What is 'Stay Inside'?

In January, I brought a script to two of my friends Martina and Aidan, called Stay Inside. It was a horror/thriller that was a different take on the classic serial-killer trope. Thankfully the two of them liked the script and we planned to shoot it in the Spring. We then held auditions for this project and found three phenomental NYC actors that blew us away in Rachael Klein, Connor Schulz and Meghan Hornblower and began our Pre-Production. Soon after that, the pandemic began and for the safety of everyone involved, we had to delay this particular project. More than half a year later, we all still love the script and our team is intact and ready to finish what we started.

I'm not one to give away many plot details in our script, but the script is bookended by a news reporter (Meghan Hornblower) giving a chilling news report about a string of serial murders taking place throughout New York City. Though the inhabitants of New York City are urged to stay indoors and not interact with strangers at this time, Ella (Rachael Klein) orders a pizza and invites the pizza delivery man (Connor Schulz) indoors. The two share an awkward, but somewhat reciprocal chemistry, despite the subject matter of their dialogue being off-putting and dark. The night takes a turn for the worst with a gory action sequence and thrilling end to the film.

Who Are We?

CAST:

Rachael Klein- Rachael is an experienced lead actress, best-known for her performances in short films such as Cravings (2020) and Murder Creek (2019) and the Fantasy/Rom-Com webseries The Spirit Inside Me (2020). 

Connor Schulz- Connor has appeared as a Co-Star in episodes of The Blacklist, was apart of the cast on the national tour of the esteemed Broadway musical Cabaret and has a lead role in the New York Film Academy's Cuzukoo.

Meghan Hornblower- Meghan is a classically trained theatre actress that performed many starring roles with the Bay Colony Shakespeare company and most notably had a supporting role in 2020 Best Picture nominee Little Women. 

Production Team:

Martina Inumidun Iwala- Martina has worked for reality projects such as Project Runway, The Real Housewives of New Jersey, and Ripley's Believe It or Not and is the founder of Operation Adulting, a non-for-profit organization that focuses on mentoring and educating underprivileged minority and LGBTQIA+ youths. She juggles many projects and is a complete badass and force-of-nature as a producer. 

Aidan Tracy- Aidan is a working actor and on-set film freelancer working many different on-set positions. Last year, he founded Big Apple Shorts, a group of creators in New York City that work together for free to colloborate on projects and develop each other's reels. He is currently raising a budget to shoot another short, 'Hit The Bucket', in November, but will be joining us as a producer after that is shot.

Jacob Paul- That's me! Since graduating the University of Michigan in 2019, I have been directing no-budget shorts and sketches, performing stand-up comedy in New York, and working many crew positions on film-sets. I've worked on feature films, TV pilots, AFI shorts and commercials. I have also written many scripts, most notably a TV pilot Transplants that I submitted to a couple screenwriting competitions and placed as a Semi-Finalist in the Filmmatic Comedy Screenplay Awards.

*Martina and I are planning to expand our team as we raise our budget, but we hope to keep it small in order to be cost-efficient and covid-safe. 

Why Is This Project Important?

I've seen many people (mostly those that don't work in entertainment) claim that art is not essential during the pandemic or say that the only type of work that should be created in traumatic times are comedies or 'lighter' works with a more positive outlook on the world. But, as someone who loves comedy, believes in the power of comedy, and even performs stand up in New York, I disagree. We don't just need comedy and positive outlooks in the world; we need to see every outlook in the world.

We certainly are living in unprecedented and harrowing times and this film is a thriller that I guarantee you will be terrifying. But for the first time in close to a year for many people, our short will grant people the opportunity to feel a sense of horror that actually ends when you leave the theatre or turn off your TV. There is a mass audience for horror films in the world and we want to reach them while also creating a project that will appeal to a wider audience.  

I'm sure there are many people that will read this section of our pitch and think that we are being idealistic in prioritizing filmmaking at this time or think that we are being irresponsible by asking people for financial contributions at a time of economic downturn. But we will be taking extra measures, including covid-testing, masks, and social distancing during our shoot to ensure the safety of our cast and crew. As for the economic concerns, we'd contend that freelance filmmakers and crew members need an opportunity to work after almost a full year where many were unable to perform their normal jobs. We also have great incentives offered for you all that will grant you the opportunity to join our team!

Jacob Gets Personal

And look, even if you don't care about filmmaking or horror or you hate getting involved with things or even just don't like reading all these long paragraphs that I wrote here, please just read these last three paragraphs before you choose not to get involved with our project:

As a 24 year old writer/director/comedian on the verge of making a career for himself, at the beginning of the pandemic I was feeling a bit unsure and emotionally stunned. I couldn't audition at clubs, I couldn't shoot this short film, I couldn't even move to Los Angeles after having bought my flight and found roommates for a move in the middle of 2020. I also couldn't really feel bad for myself, because many people were going through much more difficult times. My life was just put on pause and I wasn't sure what to do.

I then watched a Netflix special that was about my favorite comedian, Dave Chappelle, winning the prestigious Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. Many of the greatest figures in comedy spoke at the event and told stories about their interactions with Chappelle over the year. Lorne Michaels recounted a story of Dave Chappelle interacting with the SNL cast the day after the Trump/Clinton election, as he was preparing to host the show that weekend. As Lorne tells the story, the emotions in the room ran rampant, but Chappelle calmly opted to read a quote written by esteemed novelist Toni Morrison about creating art in difficult times, "There is no time for despair, no place for self-pity, no need for silence, no room for fear. We speak, we write, we do language. That is how civilizations heal." 

Chappelle hosted that SNL episode four years ago and the Mark Twain Award Ceremony occured months before the pandemic began, but to me, the context is irrelevant when I consider that quote. Me and my team are filmmakers and we're going to make a great short film that will play in a festival in 2021. To raise our budget, we need $30 from 200 different people. That's it. Please give what you can and more than anything, stay in touch with us throughout production. Tell us what we can do to make a film you enjoy! We really appreciate whatever support you can give us and we will constantly be posting updates on our project throughout production. Thank you!