Saint Paul
San Francisco, California | Film Short
Documentary, Other
This is a documentary about Paul Crowell, a San Francisco resident who turned his traumatic past into a source of love, strength, and empathy to help the homeless by helping their pets. For many in this community, their animals are their only source of love—and sometimes their only reason to live.
Saint Paul
San Francisco, California | Film Short
Documentary, Other
1 Campaigns | California, United States
Green Light
This campaign raised $34,296 for post-production. Follow the filmmaker to receive future updates on this project.
208 supporters | followers
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This is a documentary about Paul Crowell, a San Francisco resident who turned his traumatic past into a source of love, strength, and empathy to help the homeless by helping their pets. For many in this community, their animals are their only source of love—and sometimes their only reason to live.
About The Project
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
Paul Crowell’s first memory is one of tragedy: packing his toys into a station wagon before being taken to a foster home. It would be the first of many, and the beginning of what would become years of suffering from various forms of abuse from his caretakers and peers.
Through tragedy, Paul developed a deep love and connection with animals. They accepted him as he was and could be trusted, unlike the adults who only hurt him.
Today, Paul lives in San Francisco, where he has dedicated his life to helping provide care for animals (mostly dogs) whose guardians are homeless. He’s been at this for nearly a decade, doing everything by foot.
As a result, he ends up walking 200+ miles each month—while pulling a heavy cart filled with supplies—to provide nearly 60-80 dogs with food, hygiene essentials, toys, and medical care, like vaccinations.
Paul is a humble and generous man with limited resources. So he relies on his Instagram account and a fundraising platform to raise the money he needs. When donations slow down, he uses what little money he has to cover the costs. His mission has consumed nearly every part of his life.
Yet he keeps pushing forward.
WHY US?
In many ways, this project is personal. We are all animal lovers, and the majority of our team either lives, or recently lived, in San Francisco. The individuals within these communities are our neighbors.
We’ve seen people on the streets who have passed away as their friend desperately tries to get them to wake up. We’ve made those 911 calls to prevent someone from dying because they're going through withdrawal. We’ve also had our own misconceptions about homelessness, the unhoused community, and the role animals play in their lives.
By getting to know Paul and the people he helps, we realized that we were simply not informed. We hope this documentary can bring understanding to others in a similar manner.
We also bring a wealth of experience in storytelling that spans a wide range of media, including film, and are working tirelessly to craft a documentary that’s deserving of your support and does Paul’s story justice.
WHY THIS FILM?
On the surface, this may seem like a documentary about a man who loves feeding dogs. And it is. But only up to a point.
Saint Paul touches upon a variety of complex and heavy issues—most notably: abuse and homelessness. The dogs in this film help create common ground and a disarming atmosphere to make these topics more approachable.
POST-PRODUCTION TIMELINE
Editing is set to kick off late summer of 2023. Documentaries are living projects, meaning new developments may unfold that we’ll need to capture. We may discover parts of Paul’s story that need to be reshot for one reason or another. We’ve taken these variables into consideration, and are scheduled to have a locked edit early 2024. From there, we’ll move into coloring and mixing sound. Assuming we don’t experience any setbacks, we expect to finish the film in the Spring of 2024.
BUDGET BREAKDOWN
We need $32,000 to cover the costs of editing, audio mixing, coloring, creating an original score, and distribution. This will allow us to partner with Burn a Light—an award-winning social impact studio with a track record of telling impactful stories—to bring Paul’s story to life.
Anything in excess of the minimum amount needed will be used to further enhance the original score and get the word out with more film festival entries—our primary distribution channel.
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Sound, Editing, Graphics
Costs $23,000
This allows us to partner with Burn a Light (BAL) to professionally edit, color, mix, and create meaningful graphics to enhance the story.
Story Development
Costs $2,000
These funds will go towards our partnership with BAL to create the most impactful story possible through the magic of collaboration.
Original Score
Costs $2,000
Music is a film’s emotional undercurrent, helping viewers experience Paul’s story more deeply. Stock lacks the nuance required for this.
Marketing and Distribution
Costs $3,000
The more people who hear Paul’s story, the more understanding we can bring to a population that’s misunderstood and shunned by society.
Reshoots and Unexpected Costs
Costs $2,000
In a way a documentary is never done. We need to be ready to capture new developments and cover the equipment rental and travel costs.
Cash Pledge
Costs $0
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
Michael Williams
Michael is a writer, veteran, and dog dad. This film started when he accidentally ordered the wrong size of sweaters for his pup (and service animal), Sammy. Instead of returning the items, he was told to donate them. He knew just the guy.
Steve Kaye
Steve is a videographer in San Francisco who, despite being a cat person, was instantly drawn to Paul's story. He managed the cameras and audio on this project and is excited to share Paul's drive, generosity, humor, and quirkiness with the world.
Julian Cuello
Julian is a client service manager with an extensive background in business development and fundraising. He and his wife are advocates of homeless rights and the community’s well-being. His wife’s recent research on suicidality within the homeless community was published in multiple medical journals earlier this year.
Iris Yuan
Iris is a transportation engineer in Atlanta, who has traveled worldwide working on airport transportation projects. She brings her punctuality and 20 years worth of project management skills to help keep everything running on schedule.
Current Team
Incentives
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
Paul Crowell’s first memory is one of tragedy: packing his toys into a station wagon before being taken to a foster home. It would be the first of many, and the beginning of what would become years of suffering from various forms of abuse from his caretakers and peers.
Through tragedy, Paul developed a deep love and connection with animals. They accepted him as he was and could be trusted, unlike the adults who only hurt him.
Today, Paul lives in San Francisco, where he has dedicated his life to helping provide care for animals (mostly dogs) whose guardians are homeless. He’s been at this for nearly a decade, doing everything by foot.
As a result, he ends up walking 200+ miles each month—while pulling a heavy cart filled with supplies—to provide nearly 60-80 dogs with food, hygiene essentials, toys, and medical care, like vaccinations.
Paul is a humble and generous man with limited resources. So he relies on his Instagram account and a fundraising platform to raise the money he needs. When donations slow down, he uses what little money he has to cover the costs. His mission has consumed nearly every part of his life.
Yet he keeps pushing forward.
WHY US?
In many ways, this project is personal. We are all animal lovers, and the majority of our team either lives, or recently lived, in San Francisco. The individuals within these communities are our neighbors.
We’ve seen people on the streets who have passed away as their friend desperately tries to get them to wake up. We’ve made those 911 calls to prevent someone from dying because they're going through withdrawal. We’ve also had our own misconceptions about homelessness, the unhoused community, and the role animals play in their lives.
By getting to know Paul and the people he helps, we realized that we were simply not informed. We hope this documentary can bring understanding to others in a similar manner.
We also bring a wealth of experience in storytelling that spans a wide range of media, including film, and are working tirelessly to craft a documentary that’s deserving of your support and does Paul’s story justice.
WHY THIS FILM?
On the surface, this may seem like a documentary about a man who loves feeding dogs. And it is. But only up to a point.
Saint Paul touches upon a variety of complex and heavy issues—most notably: abuse and homelessness. The dogs in this film help create common ground and a disarming atmosphere to make these topics more approachable.
POST-PRODUCTION TIMELINE
Editing is set to kick off late summer of 2023. Documentaries are living projects, meaning new developments may unfold that we’ll need to capture. We may discover parts of Paul’s story that need to be reshot for one reason or another. We’ve taken these variables into consideration, and are scheduled to have a locked edit early 2024. From there, we’ll move into coloring and mixing sound. Assuming we don’t experience any setbacks, we expect to finish the film in the Spring of 2024.
BUDGET BREAKDOWN
We need $32,000 to cover the costs of editing, audio mixing, coloring, creating an original score, and distribution. This will allow us to partner with Burn a Light—an award-winning social impact studio with a track record of telling impactful stories—to bring Paul’s story to life.
Anything in excess of the minimum amount needed will be used to further enhance the original score and get the word out with more film festival entries—our primary distribution channel.
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Sound, Editing, Graphics
Costs $23,000
This allows us to partner with Burn a Light (BAL) to professionally edit, color, mix, and create meaningful graphics to enhance the story.
Story Development
Costs $2,000
These funds will go towards our partnership with BAL to create the most impactful story possible through the magic of collaboration.
Original Score
Costs $2,000
Music is a film’s emotional undercurrent, helping viewers experience Paul’s story more deeply. Stock lacks the nuance required for this.
Marketing and Distribution
Costs $3,000
The more people who hear Paul’s story, the more understanding we can bring to a population that’s misunderstood and shunned by society.
Reshoots and Unexpected Costs
Costs $2,000
In a way a documentary is never done. We need to be ready to capture new developments and cover the equipment rental and travel costs.
Cash Pledge
Costs $0
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
Michael Williams
Michael is a writer, veteran, and dog dad. This film started when he accidentally ordered the wrong size of sweaters for his pup (and service animal), Sammy. Instead of returning the items, he was told to donate them. He knew just the guy.
Steve Kaye
Steve is a videographer in San Francisco who, despite being a cat person, was instantly drawn to Paul's story. He managed the cameras and audio on this project and is excited to share Paul's drive, generosity, humor, and quirkiness with the world.
Julian Cuello
Julian is a client service manager with an extensive background in business development and fundraising. He and his wife are advocates of homeless rights and the community’s well-being. His wife’s recent research on suicidality within the homeless community was published in multiple medical journals earlier this year.
Iris Yuan
Iris is a transportation engineer in Atlanta, who has traveled worldwide working on airport transportation projects. She brings her punctuality and 20 years worth of project management skills to help keep everything running on schedule.