Lesbian Jesus Is Pregnant With Vibes
New York City, New York | Film Short
LGBTQ, Comedy
Is it possible to maintain a sense of queer selfhood once you've sold it? The unhinged world of Lesbian TikTok collides with the bleak power dynamics of the male-dominated music industry.
Lesbian Jesus Is Pregnant With Vibes
New York City, New York | Film Short
LGBTQ, Comedy
Green Light
This campaign raised $21,862 for production. Follow the filmmaker to receive future updates on this project.
107 supporters | followers
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Is it possible to maintain a sense of queer selfhood once you've sold it? The unhinged world of Lesbian TikTok collides with the bleak power dynamics of the male-dominated music industry.
About The Project
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
THIS IS A SHORT FILM ABOUT a berserk 19-year-old TikTokker (Liza Rose) who is plucked off the internet, thrust onstage, and declared "Lezbian Jezus!". She travels the country by bus with her under-qualified Momager (Christine) and loving girlfriend (Avery) who works the merch table and designed the t-shirts that say "Eat Crotch!".
In a rollercoaster of an interview with the New York Times, we learn that Liza has been assaulted by the producer who discovered her. While she wants to out him, he contractually owns her (and her music). And if the article is published, Liza and her mom will lose everything and get sued for defamation. They navigate this reality in real-time (the 7 minutes before their bus leaves for Hartford).
WHY THIS? WHY US? WHY NOW?
In a time where short-form media is everywhere, we want to shed light on the people who make it, and hold a magnifying glass to the kinds of personae it yields. This film dramatizes the world of Gen Z hyper-sexual humor (and queer freedom) and juxtaposes it with the bleak intricacies of the music industry to highlight how lastingly difficult it is to succeed as a non-cis-male (without conforming or submitting to their dominance).
As queer artists, we're interested in the labyrinthian hell of trying to perform, sell, and find power in your own sexuality & how different generations use humor/sarcasm as a coping mechanism to deal with dark realities. We hope it will make people laugh and then prompt them to look underneath the laughter/performance, even if just for a moment.
HOW YOU CAN HELP!
We will be shooting this film in January. We need funds for equipment, food, and to pay all the hardworking artists involved. You can help support the film by donating, sharing this campaign, and spreading the word! If we surpass our goal, we will use that funding for festival submissions, additional post-production, and promotion.
COPY FOR SHARING ON SOCIAL:
Brooklyn-based writer/director Reid Pope @rpopegram, producer @thezfleming, and DP @remington.long are making a short film called LESBIAN JESUS IS PREGNANT WITH VIBES and need your help to make it happen! Spread the word by sharing their Seed&Spark https://seedandspark.com/fund/lesbian-jesus-is-pregnant-with-vibes
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Meals and Crafty
Costs $1,500
Making sure our cast and crew stay well fed and energized through production and prep!
Cast and Crew Day Rates + Payroll Processing
Costs $12,500
We want to make sure our cast and crew are compensated for their time and effort!
Hard Drives
Costs $500
Ensures the film is saved and backed up properly so we can make it to post production!!
Wardrobe
Costs $250
This will make sure our cast looks as good as they feel, which will be FANTASTIC!
Production Design
Costs $1,000
This will make sure the world feels fleshed out and lived in
Grip Package
Costs $1,500
To hold up all those dang lights!
Lighting
Costs $1,500
To light our incredibly talented actors + location + immaculately designed space and wardrobe!
Camera Rental + Lenses
Costs $2,500
So we don't have to shoot on iPhones (bad) !
Cube Truck / Gas / Tolls / Parking
Costs $1,250
To get all that beautiful grip + lighting + camera gear around!
Location Fees
Costs $500
Goes towards holding for cast + crew as well as a nominal fee for our wonderful locations!
Cash Pledge
Costs $0
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
Writer/Director: REID POPE
Reid Pope (they/them) is a comedian, playwright, and Jew (despite the ironic last name) who’s been featured in PAPER, Vulture, and Boys With Plants Magazine. Their TV project Old Queens won the 2023 ATX TV Festival Pitch Competition. In 2022, they were named a New York Comedy Festival Content Creator To Watch. They do stand-up weekly around NYC/BK and won Best Of Fest at Big Pine Comedy Festival. As a playwright, Reid has developed work with Jewish Plays Project, The Yes And… Laughter Lab, Edinburgh Fringe, & The 24 Hour Plays: Nationals. They are a New Georges Affiliated Artist. Follow Reid on Instagram @rpopegram. Subscribe To Their Weekly Newsletter: reidpope.substack.com. B.A. Brown | M.F.A. NYU
Producer: ZACH FLEMING
Zach Fleming (he/his) is a Brooklyn based filmmaker and producer.
He produced the Sundance short film ‘In the Flesh’. He most recently produced the short films Sleep Training by Sunita Prasad starring Meera Rohit Kumbhani and Dark Moon by Katie Mathews, starring Marin Ireland and Reed Birney, as well as the short film (You’ll Make It In) Florida, which has played at dozens of festivals around the world, including Fantastic Fest, Florida Film Festival, IndieLisboa, Sarasota Film Festival, and the Phoenix Film Festival, where it won Best Live Action Short.
Zach’s last short film Mickey Dogface is currently on the festival circuit and has so far screened at Nashville, Tallgrass, Indie Memphis, Brooklyn Horror, FERATUM International, IndieCork, Another Hole in the Head, Nitehawk Shorts Chattanooga, and Boston Underground Film Festival. His music videos have been featured in Spin and Impose Magazine.
In the commercial world, he’s produced work for brands like Quaker Oatmeal and LendingTree, starring big name celebs like Eli Manning and Molly Shannon - as well as a Zola commercial that got the CEO of Hallmark to step down, among others.
DP: REMINGTON LONG
Remington is a cinematographer from rural Northern California, currently based in New York City. A passion for camera and documentary filmmaking has led her work to be screened at the Sundance Film Festival, the Museum of Modern Art, the IFC Center, the Nitehawk Cinema and more. Remington was named by Zeiss Cinematography as one of the most “influential cinematographers” at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Her first feature as cinematographer, Sincerely, Los Angeles, is one of Ebony Studios’ inaugural projects and will be released in 2024. Remington is a member of the International Cinematographer’s Guild, IATSE Local 600 and a graduate of New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts.
Executive Producer: ADAM GOLD
Adam Gold is a comedy producer + talent manager based in NYC. Since 2021, Adam has produced 100+ live comedy shows including co-producing Mike Birbiglia’s Broadway Show The Old Man & The Pool. He co-wrote and executive produced the Adult Swim series “Indolent Allen.”
In 2017, Adam moved to New York without a job and began waiting tables at Caroline's on Broadway, taking the subway home at 2am on weeknights to live and breathe comedy. After working for the New York Comedy Festival, he landed a job at CollegeHumor as an executive assistant and climbed the ranks to production coordinator where he booked talent and produced CollegeHumor Live.
From 2020-2023, he worked at Rizzle, a short video app often referred to as the "TikTok of India" as a Talent & Development Manager. In that role, he greenlit 5,000+ vertical scripted & unscripted series from video creators all over the US.
In 2022, Adam started Twenty One Management, an independent management company where he takes tremendous pride in managing 20+ comedians, writers, actors, video creators, and animators.
In November, Adam is producing 33 shows as part of the New York Comedy Festival.
Production Design: EMAN AKRAM NADER
Eman Akram Nader is an NYC-based filmmaker, production designer/ propmaster, and co-founder of multi-media creative hub CUPALOY Studio. As a hybrid culture kid traversing coasts - Red Sea, Saudi Arabia and Lake Michigan, Chicago - her love for cinema began in her formative years watching bootlegged VHS tapes in Jeddah, KSA in a time when movie theatres were banned.
She has Production Designed Writer/ Director Paul Taylor’s award-winning indie short KIDDO, the upcoming shorts Another Sinking Sun (Dir. Tyler Rubenfeld), The Shadow Wrangler (Dir. Grace Rex), After the Deluge (Dir. Tara Young) and was Prop Master on the upcoming Netflix Turkish/ American feature co-production Last Call for Istanbul. Other recent art department credits include the features Anora (Dir. by Sean Baker), Memory (Dir. by Michel Franco), and Reality (Dir. by Tina Satter).
Costume Design: NAOMI DAVIDSON
Naomi Davidson is an apparel product developer, freelance stylist, and costume designer who lives in Brooklyn. Their previous credits include “One Million Girls” (2023), winner of SeriesFest’s “Best of Late Night.”
CAST:
Emily Wirth is a Comedian, Actor, and Writer living in Brooklyn, NY. She’s been performing comedy for over 7 years and most recently was featured in the New York Comedy Festival, as well as a live improv performance hosted by SNL’s Rachel Dratch. You can see Emily perform weekly at the Brooklyn Comedy Collective or all around the city at Union Hall, Under St Marks Theater, and any bar with a stage.
Jill Pangallo is an actor, writer, and producer living and working in New York City. Her multidisciplinary body of work includes solo performance, stand-up, performance art, alternative cabaret, movement, digital content, theater, TV and film. Current projects include Jane Johnson for the Stay at Home Shopper, a live show, pilot, and social media project in collaboration with comedian Shane O’Neill and playing Joyce Nawman (alongside renowned performer Mx. Justin Vivian Bond as Sandie Stone) for the London-based fashion house JW Anderson. Her latest solo show, Low Vibrations, debuted in Spring of 2021 on wildprojectTV as a part of the Followpot series, which she co-produced in an effort to help #SaveWildProject. Recently, she launched the Solo Project Fund, a grant program designed to support comedic artists in creating work for longer-format theatrical contexts.
Alex Song-Xia is a writer, actor, and comedian. They have written for TV shows including Rick and Morty, Praise Petey, Little Demon, and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. As an actor, Alex can be seen in The Week Of (Netflix), starring Adam Sandler and Chris Rock, High Maintenance (HBO), and Helpsters (Apple TV+). Alex has been profiled by Forbes and Vulture.
Current Team
Incentives
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
THIS IS A SHORT FILM ABOUT a berserk 19-year-old TikTokker (Liza Rose) who is plucked off the internet, thrust onstage, and declared "Lezbian Jezus!". She travels the country by bus with her under-qualified Momager (Christine) and loving girlfriend (Avery) who works the merch table and designed the t-shirts that say "Eat Crotch!".
In a rollercoaster of an interview with the New York Times, we learn that Liza has been assaulted by the producer who discovered her. While she wants to out him, he contractually owns her (and her music). And if the article is published, Liza and her mom will lose everything and get sued for defamation. They navigate this reality in real-time (the 7 minutes before their bus leaves for Hartford).
WHY THIS? WHY US? WHY NOW?
In a time where short-form media is everywhere, we want to shed light on the people who make it, and hold a magnifying glass to the kinds of personae it yields. This film dramatizes the world of Gen Z hyper-sexual humor (and queer freedom) and juxtaposes it with the bleak intricacies of the music industry to highlight how lastingly difficult it is to succeed as a non-cis-male (without conforming or submitting to their dominance).
As queer artists, we're interested in the labyrinthian hell of trying to perform, sell, and find power in your own sexuality & how different generations use humor/sarcasm as a coping mechanism to deal with dark realities. We hope it will make people laugh and then prompt them to look underneath the laughter/performance, even if just for a moment.
HOW YOU CAN HELP!
We will be shooting this film in January. We need funds for equipment, food, and to pay all the hardworking artists involved. You can help support the film by donating, sharing this campaign, and spreading the word! If we surpass our goal, we will use that funding for festival submissions, additional post-production, and promotion.
COPY FOR SHARING ON SOCIAL:
Brooklyn-based writer/director Reid Pope @rpopegram, producer @thezfleming, and DP @remington.long are making a short film called LESBIAN JESUS IS PREGNANT WITH VIBES and need your help to make it happen! Spread the word by sharing their Seed&Spark https://seedandspark.com/fund/lesbian-jesus-is-pregnant-with-vibes
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Meals and Crafty
Costs $1,500
Making sure our cast and crew stay well fed and energized through production and prep!
Cast and Crew Day Rates + Payroll Processing
Costs $12,500
We want to make sure our cast and crew are compensated for their time and effort!
Hard Drives
Costs $500
Ensures the film is saved and backed up properly so we can make it to post production!!
Wardrobe
Costs $250
This will make sure our cast looks as good as they feel, which will be FANTASTIC!
Production Design
Costs $1,000
This will make sure the world feels fleshed out and lived in
Grip Package
Costs $1,500
To hold up all those dang lights!
Lighting
Costs $1,500
To light our incredibly talented actors + location + immaculately designed space and wardrobe!
Camera Rental + Lenses
Costs $2,500
So we don't have to shoot on iPhones (bad) !
Cube Truck / Gas / Tolls / Parking
Costs $1,250
To get all that beautiful grip + lighting + camera gear around!
Location Fees
Costs $500
Goes towards holding for cast + crew as well as a nominal fee for our wonderful locations!
Cash Pledge
Costs $0
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
Writer/Director: REID POPE
Reid Pope (they/them) is a comedian, playwright, and Jew (despite the ironic last name) who’s been featured in PAPER, Vulture, and Boys With Plants Magazine. Their TV project Old Queens won the 2023 ATX TV Festival Pitch Competition. In 2022, they were named a New York Comedy Festival Content Creator To Watch. They do stand-up weekly around NYC/BK and won Best Of Fest at Big Pine Comedy Festival. As a playwright, Reid has developed work with Jewish Plays Project, The Yes And… Laughter Lab, Edinburgh Fringe, & The 24 Hour Plays: Nationals. They are a New Georges Affiliated Artist. Follow Reid on Instagram @rpopegram. Subscribe To Their Weekly Newsletter: reidpope.substack.com. B.A. Brown | M.F.A. NYU
Producer: ZACH FLEMING
Zach Fleming (he/his) is a Brooklyn based filmmaker and producer.
He produced the Sundance short film ‘In the Flesh’. He most recently produced the short films Sleep Training by Sunita Prasad starring Meera Rohit Kumbhani and Dark Moon by Katie Mathews, starring Marin Ireland and Reed Birney, as well as the short film (You’ll Make It In) Florida, which has played at dozens of festivals around the world, including Fantastic Fest, Florida Film Festival, IndieLisboa, Sarasota Film Festival, and the Phoenix Film Festival, where it won Best Live Action Short.
Zach’s last short film Mickey Dogface is currently on the festival circuit and has so far screened at Nashville, Tallgrass, Indie Memphis, Brooklyn Horror, FERATUM International, IndieCork, Another Hole in the Head, Nitehawk Shorts Chattanooga, and Boston Underground Film Festival. His music videos have been featured in Spin and Impose Magazine.
In the commercial world, he’s produced work for brands like Quaker Oatmeal and LendingTree, starring big name celebs like Eli Manning and Molly Shannon - as well as a Zola commercial that got the CEO of Hallmark to step down, among others.
DP: REMINGTON LONG
Remington is a cinematographer from rural Northern California, currently based in New York City. A passion for camera and documentary filmmaking has led her work to be screened at the Sundance Film Festival, the Museum of Modern Art, the IFC Center, the Nitehawk Cinema and more. Remington was named by Zeiss Cinematography as one of the most “influential cinematographers” at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Her first feature as cinematographer, Sincerely, Los Angeles, is one of Ebony Studios’ inaugural projects and will be released in 2024. Remington is a member of the International Cinematographer’s Guild, IATSE Local 600 and a graduate of New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts.
Executive Producer: ADAM GOLD
Adam Gold is a comedy producer + talent manager based in NYC. Since 2021, Adam has produced 100+ live comedy shows including co-producing Mike Birbiglia’s Broadway Show The Old Man & The Pool. He co-wrote and executive produced the Adult Swim series “Indolent Allen.”
In 2017, Adam moved to New York without a job and began waiting tables at Caroline's on Broadway, taking the subway home at 2am on weeknights to live and breathe comedy. After working for the New York Comedy Festival, he landed a job at CollegeHumor as an executive assistant and climbed the ranks to production coordinator where he booked talent and produced CollegeHumor Live.
From 2020-2023, he worked at Rizzle, a short video app often referred to as the "TikTok of India" as a Talent & Development Manager. In that role, he greenlit 5,000+ vertical scripted & unscripted series from video creators all over the US.
In 2022, Adam started Twenty One Management, an independent management company where he takes tremendous pride in managing 20+ comedians, writers, actors, video creators, and animators.
In November, Adam is producing 33 shows as part of the New York Comedy Festival.
Production Design: EMAN AKRAM NADER
Eman Akram Nader is an NYC-based filmmaker, production designer/ propmaster, and co-founder of multi-media creative hub CUPALOY Studio. As a hybrid culture kid traversing coasts - Red Sea, Saudi Arabia and Lake Michigan, Chicago - her love for cinema began in her formative years watching bootlegged VHS tapes in Jeddah, KSA in a time when movie theatres were banned.
She has Production Designed Writer/ Director Paul Taylor’s award-winning indie short KIDDO, the upcoming shorts Another Sinking Sun (Dir. Tyler Rubenfeld), The Shadow Wrangler (Dir. Grace Rex), After the Deluge (Dir. Tara Young) and was Prop Master on the upcoming Netflix Turkish/ American feature co-production Last Call for Istanbul. Other recent art department credits include the features Anora (Dir. by Sean Baker), Memory (Dir. by Michel Franco), and Reality (Dir. by Tina Satter).
Costume Design: NAOMI DAVIDSON
Naomi Davidson is an apparel product developer, freelance stylist, and costume designer who lives in Brooklyn. Their previous credits include “One Million Girls” (2023), winner of SeriesFest’s “Best of Late Night.”
CAST:
Emily Wirth is a Comedian, Actor, and Writer living in Brooklyn, NY. She’s been performing comedy for over 7 years and most recently was featured in the New York Comedy Festival, as well as a live improv performance hosted by SNL’s Rachel Dratch. You can see Emily perform weekly at the Brooklyn Comedy Collective or all around the city at Union Hall, Under St Marks Theater, and any bar with a stage.
Jill Pangallo is an actor, writer, and producer living and working in New York City. Her multidisciplinary body of work includes solo performance, stand-up, performance art, alternative cabaret, movement, digital content, theater, TV and film. Current projects include Jane Johnson for the Stay at Home Shopper, a live show, pilot, and social media project in collaboration with comedian Shane O’Neill and playing Joyce Nawman (alongside renowned performer Mx. Justin Vivian Bond as Sandie Stone) for the London-based fashion house JW Anderson. Her latest solo show, Low Vibrations, debuted in Spring of 2021 on wildprojectTV as a part of the Followpot series, which she co-produced in an effort to help #SaveWildProject. Recently, she launched the Solo Project Fund, a grant program designed to support comedic artists in creating work for longer-format theatrical contexts.
Alex Song-Xia is a writer, actor, and comedian. They have written for TV shows including Rick and Morty, Praise Petey, Little Demon, and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. As an actor, Alex can be seen in The Week Of (Netflix), starring Adam Sandler and Chris Rock, High Maintenance (HBO), and Helpsters (Apple TV+). Alex has been profiled by Forbes and Vulture.