Motherlands
Los Angeles, California | Series
Documentary
MOTHERLANDS is a docu-series that questions the cost of the American Dream by returning to her mother’s land, surrounding herself in the crafts, wisdom, and concepts that could arise from leading life from a matriarchal lens.
Motherlands
Los Angeles, California | Series
Documentary
1 Campaigns | California, United States
44 supporters | followers
Enter the amount you would like to pledge
$4,196
Goal: $13,000 for production
MOTHERLANDS is a docu-series that questions the cost of the American Dream by returning to her mother’s land, surrounding herself in the crafts, wisdom, and concepts that could arise from leading life from a matriarchal lens.
About The Project
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
Motherlands is the story of returning to the place where we all come from: the Mother.
We begin in Panorama, the town Effie lived in as a child. The documentary follows Effie from her home, introducing the audience to experience the journey through her, as subject. She then travels to her mother’s village in rural Greece where Effie learns the unique crafts and ways of life from the people who still know them. The first interviewee and episode focuses on her great aunt, Vosco, keeper of all local herbal remedies and master pita-maker. Within each episode, Effie will learn a different Greek tradition from her elder, and then highlight other creators in her generation that are bringing these traditions to the mainstream in a modern lens. The goal of the series is to showcase Greece and its rich Renaissance that is happening now in the arts, film, fashion, and more and use it as the prime example of how we can marry the traditions of old to give our lives meaning and purpose in the now. It tries to find the balance between modernity and preservation.
Right now, we are raising money to film the pilot episode to then take to investors to complete the series.
While this first episode focuses on Vosco and Effie's re-grounding in the earth and natural practices, the season will take both filmmakers and audiences around Greece. We'll visit ancient sites, where architecture that defined the Western world was built, and we will meet the people who still live there today.
Outlined below are our episode breakdowns that tell the story of Effie's return to her motherland.
Episode 1: Back to the Motherland; Gardening and Herbalism with Aunt Vosco. Featuring Soma + Soul skincare
Episode 2: Seed to Stitch; wool, textiles, shepherding and fashion with Alexandra and Archaic Kori, How to make Flokati
Episode 3: Fresh Food; Fishing, foraging (mushrooms), boar hunting, and the gathering after. (featuring food journalist Anastasia Miari)
Episode 4: "Katharsis"- exploring storytelling, theatre, dance, and the Greek Weird Wave
Episode 5: Reverence; New Pagans, Orthodoxy, folklore and how to cope with life and loss
Episode 6: In Memoriam; how family stories are captured, from photobooks of old to the modern day recording on iPhones.
Episode 7: Art and FemaleReverence and Artifacts; how Athen’s is reinventing its city scape
Episode 8: gnōthi sauton or "Know Thyself: - applying village wisdom to today, how Effie applies what she learned to her own life and how others have already successfully done it. This will feature artisans who use ancient techniques, like pottery, and how they have modernized it/made a business in the city
In Season one of Motherlands, we will use the medium of dance, physical theatre and a technique she calls "kinetography" to help add visual intrigue to the narrative as well as utilizing the female gaze.
Greece has a long history of dance theatre and Effie will draw inspiration from classical dance, modern dance in Athens, and the works of Maya Deren to help drive the story in a unique way.
Drawing inspiration from the conversations had with the subjects of the piece, the story, "how to live well," is told through a combination of interviews, dance and physical theater, and fly on the wall moments as a "Kinetograph" is a film told in poetic form, in that the images reflect a subconscious connection to the subjects, sounds, and content of the piece.
Method, Vision, and Strategy
The vision for this series is for it to become a jumping off point for the careers of many Greek brands to reach a wider, American audience. It is also to create a new format of documentary storytelling that does not merely rely on narrative exposition, but includes other means of expression to give a richer dialogue to the viewer’s subconscious of what the stories can feel like. The larger goal for this series is for it to become a launching point for other 1st or 2nd generation Americans to explore their own cultures in a new series.
We would like to gather a skeleton crew of Greek filmmakers for this project as she respects that the people she is interviewing have private lives and believes that an imposing crew would not create a sustainable film set, both ecologically and emotionally.
This would consist of a crew of four people; Effie, a DP, a boom operator, and a PA.
Any additional funds will be used to help us stay in Greece longer and dive deeper in the culture.
After finishing the pilot, we are seeking to pitch the rest of the series to distribution and production companies, such as Ertflix, Netflix, or Amazon. We see the potential for this series, going beyond Greece, and we hope that you can too!
Thank you for your support!
To follow along on our campaign and journey to Greece, follow us on Facebook and Instagram: @motherlands_docuseries.
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Plane Tickets!
Costs $1,500
Well, we have to get to Greece somehow - and flying is the best option!
Room and Board
Costs $3,000
No AI to be found here - we filmmakers still need to eat and sleep!
Share this update!
About This Team
Efthemia Zgonis, aka Effie Spence, is an experimental filmmaker, actress and poet focusing on bringing audiences together with work that weaves her biophilia through the feminine lens and is heavily influenced by her Grecian roots. Each one of her works is created from research-based techniques as well as dream-work and vision-crafting. As a first generation Greek-American, she was always used to living in two worlds with very different approaches to life. After losing her father at twenty, she is driven to explore the secrets of longevity and ask the question of not only how do we prolong our lives, but how do we live well?
Anna Engel is a writer and producer who focuses on stories with strong female voices. Originally hailing from Northern Nevada, she now works on film projects around the world, lending her talents to projects for Netflix and Showtime. She is currently working on her debut novel, which is rooted in Scottish and Icelandic folklore and the traditional art of storytelling.
Current Team
Incentives
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
Motherlands is the story of returning to the place where we all come from: the Mother.
We begin in Panorama, the town Effie lived in as a child. The documentary follows Effie from her home, introducing the audience to experience the journey through her, as subject. She then travels to her mother’s village in rural Greece where Effie learns the unique crafts and ways of life from the people who still know them. The first interviewee and episode focuses on her great aunt, Vosco, keeper of all local herbal remedies and master pita-maker. Within each episode, Effie will learn a different Greek tradition from her elder, and then highlight other creators in her generation that are bringing these traditions to the mainstream in a modern lens. The goal of the series is to showcase Greece and its rich Renaissance that is happening now in the arts, film, fashion, and more and use it as the prime example of how we can marry the traditions of old to give our lives meaning and purpose in the now. It tries to find the balance between modernity and preservation.
Right now, we are raising money to film the pilot episode to then take to investors to complete the series.
While this first episode focuses on Vosco and Effie's re-grounding in the earth and natural practices, the season will take both filmmakers and audiences around Greece. We'll visit ancient sites, where architecture that defined the Western world was built, and we will meet the people who still live there today.
Outlined below are our episode breakdowns that tell the story of Effie's return to her motherland.
Episode 1: Back to the Motherland; Gardening and Herbalism with Aunt Vosco. Featuring Soma + Soul skincare
Episode 2: Seed to Stitch; wool, textiles, shepherding and fashion with Alexandra and Archaic Kori, How to make Flokati
Episode 3: Fresh Food; Fishing, foraging (mushrooms), boar hunting, and the gathering after. (featuring food journalist Anastasia Miari)
Episode 4: "Katharsis"- exploring storytelling, theatre, dance, and the Greek Weird Wave
Episode 5: Reverence; New Pagans, Orthodoxy, folklore and how to cope with life and loss
Episode 6: In Memoriam; how family stories are captured, from photobooks of old to the modern day recording on iPhones.
Episode 7: Art and FemaleReverence and Artifacts; how Athen’s is reinventing its city scape
Episode 8: gnōthi sauton or "Know Thyself: - applying village wisdom to today, how Effie applies what she learned to her own life and how others have already successfully done it. This will feature artisans who use ancient techniques, like pottery, and how they have modernized it/made a business in the city
In Season one of Motherlands, we will use the medium of dance, physical theatre and a technique she calls "kinetography" to help add visual intrigue to the narrative as well as utilizing the female gaze.
Greece has a long history of dance theatre and Effie will draw inspiration from classical dance, modern dance in Athens, and the works of Maya Deren to help drive the story in a unique way.
Drawing inspiration from the conversations had with the subjects of the piece, the story, "how to live well," is told through a combination of interviews, dance and physical theater, and fly on the wall moments as a "Kinetograph" is a film told in poetic form, in that the images reflect a subconscious connection to the subjects, sounds, and content of the piece.
Method, Vision, and Strategy
The vision for this series is for it to become a jumping off point for the careers of many Greek brands to reach a wider, American audience. It is also to create a new format of documentary storytelling that does not merely rely on narrative exposition, but includes other means of expression to give a richer dialogue to the viewer’s subconscious of what the stories can feel like. The larger goal for this series is for it to become a launching point for other 1st or 2nd generation Americans to explore their own cultures in a new series.
We would like to gather a skeleton crew of Greek filmmakers for this project as she respects that the people she is interviewing have private lives and believes that an imposing crew would not create a sustainable film set, both ecologically and emotionally.
This would consist of a crew of four people; Effie, a DP, a boom operator, and a PA.
Any additional funds will be used to help us stay in Greece longer and dive deeper in the culture.
After finishing the pilot, we are seeking to pitch the rest of the series to distribution and production companies, such as Ertflix, Netflix, or Amazon. We see the potential for this series, going beyond Greece, and we hope that you can too!
Thank you for your support!
To follow along on our campaign and journey to Greece, follow us on Facebook and Instagram: @motherlands_docuseries.
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Plane Tickets!
Costs $1,500
Well, we have to get to Greece somehow - and flying is the best option!
Room and Board
Costs $3,000
No AI to be found here - we filmmakers still need to eat and sleep!
Share this update!
About This Team
Efthemia Zgonis, aka Effie Spence, is an experimental filmmaker, actress and poet focusing on bringing audiences together with work that weaves her biophilia through the feminine lens and is heavily influenced by her Grecian roots. Each one of her works is created from research-based techniques as well as dream-work and vision-crafting. As a first generation Greek-American, she was always used to living in two worlds with very different approaches to life. After losing her father at twenty, she is driven to explore the secrets of longevity and ask the question of not only how do we prolong our lives, but how do we live well?
Anna Engel is a writer and producer who focuses on stories with strong female voices. Originally hailing from Northern Nevada, she now works on film projects around the world, lending her talents to projects for Netflix and Showtime. She is currently working on her debut novel, which is rooted in Scottish and Icelandic folklore and the traditional art of storytelling.