First Time Caller
San Diego, California | Film Short
Horror, Thriller
When a graduating high school senior finds a new hobby in an old ham radio, he tunes into a twisted game where the hunt is on and the listeners are part of the show.
First Time Caller
San Diego, California | Film Short
Horror, Thriller
1 Campaigns | California, United States
Green Light
This campaign raised $13,805 for production. Follow the filmmaker to receive future updates on this project.
40 supporters | followers
Enter the amount you would like to pledge
When a graduating high school senior finds a new hobby in an old ham radio, he tunes into a twisted game where the hunt is on and the listeners are part of the show.
About The Project
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
Reserved, dedicated and goal-oriented, all JANSEN TULL wanted was to become a professional swimmer. He has lived in the water ever since he was young and all of his sweat and tears seemed to be paying off when he received an offer to attend UVA on a full scholarship.
However, in a moment of youthful indiscretion, Jansen allows his best friend and neighbor COURTNEY to convince him to go off script, taking his parents' car for a joy ride to celebrate their High School graduation...and then everything changed. He crashes the car, injuring his leg, and losing his scholarship.
His parents are disappointed and upset, grounding him all summer to do chores as penance without his phone or any other modern technology. Jansen is struggling to know how to exist in a world being cut off from his closest friend and having lost his swimming prospects.
Just when the isolation and depression begin to take over, Jansen discovers his grandfather’s old amateur radio setup while cleaning out the garage. At first, he has no interest in this ancient technology, but without many options, he comes to welcome this new distraction. Jansen ends up tuning into a popular local "fox hunt" hosted by one LAUGHING LOU MALONEY, an eccentric wordsmith, and all it takes is a little prodding by Courtney and they set out on what they think will be an exciting journey to find a hidden transmitter. Instead, they will find themselves playing a deadly game with a silent monster called THE MASTER OF HOUNDS.
The most important element of all is getting the emotional core of the film right. Themes of uncertainty and fear will run throughout, providing a background to the protagonist's angst about his future, and whether he can find the strength to rediscover who he is, overcome obstacles and move forward.
The visual style will be cinematic in every sense. The cinematography will be warm, yet muted like a Fincher film, with a dash of shadowy fog-laden noir, utilizing practical lighting first and foremost. This will be infused with a Spielbergian sense of camera motion and wonder while exploring spaces. The pacing hits hard first, lets us catch our breath, then ramps steadily as the inevitable comes to fruition.
This is a modern-day thriller/coming-of-age film blending Hitchcock and Spielberg sensibilities. The scares will lie in what we don't see, in the obscured shadows. This will all be rooted in the uncertainty of coming of age where our internal issues of self-identity meet external darkness and impending violence.
Charthouse Films will be investing $20K of our own hard-earned capital towards this project, investing in ourselves and the future of our production company, but it's not enough to bring our vision to life. We need your help. Every donation, whether it is $15 or $1,000 will go directly to the production of this film. From cast and crew to locations and food, we will need every cent to make this work. Seed and Spark require that we make it to 80% of our goal in order for us to receive any of the funds.
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Our end goal is to submit our short film to festivals by the end of the year, with a long-term goal of financing a feature film or limited series. We believe in this story's world and its potential to be expanded in the future. With your generosity, we can make that happen!
Our number one priority is to ensure the safety and comfort of all of our cast and crew. Because of this, we will have a COVID compliance officer on set to enforce the necessary precautions in association with CDC guidelines. We are well equipped to adhere to all safety measures given our recent experience completing two feature films during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021.
SPREAD THE WORD
The only way we will reach our crowdfunding goal is if we reach beyond our networks. YOU can make the difference in our success!
Please share our campaign via your social media, email, word-of-mouth, however you want! We can't do this without you!
Here are some examples. Feel free to copy and paste!
Help the filmmakers @charthouse_media by supporting their short film FIRST TIME CALLER, about Jansen finding an old ham radio and tuning into a twisted game where the hunt is on and the listeners are part of the show. Join them on @seedandspark: https://bit.ly/firsttimecaller
Help my friends @charhouse_media make their short film FIRST TIME CALLER! It looks incredible! Join them on @seedandspark: https://bit.ly/firsttimecaller
Just watched the promo video for the short film FIRST TIME CALLER and WOW Help my friend @charthouse_media make this happen! Support them on @seedandspark: https://bit.ly/firsttimecaller
THANK YOU
Thank you for being a part of our journey. We're extremely excited to see our story brought to life through your generosity and partnership. We do not take it lightly and cannot express our gratitude enough.
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Production Meals
Costs $3,400
Meals on set are essential to the morale of our cast and crew. We want them to be well nourished.
Cast and Crew Housing
Costs $5,000
Cast and Crew will be traveling in to San Diego for shooting and we want them to be comfortable.
Rentals
Costs $4,000
We'd love to be able to upgrade the cinematic look of this film. From lenses to lighting.
Production Design
Costs $2,200
The look is as much about props and art design as it is what equipment you use. World building.
Location Fees
Costs $1,500
Locations are key to bringing the audience into the world of this film.
Gas Money
Costs $750
Gas is at an all-time high right now and we'll need to transport our gear and cast/crew.
Cash Pledge
Costs $0
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
Charthouse Films is a group of individuals who bring together decades long experience in creating both commercial and narrative video content. More importantly; however, we are friends brought together by our love of film and our passion for telling stories that reflect the human condition. Having recently completed and premiered our first feature length film "Play It Cool", and produced the feature film "Riley", we're ready to take the next leap with a new vision and we want to partner with you to bring it to life.
Current Team
Incentives
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
Reserved, dedicated and goal-oriented, all JANSEN TULL wanted was to become a professional swimmer. He has lived in the water ever since he was young and all of his sweat and tears seemed to be paying off when he received an offer to attend UVA on a full scholarship.
However, in a moment of youthful indiscretion, Jansen allows his best friend and neighbor COURTNEY to convince him to go off script, taking his parents' car for a joy ride to celebrate their High School graduation...and then everything changed. He crashes the car, injuring his leg, and losing his scholarship.
His parents are disappointed and upset, grounding him all summer to do chores as penance without his phone or any other modern technology. Jansen is struggling to know how to exist in a world being cut off from his closest friend and having lost his swimming prospects.
Just when the isolation and depression begin to take over, Jansen discovers his grandfather’s old amateur radio setup while cleaning out the garage. At first, he has no interest in this ancient technology, but without many options, he comes to welcome this new distraction. Jansen ends up tuning into a popular local "fox hunt" hosted by one LAUGHING LOU MALONEY, an eccentric wordsmith, and all it takes is a little prodding by Courtney and they set out on what they think will be an exciting journey to find a hidden transmitter. Instead, they will find themselves playing a deadly game with a silent monster called THE MASTER OF HOUNDS.
The most important element of all is getting the emotional core of the film right. Themes of uncertainty and fear will run throughout, providing a background to the protagonist's angst about his future, and whether he can find the strength to rediscover who he is, overcome obstacles and move forward.
The visual style will be cinematic in every sense. The cinematography will be warm, yet muted like a Fincher film, with a dash of shadowy fog-laden noir, utilizing practical lighting first and foremost. This will be infused with a Spielbergian sense of camera motion and wonder while exploring spaces. The pacing hits hard first, lets us catch our breath, then ramps steadily as the inevitable comes to fruition.
This is a modern-day thriller/coming-of-age film blending Hitchcock and Spielberg sensibilities. The scares will lie in what we don't see, in the obscured shadows. This will all be rooted in the uncertainty of coming of age where our internal issues of self-identity meet external darkness and impending violence.
Charthouse Films will be investing $20K of our own hard-earned capital towards this project, investing in ourselves and the future of our production company, but it's not enough to bring our vision to life. We need your help. Every donation, whether it is $15 or $1,000 will go directly to the production of this film. From cast and crew to locations and food, we will need every cent to make this work. Seed and Spark require that we make it to 80% of our goal in order for us to receive any of the funds.
Our end goal is to submit our short film to festivals by the end of the year, with a long-term goal of financing a feature film or limited series. We believe in this story's world and its potential to be expanded in the future. With your generosity, we can make that happen!
Our number one priority is to ensure the safety and comfort of all of our cast and crew. Because of this, we will have a COVID compliance officer on set to enforce the necessary precautions in association with CDC guidelines. We are well equipped to adhere to all safety measures given our recent experience completing two feature films during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021.
SPREAD THE WORD
The only way we will reach our crowdfunding goal is if we reach beyond our networks. YOU can make the difference in our success!
Please share our campaign via your social media, email, word-of-mouth, however you want! We can't do this without you!
Here are some examples. Feel free to copy and paste!
Help the filmmakers @charthouse_media by supporting their short film FIRST TIME CALLER, about Jansen finding an old ham radio and tuning into a twisted game where the hunt is on and the listeners are part of the show. Join them on @seedandspark: https://bit.ly/firsttimecaller
Help my friends @charhouse_media make their short film FIRST TIME CALLER! It looks incredible! Join them on @seedandspark: https://bit.ly/firsttimecaller
Just watched the promo video for the short film FIRST TIME CALLER and WOW Help my friend @charthouse_media make this happen! Support them on @seedandspark: https://bit.ly/firsttimecaller
THANK YOU
Thank you for being a part of our journey. We're extremely excited to see our story brought to life through your generosity and partnership. We do not take it lightly and cannot express our gratitude enough.
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Production Meals
Costs $3,400
Meals on set are essential to the morale of our cast and crew. We want them to be well nourished.
Cast and Crew Housing
Costs $5,000
Cast and Crew will be traveling in to San Diego for shooting and we want them to be comfortable.
Rentals
Costs $4,000
We'd love to be able to upgrade the cinematic look of this film. From lenses to lighting.
Production Design
Costs $2,200
The look is as much about props and art design as it is what equipment you use. World building.
Location Fees
Costs $1,500
Locations are key to bringing the audience into the world of this film.
Gas Money
Costs $750
Gas is at an all-time high right now and we'll need to transport our gear and cast/crew.
Cash Pledge
Costs $0
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
Charthouse Films is a group of individuals who bring together decades long experience in creating both commercial and narrative video content. More importantly; however, we are friends brought together by our love of film and our passion for telling stories that reflect the human condition. Having recently completed and premiered our first feature length film "Play It Cool", and produced the feature film "Riley", we're ready to take the next leap with a new vision and we want to partner with you to bring it to life.