Hit The Bucket
New York City, New York | Film Short
Drama, Musical
On an ordinary day in Union Square Park, Jordan, a soundcloud rapper, struggles to get pedestrians to listen to his music. Meanwhile, Brianna, a cypher rapper battles other freestylers for respect and Lorenzo, a 12 year old kid finds difficulty in learning how to bucket drum.
Hit The Bucket
New York City, New York | Film Short
Drama, Musical
1 Campaigns | New York, United States
Green Light
This campaign raised $5,150 for production. Follow the filmmaker to receive future updates on this project.
55 supporters | followers
Enter the amount you would like to pledge
On an ordinary day in Union Square Park, Jordan, a soundcloud rapper, struggles to get pedestrians to listen to his music. Meanwhile, Brianna, a cypher rapper battles other freestylers for respect and Lorenzo, a 12 year old kid finds difficulty in learning how to bucket drum.
About The Project
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
Background
On a summer evening in 2019, I found myself mesmerized by a Union Square performance featuring two cypher rappers and a bucket drummer. I had witnessed some legendary rap battles in Union Square in the past but this one was different. These rappers, whom I would come to know as Henny Mac and Mike Mezzl, were feeding off one another like I had never seen before. Inspired by their performances, I went home and penned a draft of Hit the Bucket, a short film revolving around a bucket drummer and two rappers who despite battling throughout the day, ultimately come together for an awe inspiring performance.
Flash forward to now, after a year of reworking the script and finding more inspiration in the difficulty of our times, my team and I are ready to tell this story. My friend Michael Jacinto, a hip hop artist as well as seasoned actor with experience in the world of cypher rap music, has joined me as a co-director and producer in bringing this story to life. As fans of cypher rap culture, we are excited by the opportunity to showcase this world through film and with real cypher rappers in the lead roles. Henny Mac, who helped inspire the script, has joined us to play the lead role opposite Dizzy Senze, another rapper with growing popularity.
Shooting in the style of indies such as American Honey, Five Feet High and Rising, and Kids, we are approaching this project with the goal of portraying cypher culture as authentically as possible. While examining this culture, we will ultimately tell a story of three individuals using their talents to build each other up. A day in the life short film, Hit The Bucket explores street performance through the lens of three intertwining storylines.
Film References
American Honey (2016)
Style: Unscripted, Docustyle
Five Feet High and Rising (2000)
Style: Raw, Atmospheric
Covid Safety
Due to the current covid situation, the wearing of masks will be fully enforced on set. Additionally, we will be working with a minimal cast and crew as well as shooting entirely outdoors. As cases continue to rise, we will be monitoring the situation to ensure we are not putting our team in a dangerous situation.
With only a two day schedule, we are looking to ensure a safe, socially distanced shoot in early November with a worst case scenario of pushing it a month if things shut down completely in New York. On both shoot days, we will have each cast and crew member sign a waiver indicating that they have not tested positive, had any covid symptoms, or been in contact with anyone with symptons in the two weeks leading up to the shoot.
We will also put some of the money we raise toward items such as a thermometer gun to utilize on set. While we are dedicated to staying on schedule for the film, the health and safety of our team is and will always be our priority. We will do everything in our power to keep our team safe and adjust to the situation as needed.
Thank You
Thank you for taking the time to check out our page. We are very passionate about this film and would love for you to be apart of it.
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Crew
Costs $2,000
Looking to bring on a talented crew, we want to make sure they are taken care of.
Equipment
Costs $600
While we are confident in the equipment we have, we will need to add other items once we get closer.
Cast
Costs $2,000
The cast is the most essential aspect of this film, with most of our cast being actual rappers.
Share this update!
About This Team
Aidan Tracy - Born and raised in New York City, Aidan has always been drawn to New York stories. While studying acting at Ohio University, he began writing screenplays and working multiple positions on short films, including as an actor, director, camera assistant, grip and editor. Since graduating from OU in May 2019, Aidan has worked as a production coordinator at Gramercy Park Studios in NYC, while also starting up a short film production team called Big Apple Shorts. So far, Big Apple Shorts has produced 4 short films, 2 of which Aidan has written and directed. website
Michael Jacinto- Graduating from The Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA) with a BA (Hons) in Dance, Michael also has an MA in Dance from the Institute of Arts Barcelona (IAB). As a director/choreographer, he has assisted Raja Feather Kelly on the world premiere of GIRLS at Yale Repertory Theatre written by Brandon Jacobs Jenkins, and directed by Lileana Blain-Cruz. He has also directed various productions at the IAB. As a performer, he has worked for companies such as Celebrity Cruises, Busch Gardens, and various Regional/Off-Off Broadway/Off-Broadway shows such as A Chorus Line, The Wiz, West Side Story and The Lehman Trilogy. He is now the Director of New Works at Savannah Repertory Theatre. Michael will be making his film directing debut with Hit The Bucket.
Director/Producer: Michael Jacinto Writer/Director/Producer: Aidan Tracy
Current Team
Incentives
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
Background
On a summer evening in 2019, I found myself mesmerized by a Union Square performance featuring two cypher rappers and a bucket drummer. I had witnessed some legendary rap battles in Union Square in the past but this one was different. These rappers, whom I would come to know as Henny Mac and Mike Mezzl, were feeding off one another like I had never seen before. Inspired by their performances, I went home and penned a draft of Hit the Bucket, a short film revolving around a bucket drummer and two rappers who despite battling throughout the day, ultimately come together for an awe inspiring performance.
Flash forward to now, after a year of reworking the script and finding more inspiration in the difficulty of our times, my team and I are ready to tell this story. My friend Michael Jacinto, a hip hop artist as well as seasoned actor with experience in the world of cypher rap music, has joined me as a co-director and producer in bringing this story to life. As fans of cypher rap culture, we are excited by the opportunity to showcase this world through film and with real cypher rappers in the lead roles. Henny Mac, who helped inspire the script, has joined us to play the lead role opposite Dizzy Senze, another rapper with growing popularity.
Shooting in the style of indies such as American Honey, Five Feet High and Rising, and Kids, we are approaching this project with the goal of portraying cypher culture as authentically as possible. While examining this culture, we will ultimately tell a story of three individuals using their talents to build each other up. A day in the life short film, Hit The Bucket explores street performance through the lens of three intertwining storylines.
Film References
American Honey (2016)
Style: Unscripted, Docustyle
Five Feet High and Rising (2000)
Style: Raw, Atmospheric
Covid Safety
Due to the current covid situation, the wearing of masks will be fully enforced on set. Additionally, we will be working with a minimal cast and crew as well as shooting entirely outdoors. As cases continue to rise, we will be monitoring the situation to ensure we are not putting our team in a dangerous situation.
With only a two day schedule, we are looking to ensure a safe, socially distanced shoot in early November with a worst case scenario of pushing it a month if things shut down completely in New York. On both shoot days, we will have each cast and crew member sign a waiver indicating that they have not tested positive, had any covid symptoms, or been in contact with anyone with symptons in the two weeks leading up to the shoot.
We will also put some of the money we raise toward items such as a thermometer gun to utilize on set. While we are dedicated to staying on schedule for the film, the health and safety of our team is and will always be our priority. We will do everything in our power to keep our team safe and adjust to the situation as needed.
Thank You
Thank you for taking the time to check out our page. We are very passionate about this film and would love for you to be apart of it.
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Crew
Costs $2,000
Looking to bring on a talented crew, we want to make sure they are taken care of.
Equipment
Costs $600
While we are confident in the equipment we have, we will need to add other items once we get closer.
Cast
Costs $2,000
The cast is the most essential aspect of this film, with most of our cast being actual rappers.
Share this update!
About This Team
Aidan Tracy - Born and raised in New York City, Aidan has always been drawn to New York stories. While studying acting at Ohio University, he began writing screenplays and working multiple positions on short films, including as an actor, director, camera assistant, grip and editor. Since graduating from OU in May 2019, Aidan has worked as a production coordinator at Gramercy Park Studios in NYC, while also starting up a short film production team called Big Apple Shorts. So far, Big Apple Shorts has produced 4 short films, 2 of which Aidan has written and directed. website
Michael Jacinto- Graduating from The Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA) with a BA (Hons) in Dance, Michael also has an MA in Dance from the Institute of Arts Barcelona (IAB). As a director/choreographer, he has assisted Raja Feather Kelly on the world premiere of GIRLS at Yale Repertory Theatre written by Brandon Jacobs Jenkins, and directed by Lileana Blain-Cruz. He has also directed various productions at the IAB. As a performer, he has worked for companies such as Celebrity Cruises, Busch Gardens, and various Regional/Off-Off Broadway/Off-Broadway shows such as A Chorus Line, The Wiz, West Side Story and The Lehman Trilogy. He is now the Director of New Works at Savannah Repertory Theatre. Michael will be making his film directing debut with Hit The Bucket.
Director/Producer: Michael Jacinto Writer/Director/Producer: Aidan Tracy