My name is Brandon Christopher, a Black writer/producer from Hamilton. I started making films with my partners at Chrysalis Films to be able to bring my voice and perspective to the screen. We also pride ourselves on creatively telling Canadian stories with the help of a BIPOC cast/crew!

THE WOMAN WHO WEARS BLACK -The film is based on a ghost story called 'The Dark Lady'. The legend of the Dark Lady is that she came from England as a young girl. Her parents sent her to Canada after she was raped by a prominent and influential man. On the trip over, she fell in love with the ship’s captain and the two had a brief affair. But when the ship entered the harbour and the lights of Hamilton became visible, the captain remembered he was married and strangled the girl so he wouldn’t face any problems back home. Her body was supposedly dumped in a vault in the basement of Custom House.

The film follows Linda (Max Mallar) and Jackson (Justin Settembrini) who are on a weekend getaway trip to reconnect and heal because Jackson can't seem to stop being a cheater. They've decided to stay at an Airbnb on sale during Halloween because it's 'haunted'. The issue is this isn't a gimmick and the occupant The Woman Who Wears Black (Rosina Ferede) is thirsty for revenge and isn't too keen on visitors but will use it to her advantage if she can! The film will have somewhat of a similar style to the Jordan Peele Movie 'Us' when it comes to mixing drama and horror, but you can expect to be jumping with the same scares that got us from 2002s 'The Ring'. 

We are excited about the opportunities that horror brings as a genre, not only to entertain but to deliver social commentary. We think about films like, 'Get Out,' 'Rosemary's Baby,' and 'Scream' that were terrifying, enjoyable, but also had a lot to say. Our director Trivelle Simpson believes that The Woman Who Wears Black follows in that tradition of Social Thrillers. In addition to using jump scares and subtle reveals to build tension and keep the audience on the edge of their seats, The Woman Who Wears Black touches on the issues of toxic masculinity, and violence against women.

I am excited to tell this story as a Black writer and producer. I think it's important that our unique voices are being heard and our stories are being told the way we want to tell them. It's also very exciting to produce an original Candian film about a ghost story that I grew up with living in the city where it originated. It scared the crap out of me then and I hope to scare you next! As a crew at Chrysalis Films we are small but mighty, and overcome many odds to produce content that we feel has impacted the community in a good and inspiring way.

In 2020 and 2021 we have produced 2 films and several other side projects in a safe manner. As a production company, we follow all the province’s guidelines and ensure our cast and crew do as well. The pandemic has put a damper on our plans as we are an indie team and have other jobs so crowdfunding to help contribute to this project would truly help us towards our goal of making this film. We believe this is the time to create content in a world that has been without original films because of Covid-19, and we think we can add a bit of joy to your world. We are following the news and while we aim to film in Jan/Feb 2022 we will hold off if the government makes any changes to the rules and resume once they give the go-ahead, but we do not foresee that happening.

As a team, we just recently completed a very successful film festival run with our first short film as a team called 'Talk'.  The film took home several awards including the Outstanding Emerging Canadian Short Filmmaker Award at Cinefest Sudbury. We pride ourselves on having a diverse team both behind and in front of the camera, and with your contributions we hope to put together a bigger crew giving more opportunities to QTBIPOC creators.

MAX MALLAR:

Max Mallar is a Toronto-based actor and artist. Born in Etobicoke and raised in Caledon. She attended Mayfield Secondary School majoring in Drama, and it was then she realized her passion for the arts. Gaining a degree in Graphic Design from Humber College, she continued forward collecting as much artistic information as she could grasp. She later went on to own a photography and videography company specializing in lifestyle photography. She began training at Pro Actors Lab in 2017, and continues to work on her craft there.

Rosina Ferede:

Rosina Ferede is a performer and writer of Ethiopian origin based in Toronto. She went to York University and Humber College for theatre, with a focus on acting and playwriting. Rosina is excited to be developing her own short film at the moment, while still focusing on acting and making music. Her most recent credits include Hot Choices, an advertisement for IGNITE Student Life, My Korean Canadian Friend, which was given the Primetime Audience Choice Award at the Toronto Fringe Festival, and the ACTon Project, a video series exploring the need for accessibility in experimental learning settings. 

She is very excited to star in her first horror, as a huge fan of the genre growing up!

 

Firstly, I think the world is yearning for more great Canadian content. We have so many awesome filmmakers and storytellers here in Canada. We want to continue the tradition of great Canadian stories told by Canadian storytellers. Everyone loves horror it's that genre that you may watch with your eyes closed but you'll watch nonetheless. We also know that we live in a world that is more socially conscious now which is great. Our goal is to give our audience all the scares and surprises they want. At the same time though we are trying to drive home a message as we all work together to crush systemic issues that plague our society. This ghost story has also not been put on the screen before and we are hoping to be the first and it means so much to be from the city where it originated.

While our project is currently in the development stage, we are raising funds for the PRODUCTION phase of our film. As an indie team, we are looking to secure $8,000 through this crowdfunding effort.

By joining our team and contributing we can assure you all the money will be going towards the film. As an indie team that has funded three projects now, we understand how special it would be to get your support and it is something that we would be forever grateful for. The money will go towards paying our cast, crew, Covid-19 safety protocols, locations, and post-production costs (Colour, Score, Film Festivals, etc.).

We have a bunch of cool incentives so we ask for you to take a look and see if there is anything that stands out to you and something you would like to take advantage of. If you can't contribute right now, we understand, but you can still help. Share, Share, SHARE! With your family, friends, co-workers. The more the better, and it will only help us get closer to our goal.

Your contribution is just one step in helping a small indie team get the opportunity to have a voice and continue making art. So, as we mentioned before whether it's contributing or sharing, we thank you so much and hope that you will follow our journey.

SPREAD THE WORD

Feel free to share our social media content! If this is something that excites you, like us, post about it! Even if it doesn't feel like it, word of mouth is very impactful. Tell all your friends and family why you think they should support this project! We thought we'd provide a template if you'd like that you could copy and paste:

Join me in supporting Chrysalis Films INC by contributing to their @seedandspark crowdfunding campaign:www.seedandspark.com/fund/thewomanwhowearsblack

OR

I can't WAIT to see director @TStylez_Music's new film The Woman Who Wears Black !! But first they need to finish fundraising!! Help them reach their crowdfunding goal @seedandspark: www.seedandspark.com/fund/thewomanwhowearsblack