Patsy Fry worked very hard to go from small town redneck to big city, bisexual vegan. For the most part, she’s succeeded. She’s got a girlfriend, pronouns in her bio, and a septum piercing for christ’s sake! 

So why does Patsy’s family still think she’s a straight, bible-thumping, future pastor’s wife? Well… she only sees them like once a year. It’s not worth the trouble of coming out. Don’t worry - it’s all part of her plan.

Patsy hadn’t factored her Mother dying into that plan. She hadn’t expected the tense funeral either. And, least of all, Patsy hadn’t planned on an invitation from her Father and Brother to spread her Mother’s ashes months later. 

Enter: DOOMSDAY.

DOOMSDAY tells that very story of Patsy’s return to her childhood home. She drives home to Missouri with her girlfriend, CONNIE, who accompanies for moral support and who is… forced to stay in the car, much to Connie’s displeasure. 

The car ends up being the safest place possible, as the Fry family’s somber bonding moment turns out to be a ploy to KIDNAP and TRAP Patsy in a DIY DOOMSDAY BUNKER. 

Between maintaining her Country Girl image, avoiding her Father RANDY’s watchful gaze, and surviving her Brother DANO’s conspiracy-fueled mania, Patsy’s got her hands full. While this unfolds, Connie discovers the bunker, desperate to save her partner.

Tensions rise. The cracks in the family’s foundation become abundantly clear. And Patsy realizes that she can’t just escape. She has to drag her family out with her. 

But Patsy’s got one last trick up her sleeve: to finally start being honest with her family. She’d rather be out, literally and metaphorically, than keep hiding. 

Does it work? Well… you’ll have to donate to find out. But I can tell you that there’s a conspiracy board, a bucket of piss, and an act of God still to come. If that doesn’t make you want to watch, then I don’t know what will.

Anyone who meets me now sees queer, (hopefully) cool, NYC Sofia. What they don’t see, however, is the Sofia who spent eight years in a church’s handbell choir. The Sofia who went to a high school with Bring Your Tractor to School Day. Or the Sofia who spent her sixteenth birthday at the National Lutheran Youth Gathering. My real identity falls somewhere in between these two contradictions. It’s taken me a long time to not only come to terms with that, but to embrace it.

DOOMSDAY was born out of a desire to make a film that exists in that same in between. It’s a queer coming out drama, but it’s also an end-of-the-world redneck comedy. It’s making fun of far-right extremism, but also gives those right wing characters depth. It’s using humor as a tool to break down barriers, cope with grief, and as an excuse to throw a bunch of people in a doomsday bunker and see what happens.

The film’s premise is “a closeted bisexual gets trapped in a bunker with her estranged redneck family.” This, unfortunately, comes with an obvious conclusion: the protagonist gets ousted from a family who can't see past their own bigotry. Frankly, I have zero interest in that outcome.

I’ve had the harrowing experience of coming out to people, even loved ones, whose lifelong politics and religious beliefs would see me condemned. But I’ve also been surprised by some of those same people making the radical choice to alter their beliefs in order to make space for me and my identity. 

Don’t get me wrong - my experience has been far from perfect. There are memories I’ll only discuss in therapy and people I won’t ever come out to. At the end of the day, though, my authenticity has changed people's minds for the better. And not just anybody: we’re talking conservative Lutheran minds from Missouri’s Bootheel - it’s a miracle, honestly.

So no, my film doesn't end with the protagonist being shunned for her sexuality, nor does it end with the divide between the left and right being magically fixed. But it does end with empathy. With understanding. With both sides seeing the other a little more clearly and being willing to give the other a chance. And, right now, I think that’s what counts.

DOOMSDAY is set amidst the vast floodplains and oppressive billboards of Southeast Missouri. It’s a place where compassion is high and education rates are low. Where Churches seem to outnumber people. Sometimes, the nature there seems brighter, more saturated. When I think of Missouri, I think of a shade of green I’ve never seen anywhere else.

When we’re above ground in DOOMSDAY, the visual language draws from naturalism. We sit in Wides and Mediums, allowing the land to be its own character in the story. Greens and blues drive the color palette, making Patsy an obvious odd man out with her red hair and bright pink shirt. 

It’s hard to rectify the natural beauty of Missouri with the hate its residents spew. That’s what the Doomsday Bunker represents, the other major setting in DOOMSDAY. It’s a cavern of fear and anger, a manmade monument to false systems of belief and power. A strong gust of wind could break it to pieces. 

As the story plummets below ground and into the bunker, the visual language of DOOMSDAY also takes a sharp turn into expressionism. Frames are angled, distorted, cluttered, and kinetic. We’re tighter, creating a sense of claustrophobia that mirrors Patsy’s internal world. The colors are dark and warm, with orange and brown completely eradicating the cool tones we’ve become accustomed to. 

My directing mentor described DOOMSDAY’s tone as: “funny if it weren’t so scary, and scary if it weren’t so funny” and there’s really no better summary for it. My work often pulls heavily from comedy and horror, blurring the line between genre and traditional drama, and this short is no different. It’s campy, it’s silly, it’s scary, it’s moving, and everything else in between. It’s a bit like a roller coaster. You’ve just got to sit back and enjoy the ride.

PATSY: Eleanor Lougee-Heimer is an actor and creator based in New York City. Eleanor’s recent film work includes starring in the shorts Rebrand, Doomsday, 3 Worlds 1 Modern Romance, and Dead Fish. She was a featured actor in the documentary series NY Homicide (episode 314). Rebrand, currently in its festival run, premiered this year at Screamfest LA and won Best Home Invasion Short at Brooklyn Horror. While at Brooklyn Horror, Horror Press highlighted the success of the film. 

RANDY: Robert Donavan is a proven veteran as an actor in television and motion pictures. He has always embraced the idea of studying technique and theory, and then practicing them in the films in which he has appears. He still finds time to study his craft in between film assignments. Robert has worked with directors Brandon Slagle, Robin Christian, Rolfe Kanefsky, Elliot Feld, Wayne Kramer, Fred Olen Ray, and Thomas Callaway.

DANO: Laurent Pitre is a trilingual actor and filmmaker whose short film "GIVE TIME" won Best Short Film at the Ontario International Film Festival, the Toronto Lift-Off Film Festival, and three awards (Best Film, Director, and Actress) at YES! Let’s Make a Film Fest. He’s appeared as the main villain in Hulu’s "Future Man", shared scenes with Andrew Garfield in the Emmy-nominated "Under the Banner of Heaven" (Disney+), and played a darkly comic killer in "The Sacrifice Game" (Shudder), winner of the 2023 Fantasia Film Festival Audience Award. Recent credits include "Fargo" (FX), "Hudson & Rex" (CityTV), and "Murdoch Mysteries" (CBC).

CONNIE: Kaye Everhart is a queer, nonbinary actor from Cape Girardeau, MO. Their previous work includes various student and short films. They found their love for acting through their high school theatre troupe and continue that love through community events, vertical video, and film as a hobby. They’re excited for you to see their portrayal as Connie in DOOMSDAY, alongside the rest of this talented cast.

DOOMSDAY was lucky enough to receive the Leone Family Production Grant to carry the short film through pre-production and production, but we are now asking for $5,000 to help cover the costs of post-production. We need your support to pay for color correction, sound design & editing, VFX, music licensing, and festival fees. We already have several incredibly talented collaborators lined up for these roles (exciting!) and need funds to compensate their excellent work.

Post-production for DOOMSDAY will span from now until April 30, 2026. During that time, we plan to spend:

• 30% on VFX (necessary touchups on three shots)
• 20% on Music Licensing ("This Land is Your Land" by Pete Seeger)
• 20% on Sound Design and Editing (work by Nicholas Webster)
• 20% on Color Correction (color by Kalvin Johnson)
• 10% on Film Festival Fees (SXSW, Sundance, Tribeca, etc.)

Check our Wishlist tab for more details!

If you'd like to earn your spot in our Doomsday Bunker, here's three ways you can support the project.

1) MAKE A PLEDGE:

Put on your tin foil hats and check out our pledge tiers and their corresponding incentives - we've got some fun stuff lined up for you and the crazy conspiracist in your life.

2) SPONSOR A DEPARTMENT:

You can be the savior that drags us out of our Doomsday Bunker by looking at our Wishlist and opting to sponsor one of our departments. From color to sound, there's some very talented artists who'd be grateful to you!

3) LIKE, FOLLOW, AND SHARE OUR CAMPAIGN:

If you're feeling powerless amidst the political upheaval of our world, an easy way to take action is publicly support political art like DOOMSDAY. If any part of our message has resonated with you, you can:

• Post about the short or fundraiser, tag us @doomsdayshortfilm
• Tell people in your life about DOOMSDAY
• Email the fundraiser to your friends, coworkers, family members, favorite rednecks, etc.
• Click the Follow button on our page for more updates

Thank you for your help making this apocalyptic short film a reality :-)