NOVA OVUM
Las Vegas, Nevada | Film Short
LGBTQ, Sci-Fi
The prevailing heteronormative perspective keeps us folx bound to Earth, when we deserve the stars: a film by queers, for queers. It's time we take charge of our own narrative. Help us unapologetically add queer characters to the sci-fi genre.
NOVA OVUM
Las Vegas, Nevada | Film Short
LGBTQ, Sci-Fi
1 Campaigns | New York, United States
Green Light
This campaign raised $15,617 for production. Follow the filmmaker to receive future updates on this project.
88 supporters | followers
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The prevailing heteronormative perspective keeps us folx bound to Earth, when we deserve the stars: a film by queers, for queers. It's time we take charge of our own narrative. Help us unapologetically add queer characters to the sci-fi genre.
About The Project
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
ORIGIN STORY
The story of our birth begins on a stormy summer night in Brooklyn, New York. Raindrops were giving roaring applause to Rob Riordan, writer/director, for living his best gay life: binging Gregg Araki’s work--Mysterious Skin and his fantastic TV series Now Apocalypse. The lightning illuminated Rob’s homo dungeon well into dawn, when Rob had made his way to the bountiful land of YouTube where he stumbled upon something most glorious. Something that deserved reverence. That longed to be immortalized among the stars....oviposition: the kink of having eggs laid inside of you.
The discovery of these non-toxic gelatinous eggs and their insemination tool called to Rob for a deeper dive into his creative depths--what if these items were truly reverent on an intergalactic level? What if using these tools sent out a beacon to queer aliens to come grab us from this god-forsaken planet overrun with THE STRAIGHTS?!
And SO! With a guttural cry out to the homosexual nebuli, the weaving of our story NOVA OVUM began. And as he wrote this story centering queer-femme folk, he realized something quite odd. THERE IS A SEVERE LACK OF QUEER REPRESENTATION IN SCI-FI! Bran Keene put it best in his article entitled “Science Fiction’s Queer Problem”:
“For a category of fiction predicated on imagining worlds stranger than and off at an angle to our own, it seems a rather glaring failing to exclude the minority aspects of human sexual identity from the vast majority of its stories. With a few notable, excellent exceptions, gay, lesbian, and bisexual characters are simply not present in science fiction. And that’s a problem.”
It’s time to add more queer people to the queerest genre of all! So that’s where Fran and El come in. Fran is a sprite-like, ethereal visual artist who is being drawn towards the stars by way of oviposition. El is a grounded and practical psychologist with a successful blog who is interested in 'encounters with the fourth kind' as a metaphor in her work and mere entertainment. They seem like a well matched pair, considering the phrase opposites attract, but will Fran’s resolve to find queer euphoria amongst the stars prove to be too much for El?
Adding another layer of importance to this is that in the creation of this film we are championing not just the queer perspective, but the femme perspective. Though the concept and direction is coming from a gay man, there is a predominance of genderqueer femme folk who are either cast, crew, creative, or helping market this production. We aren’t just going to ascend to Queer Euphoria on Planet X, our effort is to make it a reality here on Earth. Join us!
THE STORY SPELLED OUT! SPOILER ALERTS HERE!
Our story centers Fran(she/her) and El(she/they): a queer couple who has just moved in together. While their romantic dream of cohabitation is finally coming true, Fran is developing anxiety about revealing a new alien kink she's discovered and wants to explore with El.
Her fears are amplified by a predatory, toxically straight guy who finds the device they need to use for the kink. Once Fran gets the device back and reveals it, El's reaction is less than desirable. El begins to question the motives of the kink and whether or not she/they want to be part of Fran's idea.
We don't want to give too much more away, but this is a comedy--there's enough queer trauma out there. Good triumphs over evil; gay triumphs over straight. Our beautiful couple get everything they want, didn't know they needed, and MORE!
WHY WE NEED YA!
So, fellow aliens, why do we need you? Well, we’re currently in Pre-Production and need to secure funding in order to be able to shoot and pay people what they deserve.
We will be digitally releasing the film to the general public after we submit the film to festivals, but if you want to see the film BEFORE it goes to festivals, we have some great incentives that include the opportunity to do so. We’d love for you to follow our Instagram: @novaovum_film and engage in our various polls and posts that we have planned.
It’s going to be a funky, fun ride that strapping into will serve to expand and enrich your queer community. If we surpass our fundraising goals here on Seed & Spark, we plan to use those funds to help with post production costs--such as Editing and VFX!
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
FOOD!
Costs $1,300
Contributing this amount will ensure our team can be nourished and energized during our 5-day shoot
TRAVEL AND LODGING!
Costs $3,340
We need a space for our talented team to rest their cute heads. And we need to "teleport" them!
CAMERA!
Costs $5,425
We're using a RED Camera for our film! It's going to look so awesome!
ACTOR!
Costs $625
We are paying the actor playing EL. Pronouns will be adjusted according to casting.
LIGHTING!
Costs $1,720
We'd love for you to see the film!
SOUND!
Costs $990
We have some funny dialogue that we want you to be able to hear!
INTIMACY!
Costs $375
We're hiring an Intimacy Director to make sure our actors feel safe during sensual/sexual scenes.
HAIR AND MAKEUP!
Costs $600
We need our actors to look good on this Red Camera, honey.
PROPS & SET DRESSING!
Costs $1,200
We have very essential props in this film and we have quite an aesthetic to capture on a budget.
Cash Pledge
Costs $0
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
ROB RIORDAN: Director & Writer (he/him)- This is Rob's directorial debut. His artistic mission is to facilitate, create, and uplift unapologetically queer art for queer people. He has had the pleasure of starring in two feature films--with actors such as Danny Trejo, Eric Roberts, and Billy Baldwin--as well as a number of short films. He also has experience as a PA, set dresser, and even a make-up artist for various projects. He's openly queer and lives with his partner and two cats in Brooklyn, NY. BFA Webster Conservatory. Best Lead Actor in a Play Nomination (Broadway World Awards (2), Theatre Circle Awards).
LANA DVORAK: Actor & Producer (she/her)- Actor and maker based in Los Angeles, CA. She believes that strange is beautiful and that art should reflect the messy and queer world we live in. She works both on stage and off the stage as a writer and director, currating performances, and innovative classes. As she shifts her focus towards the world of film, she considers curiousity her vehicle.
KATHRYN BOYD-BATSTONE: Director of Photography (she/her)- an award winning Director and Cinematographer of narrative and documentary films in the Los Angeles area. Most recently she was the 2021 DGA Student Film Gold Winner, Women’s Category and Caucus Foundation 2nd Place Gold Circle Winner for her film For Rosa which premiered on HBO MAX May 2021. She also is a 2019 ASC Student Heritage Award Finalist for a documentary she lensed called God Bless the Cook. She is a USC School of Cinematic Arts MFA graduate with a master’s degree in cinematography and directing. A former Video Producer at We Are Mitú and years of dual immersion Spanish bilingual education, she is dedicated to helping tell stories that challenge stereotypes, push for change. Her work as a photojournalist has been published in CNN, The San Francisco Chronicle, National Public Radio, The Washington Post, USA Today. Kathryn studied photojournalism at the University of Oregon and was a News21 Fellow.
WESTON PORTER: Associate Producer (he/him)- a writer, director, and producer born in Las Vegas, Nevada. While attending University of San Francisco, he entered his first short film, Alice, into the Campus Film Festival competition. The film placed in the Top 10 of sixty four submissions. The following year, he was admitted to the University of Southern California where he directed, wrote, produced, and shot three short films. Collaborator and curator at Los Angeles-based gallery MAMA on a series of exhibitions alongside artists, actors, and musicians including Jena Malone, Lana del Rey, Rihanna, Ren Hang, Daniel Johnston, Flea, and Amanda Charchian. In 2017, he worked as a production assistant on a series of videos for choreographer Tricia Miranda, and commercials for both SERTA mattresses and Ring doorbells. During this time, he also wrote, produced and directed the short film Nightwalk, a 17-minute short film that takes place over the course of the 2016 presidential election night on the streets of Los Angeles. After the completion of Nightwalk, he used the film to apply to USC’s MFA Film Production major. He has subsequently directed three more short films, and has collaborated as producer on several others. During his time in the MFA program, he directed several shorts and co-produced an advanced documentary entitled Breaking and Entering. The film had its world premiere at the Aero Theatre in Santa Monica, where it screened as one of the theatre’s official short film selections and was an official selection of First Look 2020. He has also worked as cinematographer on several projects, including the short film Dust, an official selection of the Atlanta Sci-Fi Film Festival, and assisted in the production of music videos and spec commercials. He recently graduated Magna Cum Laude and is currently working on pre production of Vuelve and his thesis film, Line of Fire. BA in Cinematic Arts Critical Studies from USC. MFA in Film Production from USC.
TRACE TURNER: Intimacy Coordinator (he/they): a queer multi-disciplinary artist from deep in the heart of Texas. Trace is a theatrical director, movement director and Intimacy Coordinator. They also are a photographer and a writer. Trace is also a Scorpio and a lover of breakfast foods (eggs). BA in Directing from Webster Conservatory.
Current Team
Incentives
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
ORIGIN STORY
The story of our birth begins on a stormy summer night in Brooklyn, New York. Raindrops were giving roaring applause to Rob Riordan, writer/director, for living his best gay life: binging Gregg Araki’s work--Mysterious Skin and his fantastic TV series Now Apocalypse. The lightning illuminated Rob’s homo dungeon well into dawn, when Rob had made his way to the bountiful land of YouTube where he stumbled upon something most glorious. Something that deserved reverence. That longed to be immortalized among the stars....oviposition: the kink of having eggs laid inside of you.
The discovery of these non-toxic gelatinous eggs and their insemination tool called to Rob for a deeper dive into his creative depths--what if these items were truly reverent on an intergalactic level? What if using these tools sent out a beacon to queer aliens to come grab us from this god-forsaken planet overrun with THE STRAIGHTS?!
And SO! With a guttural cry out to the homosexual nebuli, the weaving of our story NOVA OVUM began. And as he wrote this story centering queer-femme folk, he realized something quite odd. THERE IS A SEVERE LACK OF QUEER REPRESENTATION IN SCI-FI! Bran Keene put it best in his article entitled “Science Fiction’s Queer Problem”:
“For a category of fiction predicated on imagining worlds stranger than and off at an angle to our own, it seems a rather glaring failing to exclude the minority aspects of human sexual identity from the vast majority of its stories. With a few notable, excellent exceptions, gay, lesbian, and bisexual characters are simply not present in science fiction. And that’s a problem.”
It’s time to add more queer people to the queerest genre of all! So that’s where Fran and El come in. Fran is a sprite-like, ethereal visual artist who is being drawn towards the stars by way of oviposition. El is a grounded and practical psychologist with a successful blog who is interested in 'encounters with the fourth kind' as a metaphor in her work and mere entertainment. They seem like a well matched pair, considering the phrase opposites attract, but will Fran’s resolve to find queer euphoria amongst the stars prove to be too much for El?
Adding another layer of importance to this is that in the creation of this film we are championing not just the queer perspective, but the femme perspective. Though the concept and direction is coming from a gay man, there is a predominance of genderqueer femme folk who are either cast, crew, creative, or helping market this production. We aren’t just going to ascend to Queer Euphoria on Planet X, our effort is to make it a reality here on Earth. Join us!
THE STORY SPELLED OUT! SPOILER ALERTS HERE!
Our story centers Fran(she/her) and El(she/they): a queer couple who has just moved in together. While their romantic dream of cohabitation is finally coming true, Fran is developing anxiety about revealing a new alien kink she's discovered and wants to explore with El.
Her fears are amplified by a predatory, toxically straight guy who finds the device they need to use for the kink. Once Fran gets the device back and reveals it, El's reaction is less than desirable. El begins to question the motives of the kink and whether or not she/they want to be part of Fran's idea.
We don't want to give too much more away, but this is a comedy--there's enough queer trauma out there. Good triumphs over evil; gay triumphs over straight. Our beautiful couple get everything they want, didn't know they needed, and MORE!
WHY WE NEED YA!
So, fellow aliens, why do we need you? Well, we’re currently in Pre-Production and need to secure funding in order to be able to shoot and pay people what they deserve.
We will be digitally releasing the film to the general public after we submit the film to festivals, but if you want to see the film BEFORE it goes to festivals, we have some great incentives that include the opportunity to do so. We’d love for you to follow our Instagram: @novaovum_film and engage in our various polls and posts that we have planned.
It’s going to be a funky, fun ride that strapping into will serve to expand and enrich your queer community. If we surpass our fundraising goals here on Seed & Spark, we plan to use those funds to help with post production costs--such as Editing and VFX!
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
FOOD!
Costs $1,300
Contributing this amount will ensure our team can be nourished and energized during our 5-day shoot
TRAVEL AND LODGING!
Costs $3,340
We need a space for our talented team to rest their cute heads. And we need to "teleport" them!
CAMERA!
Costs $5,425
We're using a RED Camera for our film! It's going to look so awesome!
ACTOR!
Costs $625
We are paying the actor playing EL. Pronouns will be adjusted according to casting.
LIGHTING!
Costs $1,720
We'd love for you to see the film!
SOUND!
Costs $990
We have some funny dialogue that we want you to be able to hear!
INTIMACY!
Costs $375
We're hiring an Intimacy Director to make sure our actors feel safe during sensual/sexual scenes.
HAIR AND MAKEUP!
Costs $600
We need our actors to look good on this Red Camera, honey.
PROPS & SET DRESSING!
Costs $1,200
We have very essential props in this film and we have quite an aesthetic to capture on a budget.
Cash Pledge
Costs $0
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
ROB RIORDAN: Director & Writer (he/him)- This is Rob's directorial debut. His artistic mission is to facilitate, create, and uplift unapologetically queer art for queer people. He has had the pleasure of starring in two feature films--with actors such as Danny Trejo, Eric Roberts, and Billy Baldwin--as well as a number of short films. He also has experience as a PA, set dresser, and even a make-up artist for various projects. He's openly queer and lives with his partner and two cats in Brooklyn, NY. BFA Webster Conservatory. Best Lead Actor in a Play Nomination (Broadway World Awards (2), Theatre Circle Awards).
LANA DVORAK: Actor & Producer (she/her)- Actor and maker based in Los Angeles, CA. She believes that strange is beautiful and that art should reflect the messy and queer world we live in. She works both on stage and off the stage as a writer and director, currating performances, and innovative classes. As she shifts her focus towards the world of film, she considers curiousity her vehicle.
KATHRYN BOYD-BATSTONE: Director of Photography (she/her)- an award winning Director and Cinematographer of narrative and documentary films in the Los Angeles area. Most recently she was the 2021 DGA Student Film Gold Winner, Women’s Category and Caucus Foundation 2nd Place Gold Circle Winner for her film For Rosa which premiered on HBO MAX May 2021. She also is a 2019 ASC Student Heritage Award Finalist for a documentary she lensed called God Bless the Cook. She is a USC School of Cinematic Arts MFA graduate with a master’s degree in cinematography and directing. A former Video Producer at We Are Mitú and years of dual immersion Spanish bilingual education, she is dedicated to helping tell stories that challenge stereotypes, push for change. Her work as a photojournalist has been published in CNN, The San Francisco Chronicle, National Public Radio, The Washington Post, USA Today. Kathryn studied photojournalism at the University of Oregon and was a News21 Fellow.
WESTON PORTER: Associate Producer (he/him)- a writer, director, and producer born in Las Vegas, Nevada. While attending University of San Francisco, he entered his first short film, Alice, into the Campus Film Festival competition. The film placed in the Top 10 of sixty four submissions. The following year, he was admitted to the University of Southern California where he directed, wrote, produced, and shot three short films. Collaborator and curator at Los Angeles-based gallery MAMA on a series of exhibitions alongside artists, actors, and musicians including Jena Malone, Lana del Rey, Rihanna, Ren Hang, Daniel Johnston, Flea, and Amanda Charchian. In 2017, he worked as a production assistant on a series of videos for choreographer Tricia Miranda, and commercials for both SERTA mattresses and Ring doorbells. During this time, he also wrote, produced and directed the short film Nightwalk, a 17-minute short film that takes place over the course of the 2016 presidential election night on the streets of Los Angeles. After the completion of Nightwalk, he used the film to apply to USC’s MFA Film Production major. He has subsequently directed three more short films, and has collaborated as producer on several others. During his time in the MFA program, he directed several shorts and co-produced an advanced documentary entitled Breaking and Entering. The film had its world premiere at the Aero Theatre in Santa Monica, where it screened as one of the theatre’s official short film selections and was an official selection of First Look 2020. He has also worked as cinematographer on several projects, including the short film Dust, an official selection of the Atlanta Sci-Fi Film Festival, and assisted in the production of music videos and spec commercials. He recently graduated Magna Cum Laude and is currently working on pre production of Vuelve and his thesis film, Line of Fire. BA in Cinematic Arts Critical Studies from USC. MFA in Film Production from USC.
TRACE TURNER: Intimacy Coordinator (he/they): a queer multi-disciplinary artist from deep in the heart of Texas. Trace is a theatrical director, movement director and Intimacy Coordinator. They also are a photographer and a writer. Trace is also a Scorpio and a lover of breakfast foods (eggs). BA in Directing from Webster Conservatory.