professional, talented and hard working.
The story has been in the works for three years. We had an earlier version of “Deeply Troubled” that was ready to go into pre-production in March 2020, then COVID hit and the project was on hiatus since.
We have saved some money to kick off production but it’s not enough to cover everything. Our goal is to fundraise $10,000 to cover Crew & Cast, Equipment Rental, Production Design, Insurance, and Lunch & Crafty. See detailed budget breakdown below.
We will be filming with a group of passionate and diverse cast and crew over the course of 2 days in Minneapolis, MN in late July 2023. They all have very different backgrounds in terms of culture, language, ethnicity, and filmmaking experience. As soon as we wrap production, we will move right into post in order to have the whole film completed later in the year.
The project will be greenlit on Seed & Spark only when we reach at least 80% of our goal, please join us on this journey!
Follow the campaign, share our project on social media, and tell your family and friends about “Deeply Troubled”.
Any amount of contribution goes a long way to help bring this story to life.
Thank you!!
– Sebastian Schnabel
Director/Co-Writer of Deeply Troubled
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Camera Package
Costs $2,100
Help us capture the beautiful visuals with a stellar camera package!
Production Design
Costs $1,000
Help us dress the spaces our characters live in!
Cast & Crew
Costs $5,660
Help us compensate our talented cast & crew!
Meals and Crafty
Costs $600
Help us feed the cast and crew with quality meals, snacks, and coffee!
Insurance
Costs $640
Help us keep everything safe!
Cash Pledge
Costs $0
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
Sebastian Schnabel
Director/Co-Writer
Sebastian Schnabel is a writer/director from rural Germany. At age 8, he started shooting first films with his father’s Video8 camera. Eventually he moved to the US in 2014 to pursue filmmaking as a career. The worlds of his films are often dark and absurd, but the shared vulnerability and search for identity of his characters offer warm moments as they meet and affect one another. His recent short film “The Flour That Made Us'' was nominated for the Shibuya Diversity Award at the Short Shorts Film Festival in Tokyo.
Cici Yixuan Wu
Producer/Co-Writer
Cici Yixuan Wu is a writer and producer from Zhengzhou, China - a city of 10 million people. She came to Minneapolis in 2013 to study architecture. In 2018, she and her husband Sebastian Schnabel became filmmaking partners. Their stories reflect their life in the US as a multiethnic couple and as immigrants. Their recent work "The Flour That Made Us" (short narrative) is about a young mixed couple facing the possibility of an unplanned pregnancy forcing them to reflect on their different backgrounds.
Ben Enke
DP
Ben Enke is most drawn to stories that explore the human condition and the emotions all of us share as a collective. He loves both grounded and abstract visuals. Above all else, he hopes to create images that resonate with people, even if they don’t know exactly why they feel the way they do. Ben has a deep passion for all things hockey and Star Wars and a love for fun and unique cars. Guilty pleasure movies are the Fast and the Furious and Pitch Perfect series. Zero shame.
Cheri Anderson
Production Designer
Cheri Anderson has designed horror movies, thrillers, dramas, comedies, and fantasy based films. Her work covers various periods including late 1800’s, 1930’s, 1940’s, 1950’s, 1960’s, as well as, current day. Cheri says “I love the energy of filmmaking and the immense amounts of technical and creative talent coming together to produce a work of art.”