The Monster and Me

New York City, New York | Film Short

Family, Animation

Amelie Škerla

1 Campaigns | New York, United States

40 days :23 hrs :15 mins

Until Deadline

5 supporters | followers

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$180

Goal: $3,500 for production

A coming-of-age story about a lonely middle school girl who has to learn how to make real friends by saying goodbye to her imaginary one, a doodle she brought to life called the Monster.

About The Project

  • The Story
  • Wishlist
  • Updates
  • The Team
  • Community

Mission Statement

Inside every artist, sound designer, actor, and producer on our team is a shy middle schooler just like our protagonist, Clementine. She's the type of character I wish I saw more of as a kid, especially as the lead. We want to show kids that this isn't something they're going through alone.

The Story



Meet Clementine!


She's our lonely little artist who struggles with talking to the other kids at school. Her idea of a good time includes just two things: her sketchbook and a pen. That is, until the pen breaks... and Clementine comes up with the idea to combine her love for drawing with her desire to make friends.



Lightning! Thunder! Dollar store scented candles!


Clementine brings to life...




The Monster!

But don't be fooled by his monstrous appearance. He's a big softie really. And his favorite thing in the whole world is having tea parties with Clementine. He's there for her when she needs him, until she won't anymore...



As you can see, a lot of ink, passion, and talent has already gone into this film. A coming-of-age story is nothing without the art to complement it, and our wonderful artists have drawn from beautiful watercolor styles in children's films from around the world to inspire their work.



This is a very special, personal story to me, and it's one that my collaborators found was relatable and important enough to devote so much time and effort into. It's no surprise that kids these days are dealing with a lot more mental health struggles such as social anxiety than ever before, and Gen Z has been cited as the loneliest generation world-wide. This is what pushed us to initially come together in an NYU class and pitch to Matīss Kaža, the Oscar-winning writer-producer of the 2024 animated film Flow. His advice was to keep pushing with this film even after the class because it's one he thinks needs to be made.



We're super excited for the film to be fully complete May of 2027, when we'll enter into animation and children's film festivals around the world and eventually release on Youtube and Vimeo. Right now, I'm very happy to say that we're entering our production phase. The entire film has been storyboarded, our actors recorded their lines, and our concept artist created some beautiful posters for the film. With your help, our pre-production stage was fully funded, and we made sure our starving artists got their dues!



Now come the backgrounds to establish a world for our characters, color to make it as vibrant as one of Clementine's doodles, and animation to give the film life.



I'm so excited to announce that we're officially a fiscally sponsored project of the New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA)! That means all donations are tax-exempt. If you donate, I cannot thank you enough. If you just read to the bottom of this page, I'm beyond grateful for your time. If you cannot contribute today, that's ok! It would mean the world to our team and Clementine if you could follow us and spread the word. Even following this page helps out immensely because, if we get enough, Seed & Spark will pay for our film festival submission fees. Please stay in touch with the film's journey on Instagram @themonsterandme.film. If you join us in bringing Clementine and the Monster to life, you would help make the dream come true for the shy little middle-schooler in me.


Wishlist

Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.

Background Artist

Costs $1,500

This artist will bring Clementine's world to life.

Layout Artist

Costs $200

This individual puts all the moving pieces together.

Drawn Animators

Costs $1,000

These 3 individuals are what set the film in motion.

Compositor

Costs $500

This person does all the special effects, like the Monster's inkiness.

Color Artists

Costs $300

This group of artists make Clementine's world as vibrant as her doodles.

Cash Pledge

Costs $0

About This Team

Meet the Team!


From pre-production to delivery, meet...



From conceptualizing characters to giving them life, meet...



From creating the soundtrack to the soundscape of the characters, meet...



And last but not least, meet the voices of the characters themselves...


Current Team

Supporters

Followers

Incentives