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Before you get too excited, no this is not a Star Wars horror project, although that would be awesome. This is an adaptation of a story from the Bible, specifically 1 Samuel chapter 28. The story is about King Saul. Now, if you're not familiar with King Saul, he was not a great guy. He was greedy, murdery, and just generally pretty vain. Because of this, God brought prophesied that King David (as in David and Goliath) would come in to replace Saul as King. Saul was not happy with this arrangement, and when the Philistine army showed up in his neighborhood ready to go to war, Saul tried to pray to God to know what to do -- but he was met with silence. In a rash effort to get some guidance, Saul went and visited a witch, in a place called Endor, and asked her to call up the spirit of the dead prophet Samuel so that he might get some guidance about how to defeat the Philistines. Unfortunately, Saul does not get the guidance he is looking for.

It's a really cool story that I've always been fascinated with. It's one of the only instances where we get a real, almost traditional horror story in the bible! Witches! Ghosts! Occult rituals! This story has it all! As someone who's fascinated with horror and religion, this project is the perfect blend of my interests and I'm super excited to bring this story to life in an epic short film. I want to see this story on the screen and I want to see it done right -- there are lots of stories from the bible that deserve to be adapted for film and for whatever reason, haven't been. Let's change that!

I'm a New England boy but currently I'm living here in the beautiful state of Utah, and we plan on taking advantage of this cinematic desertscape. Honestly, the setting couldn't be more perfect for our story and I'm looking forward to recreating ancient Israel in all its haunting glory here in our natural desert setting.

However, making movies costs money, and we can't do this without your help. We will be using the funds raised by this campaign to pay our actors and crew, rent equipment, as well as pay for our postproduction (editing, sound, music) and festival fees. 

We've got some pretty exciting rewards lined up so please check those out. We've got a simple $10 option (which includes a free Spotify playlist -- we don't want to leave you with nothing!) all the way up to Executive Producer slots and even an option to fund the whole thing. If anyone with deep pockets is interested in that please reach out (hey, a guy can dream, right?). Even if you only contribute a few bucks, or don't contribute at all financially (I get it, I was a cash strapped kid at one point too. Wait, I still am), you can help us by SHARING this project. Maybe you don't have money, but you know someone who does, and this project sounds like something they might be interested in. If you can think of anyone who might be interested in contributing, please let them know about our project! Even if you can't think of anyone, sharing the link to this project on social media is incredibly helpful! You never know who in your circle might be interested -- and the more people who know about the project, the more contributions we'll get. So regardless of if you do or don't pledge money -- please share this with your friends!

What's the plan? Currently we are in pre-production. We have several crew members attached, we have a script, we have a CAST (check out their pictures and profiles below). The money raised from this campaign will allow us to complete our pre-production process (purchasing our costumes, set pieces, and equipment), fund our production (we plan to shoot in May or June of this year once the weather gets warmer), and post-production. Our goal is to have a completed film by the end of the summer. If you contribute $25 or more, you'll receive a digital link to view the film as soon as it's ready! Otherwise, you'll have to wait until the film has completed its festival run and is available to view online.

And if we do end up hitting our ultimate goal of $9,600, we've got some pretty epic stretch goals. 

STRETCH GOAL 1: $11,000. If we cross the 11k mark we'll throw a premiere party at an actual theater -- and all backers, regardless of the amount, will be invited to attend. [The premiere would be here in Utah and any travel would be at your own expense].

STRETCH GOAL 2: $12,000. If we cross the 12k mark we'll be able to hire a professional videographer/photographer to capture some awesome Behind the Scenes footage of our shoot, as well as photographs of the process and interviews with the cast and crew, and we can put together some magnificent behind the scenes material together for your viewing pleasure. Backers will get the first look at such treasures, naturally!

STRETCH GOAL 3: $13,000. Add more cast! In the biblical story, Saul travels with two traveling companions who were probably his bodyguards. Adding in any extra actors requires people, costumes, food, transportation costs, and added coordination. But with this stretch goal we will be able to afford these guys and make this story even more biblically accurate!

We have an opportunity to make something truly special here -- a bible based horror film. This is one of the oldest ghost stories ever recorded! I hope you'll consider contributing and helping us spread the word about this project.

Thank you!!

MEET OUR CAST!

DAVE MARTINEZ (KING SAUL)

Dave Martinez is artistic lightning in a bottle. Holding a BA in Theatre Performance from Brigham Young University-Idaho, and an MFA from the highly revered Royal Birmingham Conservatoire in the UK, Dave has worked with professionals from all over the world and continues to develop an ever-growing understanding of acting, performing, and human relations. The California native doesn't let titles go to his head. While he takes his work and preparation seriously, he doesn't take himself as such. He approaches each project with laughter, enthusiasm, practicality, and a desire to cultivate a safe creative space for his colleagues. Dave can be seen on Season 4 of The Chosen; Mythica Stobound which will release later this year; and a vast array of short films listed on his IMDb. His skills and Talents include acoustic and electric guitar, singing, several dialects and is an Eagle Scout. 

EHLANA BO (THE WITCH)

Ehlana Bo was born and raised in Utah, and has enjoyed acting since childhood. She attended AMDA College and Conservatory in LA, where she studied film alongside theater, dance, and music. While she loves and has performed frequently in theater, film is her preferred performance medium, due to its intimacy and the opportunity for more nuanced portrayals. She's a perpetual learner and a creative soul, spending much of her free time learning new skills to use in her art and costume building; generally keeping herself far busier than sanity can endure. Well, who needs sanity, anyway. That's what therapy is for.

DEVIN TANNER (SAMUEL)

Devin Tanner has been acting from a young age mostly on stage in plays and musicals. In more recent years Devin has taken a dive into film and has fallen in love with the subtlety and depth of the art. His favorite roles are those in which he can become a character, whether it be comedic or creepy, he relies on his vocal flexibility and depth to bring the role to life. Recently, he was able to travel to Pennsylvania to be a part of Hersheypark's halloween event Dark Nights as the Necromancer.He is currently looking to begin to work with an agency in order to open more doors and advance his acting career. Devin is always looking for new opportunities and is looking forward to what the future holds.