Tie Die
Los Angeles, California | Film Feature
Horror, Comedy
AI is changing the world as we know it. TIE DIE is a twisted glimpse at our impending demise. It's hard enough to suffer through an awful job with a brutal bully of a boss. But it's even worse when the dress code is an AI smart tie tracking your productivity and prompted to terminate you.
Tie Die
Los Angeles, California | Film Feature
Horror, Comedy
1 Campaigns | California, United States
Green Light
This campaign raised $7,015 for development. Follow the filmmaker to receive future updates on this project.
86 supporters | followers
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AI is changing the world as we know it. TIE DIE is a twisted glimpse at our impending demise. It's hard enough to suffer through an awful job with a brutal bully of a boss. But it's even worse when the dress code is an AI smart tie tracking your productivity and prompted to terminate you.
About The Project
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
Watch our proof of concept. It's the opening scene of the movie....
AI is coming for our JOBS.
And corporate bosses are ushering it in.
(That's not just our movie, that's what’s happening everywhere right now!)
Hi, Chris Valenti and Nick Alverson here!
We are making a horror movie that playfully pokes fun at this pivotal shift in society's workforce. It's a concerning issue. Our horror comedy is meant to not only help manage the pain a little bit, but also drive some social advocacy for us flesh and blood workers!
More about the flesh and blood later. A lot more.
The movie is about a company that uses AI ties to supposedly assist workers in their tasks, so employees welcome them. But the garments also track productivity, and if someone’s production drops, they get terminated.
In the story, our hero, new hire Kyle, notices his co-workers keep disappearing. He must solve this mystery, outwit his evil boss, and battle her deadly AI necktie army.
It’s the ultimate toxic work environment.
Tie Die is a movie about a brutal company’s unfair approach to efficiency, accountability, and killer fashion.
Who are we?
Nick and Chris met in a screenwriting workshop in 2019 or so. Fans of each other’s work, they decided to stage a commingling of a few of their one-act plays. The success of those sold-out shows went to their heads and they planned to do more. But then... Covid. During the pandemic they were each hired into the same writer’s room to create Christmas stories for a Canadian company’s film project. When the pandemic ended, they met for lunch and they both knew that they better bring ideas to pitch each other. Since then, they have been co-writing at a prolific pace, finishing eight feature scripts and one pilot project in a three year span.
Why did we write this?
Nick had the idea of a killer tie movie, something similar to Attack of the Killer Tomatoes... A monster movie with an inanimate object killing people. And if you put it in an office, the monster ties will symbolize corporate oppression over workers.
Chris loved this idea because years ago he had one of these awful, awful, brutal, awful, intolerable, awful, awful, horrible office jobs for a brutal bully of a boss. Deep in debt (after making his first feature film), he considered himself lucky to find a decent paying job. So he blindly dove in working 80 hour weeks in a chaotic office to make impossible deadlines on stuff he had to teach himself to do or else his boss would publicly humiliate him …again. But Chris isn’t that much of a dummy. This boss brutalized all the employees. Everybody got fired at this place. Or left because it was so awful. Turnover was ridiculous.
Why do we all need this right now?
As we all know, today, it’s even harder to keep a steady paycheck. AI is eliminating jobs for so many of us. It’s a serious problem that too many of us can relate to. Big companies are far more concerned about their bottom line, and if utilizing AI can cut their staff and lower payroll, they're all for it.
We need to take some power back by pointing out what the hell is happening.
In times like these, there’s really only one solution… MAKE A HORROR MOVIE!
Fighting AI with Practical Effects
We plan on shooting the film with 100% practical effects. We want the ties, the blood, and the horror to feel real. Keeping the production as real as possible is our way of fighting back against the rise of AI in the creative space. We loved the practical effects of the 70s and 80s, like in movies such as Gremlins, Star Wars, and Re-Animator. We want every tie murder in our film to be done by an actual tie! We see an aesthetic to this film that is grounded, that has a soul.
So all the action in this film will be created with puppetry, makeup, and camera tricks! Just like in our proof of concept.
Here's one of our test shoots:
You’re not welcome here AI. We’re going to show you what humans can do!
We need a Location.
We designed this script so we could shoot the movie in one spot. But we need that spot. The location we used for the proof of concept will cost us more than a third of our budget - it’s not sustainable for us.
The main hope we have for this Seed and Spark campaign is to spread the word about our project and perhaps find the perfect vacant office floor that we can use for a month for the shoot.
If you have something that might work, that we could ideally borrow for a month (or rent at an affordable rate), we would love to chat with you.
Or if you know someone who might have a vacant office space and might be excited about what this film represents, please share this campaign with them.
Our Crew
We have a tight but fierce crew that helped us make the proof of concept - which is the first scene in the movie. One scene down, 39 more to go! We hope to use all of these wonderful people for the feature shoot.
Jake Macpherson (DP), Jennifer Tung (Co-Producer & VO), Jay Zabriskie (1st AD), Tim Sabics (VFX & Editor), Simon Sorin (SPX & Color), Justin Marroquin (Gaffer), Donald LoBianco (Key Grip), Gabor Toth (Best Boy), Levon Eskidian (1st AC), Hayley Jarrett (Sound Recordist), Ting Cheng (Makeup Artist), Jessica Cervantes (Animal Wrangler), and Henry (pig).
Our Progress So Far
We completed the proof of concept in April. We brought it to the Cannes Film Festival Market and received terrific feedback. It impressed a number of distributors who are excited to work with us when we have a finished product.
And we plan to have a finished product in time for the next Cannes market in May 2026. Our goal is to shoot in February. We can make this happen.
We are Raising Money for the Development Phase
Currently we are in the development phase. We created a three week shooting schedule and started assembling a micro budget plan that will show us exactly what it will cost to complete this. We are about to bring on a sharp and experienced Line Producer to help us with all the tangible details needed to devise a workable production plan. We will also have to hire production legal to orchestrate all the contracts we need. Yes, this part is boring, but it needs to be done right.
We will be creating investor packages to help us find the $250K equity needed for the project. It’d be amazing to raise that on Seed and Spark, but realistically we hope to raise a little bit here for our distribution costs, and expect to have to find the majority of the funding in equity.
We are here to create a Community with this film.
This is a movement for those of us who are concerned about consequences of AI.
Like it or not, we know we are moving into an uncertain future, but we can keep our sense of humor, we can keep our humanity, and we can keep our bonds of support for each other.
Follow our campaign. Check out the Incentives. Join us.
We're in this together.
Thanks.
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Location
Costs $1,000
Our biggest need right now is a vacant office floor to use for one month. The entire film takes place in one location- a corporate office.
Special Effects Make Up
Costs $500
There will be lots of blood and gore in this Body Horror Comedy. So we would love any donations of SPX blood and wound transfers.
Neck Ties and Scarfs
Costs $500
We're going to need an army of AI neckties and scarfs to help us murder many, many employees. Yes, you can donate your old stuff!
Development Work
Costs $5,000
Funds for creating the Schedule, Budget, Test Shoots, Set Design, Art Design, Storyboards, Logistics Plans, SFX, Contracts, Crew, Cast...
Cash Pledge
Costs $0
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
Chris Valenti and Nick Alverson (Writers-Directors-Producers) have been screenwriting partners since the end of the pandemic. They have completed 9 spec scripts:
- SPF 50 - a romantic comedy feature about love after mourning;
- Ocean Bries - a comedy feature about twin sister mermaids;
- Sailing Circles Around You - a sailboat racing sports comedy feature;
- Last Fling Before The Ring - a destination bachelorette party comedy feature;
- Hands Off Me Treasure - an action adventure feature;
- an untitled Catalonia destination Christmas rom com;
- Deniers - a comedy series about TV news conspiracy theories; and
- Tie Die - an office horror comedy feature, for which they recently filmed the first scene as a proof of concept. (THIS MOVIE!)
- Plus as writers for hire, they completed The Black Creature from the Lagoon - a blaxploitation monster comedy feature
Chris has written or co-written over 25 feature or series projects. As an actor, he has performed for decades in film, television, commercials, and stage. As a musician and comedian, Chris has recorded five albums, all available on Spotify, and toured extensively, including a wartime trip with the USO to Afghanistan. Chris wrote, co-directed, produced and starred in the feature comedy, Sensitive Johnson, available on Amazon Prime. His musical documentary, 800 CDs is also on Amazon as are some of his 20+ short films. He wrote and staged three plays: Cancelled - The Musical, Straight White Men Trying to Woke, and Five Short Drives. His feature spec scripts include: Donny - a bittersweet afterlife comedy; Help Yourself - a farcical kidnap caper; Where There’s a Will - a dark comedy thriller; and Nick and Antonia Trying To Woke - a social commentary comedy. As a writer for hire, he has completed two horror comedy feature scripts: Three Strikes & You’re Dead and Plastic Surgeon, and the faith based feature script Miracle Wash.
Nick is a Los Angeles based writer, where he has lived and been stuck in traffic for over a decade. He has written TV pilots, features, short films and even a couple of plays. His script, Chicago Pizza, a half-hour comedy about hot shot pizza delivery drivers, won the grand prize at the Write LA screenplay competition in 2019. That year, he also produced a sold-out play that featured his short script, A Most Awkward Evening, which won Best Short Script at the Los Angeles International Film Festival Indie Short Fest. In 2021, he sold 5 holiday themed shorts to TOH Entertainment Inc. and in 2022 he wrote, produced and directed a show for the Hollywood Fringe Festival which featured Divorce At The End Of The World, the winner of Best Short Screenplay at the Hollywood Film Festival in 2020. Other scripts include Father Christmas, a father-daughter feature length comedy-adventure; Horsey & Piggy, an animated half-hour pilot about two best farm friends and Strength, a half-hour battle of the sexes dramedy. Nick has run two marathons! That has nothing to do with writing, but it was really hard and kind of cool.
Estelle Su (Producer) is a New York based film director, producer and writer. She has been a Wall Street banker with years of finance experience and is a recent NYU Tisch graduate in Filmmaking and Producing. Her film "Bitter Brownies" won 163 awards globally. She has worked on two features with director Uwe Boll: ”First Shift” (Paramount+) and "Run" starring Amanda Plummer. Other features include "Citizen Vigilante" starring Armie Hammer, the upcoming "First Shift" II & III, and "Ocean on Fire" written by Peter Iliff ("Point Break”). Estelle has written, produced and directed four short films, including "Collaborator" (mystery/crime), "Far Away from Home" (musical), "Temptation" (comedy) and "Dream Wake Up" (thriller). She is currently preparing her debut feature “Wallker" to direct and produce in 2026.
With over two decades in film and television, Jennifer Tung (Co-Producer) is an actress and producer who champions underdogs and independent projects, from the award-winning shorts like Remember the Sun and Dirty Bomb, as well as indie features like The Black Gloves. She is best known for her roles in “Kung Pow, Enter the Fist” with Steve Oedekerk and the J.J Abrams Television series, “Alias”, working opposite Quentin Tarantino. Jennifer has appeared in episodes of the popular T.V. shows “Beverly Hills: 90210”, “The Pretender”, “E.R.”, “NYPD Blue”, “JAG”, and many others. She has also had roles in the films; “What Lies Beneath”, and Star Trek: Insurrection”.
Jake Macpherson (Director of Photography) is a director and award-winning cinematographer from Louisville, KY. He gained recognition after graduating from Watkins College of Art, Design & Film in Nashville, TN. He's known for his work with major record labels like Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, RCA Records, and Atlantic Records, collaborating with world-renowned artists such as Megadeth, Phantogram, and Taking Back Sunday. Currently based in Los Angeles, CA, Jake continues to excel in narrative film and documentaries. His recent projects include the music documentary Immediate Family, acquired by Magnolia Pictures, an upcoming fashion documentary Let Them Be Naked sponsored by the Robert Redford Center and the short film The First, a Cannes International Film Festival Official Selection. In 2023, Jake made his feature film directorial debut with Terror Firma, which premiered at the Dances With Films festival at the TCL Chinese Theater in Hollywood and is currently being distributed internationally.
Jay Zabriskie (First Assistant Director) is a Director, First Assistant Director and a First Stage Manager. He is a member of the Directors Guild of America and of IATSE Local 33. He has worked on such projects ranging from sit-coms such as A Different World, Martin, to episodic shows such as Monk, Grey’s Anatomy, and The Shield as well as feature films such as Mysteria, Altergeist, The Brittany Murphy Story, and Sightings - as well as Sucka Free City with Spike Lee. Not to leave out the exciting world of sports but Jay has worked for the NFL including on Super Bowl 49 during the infamous bad call by Seattle coach Pete Carroll as well as with Fox Sports for several years.
The mythical creature known as Tim C. Szabics (VFX Supervisor) (aka Marsgohome / StudioMGH). Carefully crafted from the chemically burned fingertips of celluloid nitrocellulose, and born in the flicker of a dying scanline on a CRT monitor, Tim was raised in the wild by the magnetic hum of VHS. Emerging from the digital mist, wielding an unreasonable number of keyframes and dust overlays, he is part musician, part writer, part director, and part VFX dude. Tim chisels cinematic images with the precision of a clockmaker and the enthusiasm of an overconfident trash panda. When not bending ones and zeros for film, he can be found composing strange sonic landscapes, plotting narrative sonnets, designing overcomplicated applications for film production, or crafting nachos so perfectly layered they’ve been declared a protected cultural artifact in at least one imaginary country.
Simon Sorin (Colorist) is a creative and professional colorist from Brittany, France, Simon stumbled into the audiovisual world by chance. With an initial passion for fight choreography, a pivot to studying cinema led him to discover a deep love for the audiovisual field, editing, and ultimately, color grading, his true craft. Known for a collaborative and analytical approach, he meticulously deconstructs visual references to rebuild striking looks in close partnership with clients and collaborators. Inspired by the vivid emotional impact of horror films, Simon brings both passion and technical expertise to every frame. For this project, he supported the editing process, co-developed the visual look, and color graded the entire short proof of concept.
Gabor Toth (Best Boy) is a passionate filmmaker with extensive experience in camera operation, editing, and post-production. A problem solver who thrives capturing action and stunning moments, he currently works at Forward Motion Labs creating film content and music videos while bringing his passion for visual storytelling to every project.
Levon Eskidjian (First Assistant Camera) is a talented aspiring Cinematographer and 1st AC. As a lifelong Los Angeles native his roots as a movie-buff were planted many years ago which led to a discovery for his love of filmmaking. Levon considers himself as a film student-by-day, cinephile-by-night. Combining his passion for movies and education at the Los Angeles Film School, he is well equipped to tackle any challenge and properly execute his job. He is thrilled to be working on this project and believes in the director's vision.
Hayley Jarrett (Sound Recordist) is an aspiring production sound mixer and foley artist who is excited to be working on her first feature film! She moved to California just three years ago to pursue filmmaking and is thrilled to be alongside such a fabulous cast and crew to kickoff her feature debut. She hopes you sound (wink wink) excited as well for a fantastic film!
Ting Cheng (Key Makeup Artist) is a skilled and innovative makeup artist with a background in fashion design. She holds a BA in Fashion & Textiles from Hong Kong Polytechnic University, where she developed a strong foundation in aesthetics and artistic expression. Her passion for makeup stems from her love of working with color—similar to fashion, it allows her to transform appearances, but unlike fashion, makeup offers a more direct and intimate way to create change. Specializing in beauty makeup, character transformation, and prosthetic application, Ting has worked across various creative fields, including runway shows, music videos, onstage performances, and private client engagements. She has contributed to prestigious events such as Tiffany & Co.’s Blue Book collection and the Metropolitan Fashion Week Gala. Her role as a lab technician at Freemist SFX Workshop has further refined her skills in sculpting, prosthetic fabrication, and material experimentation. Currently graduated from Cinema Makeup School, Ting aims to focus her career on prosthetic makeup, whether in high-end fashion or the film industry. Passionate about pushing creative boundaries, she is dedicated to crafting visionary and transformative looks that bring artistic concepts to life.
My name is Donald LoBianco (Key Grip) and I’m currently going to LAFS in Hollywood. I've always been a big fan of horror films and I’m stoked to be part of the Tie Die Team!
I’m Justin Marroquin (Gaffer), a photographer, cinematographer, and filmmaker based in Costa Mesa, CA. With a background in directing and visual storytelling, I approach every shoot with a cinematic perspective. Whether I’m behind the camera at an event or crafting a dramatic portrait, my goal is to make images that feel honest, powerful, and timeless.
Current Team
Incentives
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
Watch our proof of concept. It's the opening scene of the movie....
AI is coming for our JOBS.
And corporate bosses are ushering it in.
(That's not just our movie, that's what’s happening everywhere right now!)
Hi, Chris Valenti and Nick Alverson here!
We are making a horror movie that playfully pokes fun at this pivotal shift in society's workforce. It's a concerning issue. Our horror comedy is meant to not only help manage the pain a little bit, but also drive some social advocacy for us flesh and blood workers!
More about the flesh and blood later. A lot more.
The movie is about a company that uses AI ties to supposedly assist workers in their tasks, so employees welcome them. But the garments also track productivity, and if someone’s production drops, they get terminated.
In the story, our hero, new hire Kyle, notices his co-workers keep disappearing. He must solve this mystery, outwit his evil boss, and battle her deadly AI necktie army.
It’s the ultimate toxic work environment.
Tie Die is a movie about a brutal company’s unfair approach to efficiency, accountability, and killer fashion.
Who are we?
Nick and Chris met in a screenwriting workshop in 2019 or so. Fans of each other’s work, they decided to stage a commingling of a few of their one-act plays. The success of those sold-out shows went to their heads and they planned to do more. But then... Covid. During the pandemic they were each hired into the same writer’s room to create Christmas stories for a Canadian company’s film project. When the pandemic ended, they met for lunch and they both knew that they better bring ideas to pitch each other. Since then, they have been co-writing at a prolific pace, finishing eight feature scripts and one pilot project in a three year span.
Why did we write this?
Nick had the idea of a killer tie movie, something similar to Attack of the Killer Tomatoes... A monster movie with an inanimate object killing people. And if you put it in an office, the monster ties will symbolize corporate oppression over workers.
Chris loved this idea because years ago he had one of these awful, awful, brutal, awful, intolerable, awful, awful, horrible office jobs for a brutal bully of a boss. Deep in debt (after making his first feature film), he considered himself lucky to find a decent paying job. So he blindly dove in working 80 hour weeks in a chaotic office to make impossible deadlines on stuff he had to teach himself to do or else his boss would publicly humiliate him …again. But Chris isn’t that much of a dummy. This boss brutalized all the employees. Everybody got fired at this place. Or left because it was so awful. Turnover was ridiculous.
Why do we all need this right now?
As we all know, today, it’s even harder to keep a steady paycheck. AI is eliminating jobs for so many of us. It’s a serious problem that too many of us can relate to. Big companies are far more concerned about their bottom line, and if utilizing AI can cut their staff and lower payroll, they're all for it.
We need to take some power back by pointing out what the hell is happening.
In times like these, there’s really only one solution… MAKE A HORROR MOVIE!
Fighting AI with Practical Effects
We plan on shooting the film with 100% practical effects. We want the ties, the blood, and the horror to feel real. Keeping the production as real as possible is our way of fighting back against the rise of AI in the creative space. We loved the practical effects of the 70s and 80s, like in movies such as Gremlins, Star Wars, and Re-Animator. We want every tie murder in our film to be done by an actual tie! We see an aesthetic to this film that is grounded, that has a soul.
So all the action in this film will be created with puppetry, makeup, and camera tricks! Just like in our proof of concept.
Here's one of our test shoots:
You’re not welcome here AI. We’re going to show you what humans can do!
We need a Location.
We designed this script so we could shoot the movie in one spot. But we need that spot. The location we used for the proof of concept will cost us more than a third of our budget - it’s not sustainable for us.
The main hope we have for this Seed and Spark campaign is to spread the word about our project and perhaps find the perfect vacant office floor that we can use for a month for the shoot.
If you have something that might work, that we could ideally borrow for a month (or rent at an affordable rate), we would love to chat with you.
Or if you know someone who might have a vacant office space and might be excited about what this film represents, please share this campaign with them.
Our Crew
We have a tight but fierce crew that helped us make the proof of concept - which is the first scene in the movie. One scene down, 39 more to go! We hope to use all of these wonderful people for the feature shoot.
Jake Macpherson (DP), Jennifer Tung (Co-Producer & VO), Jay Zabriskie (1st AD), Tim Sabics (VFX & Editor), Simon Sorin (SPX & Color), Justin Marroquin (Gaffer), Donald LoBianco (Key Grip), Gabor Toth (Best Boy), Levon Eskidian (1st AC), Hayley Jarrett (Sound Recordist), Ting Cheng (Makeup Artist), Jessica Cervantes (Animal Wrangler), and Henry (pig).
Our Progress So Far
We completed the proof of concept in April. We brought it to the Cannes Film Festival Market and received terrific feedback. It impressed a number of distributors who are excited to work with us when we have a finished product.
And we plan to have a finished product in time for the next Cannes market in May 2026. Our goal is to shoot in February. We can make this happen.
We are Raising Money for the Development Phase
Currently we are in the development phase. We created a three week shooting schedule and started assembling a micro budget plan that will show us exactly what it will cost to complete this. We are about to bring on a sharp and experienced Line Producer to help us with all the tangible details needed to devise a workable production plan. We will also have to hire production legal to orchestrate all the contracts we need. Yes, this part is boring, but it needs to be done right.
We will be creating investor packages to help us find the $250K equity needed for the project. It’d be amazing to raise that on Seed and Spark, but realistically we hope to raise a little bit here for our distribution costs, and expect to have to find the majority of the funding in equity.
We are here to create a Community with this film.
This is a movement for those of us who are concerned about consequences of AI.
Like it or not, we know we are moving into an uncertain future, but we can keep our sense of humor, we can keep our humanity, and we can keep our bonds of support for each other.
Follow our campaign. Check out the Incentives. Join us.
We're in this together.
Thanks.
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Location
Costs $1,000
Our biggest need right now is a vacant office floor to use for one month. The entire film takes place in one location- a corporate office.
Special Effects Make Up
Costs $500
There will be lots of blood and gore in this Body Horror Comedy. So we would love any donations of SPX blood and wound transfers.
Neck Ties and Scarfs
Costs $500
We're going to need an army of AI neckties and scarfs to help us murder many, many employees. Yes, you can donate your old stuff!
Development Work
Costs $5,000
Funds for creating the Schedule, Budget, Test Shoots, Set Design, Art Design, Storyboards, Logistics Plans, SFX, Contracts, Crew, Cast...
Cash Pledge
Costs $0
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
Chris Valenti and Nick Alverson (Writers-Directors-Producers) have been screenwriting partners since the end of the pandemic. They have completed 9 spec scripts:
- SPF 50 - a romantic comedy feature about love after mourning;
- Ocean Bries - a comedy feature about twin sister mermaids;
- Sailing Circles Around You - a sailboat racing sports comedy feature;
- Last Fling Before The Ring - a destination bachelorette party comedy feature;
- Hands Off Me Treasure - an action adventure feature;
- an untitled Catalonia destination Christmas rom com;
- Deniers - a comedy series about TV news conspiracy theories; and
- Tie Die - an office horror comedy feature, for which they recently filmed the first scene as a proof of concept. (THIS MOVIE!)
- Plus as writers for hire, they completed The Black Creature from the Lagoon - a blaxploitation monster comedy feature
Chris has written or co-written over 25 feature or series projects. As an actor, he has performed for decades in film, television, commercials, and stage. As a musician and comedian, Chris has recorded five albums, all available on Spotify, and toured extensively, including a wartime trip with the USO to Afghanistan. Chris wrote, co-directed, produced and starred in the feature comedy, Sensitive Johnson, available on Amazon Prime. His musical documentary, 800 CDs is also on Amazon as are some of his 20+ short films. He wrote and staged three plays: Cancelled - The Musical, Straight White Men Trying to Woke, and Five Short Drives. His feature spec scripts include: Donny - a bittersweet afterlife comedy; Help Yourself - a farcical kidnap caper; Where There’s a Will - a dark comedy thriller; and Nick and Antonia Trying To Woke - a social commentary comedy. As a writer for hire, he has completed two horror comedy feature scripts: Three Strikes & You’re Dead and Plastic Surgeon, and the faith based feature script Miracle Wash.
Nick is a Los Angeles based writer, where he has lived and been stuck in traffic for over a decade. He has written TV pilots, features, short films and even a couple of plays. His script, Chicago Pizza, a half-hour comedy about hot shot pizza delivery drivers, won the grand prize at the Write LA screenplay competition in 2019. That year, he also produced a sold-out play that featured his short script, A Most Awkward Evening, which won Best Short Script at the Los Angeles International Film Festival Indie Short Fest. In 2021, he sold 5 holiday themed shorts to TOH Entertainment Inc. and in 2022 he wrote, produced and directed a show for the Hollywood Fringe Festival which featured Divorce At The End Of The World, the winner of Best Short Screenplay at the Hollywood Film Festival in 2020. Other scripts include Father Christmas, a father-daughter feature length comedy-adventure; Horsey & Piggy, an animated half-hour pilot about two best farm friends and Strength, a half-hour battle of the sexes dramedy. Nick has run two marathons! That has nothing to do with writing, but it was really hard and kind of cool.
Estelle Su (Producer) is a New York based film director, producer and writer. She has been a Wall Street banker with years of finance experience and is a recent NYU Tisch graduate in Filmmaking and Producing. Her film "Bitter Brownies" won 163 awards globally. She has worked on two features with director Uwe Boll: ”First Shift” (Paramount+) and "Run" starring Amanda Plummer. Other features include "Citizen Vigilante" starring Armie Hammer, the upcoming "First Shift" II & III, and "Ocean on Fire" written by Peter Iliff ("Point Break”). Estelle has written, produced and directed four short films, including "Collaborator" (mystery/crime), "Far Away from Home" (musical), "Temptation" (comedy) and "Dream Wake Up" (thriller). She is currently preparing her debut feature “Wallker" to direct and produce in 2026.
With over two decades in film and television, Jennifer Tung (Co-Producer) is an actress and producer who champions underdogs and independent projects, from the award-winning shorts like Remember the Sun and Dirty Bomb, as well as indie features like The Black Gloves. She is best known for her roles in “Kung Pow, Enter the Fist” with Steve Oedekerk and the J.J Abrams Television series, “Alias”, working opposite Quentin Tarantino. Jennifer has appeared in episodes of the popular T.V. shows “Beverly Hills: 90210”, “The Pretender”, “E.R.”, “NYPD Blue”, “JAG”, and many others. She has also had roles in the films; “What Lies Beneath”, and Star Trek: Insurrection”.
Jake Macpherson (Director of Photography) is a director and award-winning cinematographer from Louisville, KY. He gained recognition after graduating from Watkins College of Art, Design & Film in Nashville, TN. He's known for his work with major record labels like Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, RCA Records, and Atlantic Records, collaborating with world-renowned artists such as Megadeth, Phantogram, and Taking Back Sunday. Currently based in Los Angeles, CA, Jake continues to excel in narrative film and documentaries. His recent projects include the music documentary Immediate Family, acquired by Magnolia Pictures, an upcoming fashion documentary Let Them Be Naked sponsored by the Robert Redford Center and the short film The First, a Cannes International Film Festival Official Selection. In 2023, Jake made his feature film directorial debut with Terror Firma, which premiered at the Dances With Films festival at the TCL Chinese Theater in Hollywood and is currently being distributed internationally.
Jay Zabriskie (First Assistant Director) is a Director, First Assistant Director and a First Stage Manager. He is a member of the Directors Guild of America and of IATSE Local 33. He has worked on such projects ranging from sit-coms such as A Different World, Martin, to episodic shows such as Monk, Grey’s Anatomy, and The Shield as well as feature films such as Mysteria, Altergeist, The Brittany Murphy Story, and Sightings - as well as Sucka Free City with Spike Lee. Not to leave out the exciting world of sports but Jay has worked for the NFL including on Super Bowl 49 during the infamous bad call by Seattle coach Pete Carroll as well as with Fox Sports for several years.
The mythical creature known as Tim C. Szabics (VFX Supervisor) (aka Marsgohome / StudioMGH). Carefully crafted from the chemically burned fingertips of celluloid nitrocellulose, and born in the flicker of a dying scanline on a CRT monitor, Tim was raised in the wild by the magnetic hum of VHS. Emerging from the digital mist, wielding an unreasonable number of keyframes and dust overlays, he is part musician, part writer, part director, and part VFX dude. Tim chisels cinematic images with the precision of a clockmaker and the enthusiasm of an overconfident trash panda. When not bending ones and zeros for film, he can be found composing strange sonic landscapes, plotting narrative sonnets, designing overcomplicated applications for film production, or crafting nachos so perfectly layered they’ve been declared a protected cultural artifact in at least one imaginary country.
Simon Sorin (Colorist) is a creative and professional colorist from Brittany, France, Simon stumbled into the audiovisual world by chance. With an initial passion for fight choreography, a pivot to studying cinema led him to discover a deep love for the audiovisual field, editing, and ultimately, color grading, his true craft. Known for a collaborative and analytical approach, he meticulously deconstructs visual references to rebuild striking looks in close partnership with clients and collaborators. Inspired by the vivid emotional impact of horror films, Simon brings both passion and technical expertise to every frame. For this project, he supported the editing process, co-developed the visual look, and color graded the entire short proof of concept.
Gabor Toth (Best Boy) is a passionate filmmaker with extensive experience in camera operation, editing, and post-production. A problem solver who thrives capturing action and stunning moments, he currently works at Forward Motion Labs creating film content and music videos while bringing his passion for visual storytelling to every project.
Levon Eskidjian (First Assistant Camera) is a talented aspiring Cinematographer and 1st AC. As a lifelong Los Angeles native his roots as a movie-buff were planted many years ago which led to a discovery for his love of filmmaking. Levon considers himself as a film student-by-day, cinephile-by-night. Combining his passion for movies and education at the Los Angeles Film School, he is well equipped to tackle any challenge and properly execute his job. He is thrilled to be working on this project and believes in the director's vision.
Hayley Jarrett (Sound Recordist) is an aspiring production sound mixer and foley artist who is excited to be working on her first feature film! She moved to California just three years ago to pursue filmmaking and is thrilled to be alongside such a fabulous cast and crew to kickoff her feature debut. She hopes you sound (wink wink) excited as well for a fantastic film!
Ting Cheng (Key Makeup Artist) is a skilled and innovative makeup artist with a background in fashion design. She holds a BA in Fashion & Textiles from Hong Kong Polytechnic University, where she developed a strong foundation in aesthetics and artistic expression. Her passion for makeup stems from her love of working with color—similar to fashion, it allows her to transform appearances, but unlike fashion, makeup offers a more direct and intimate way to create change. Specializing in beauty makeup, character transformation, and prosthetic application, Ting has worked across various creative fields, including runway shows, music videos, onstage performances, and private client engagements. She has contributed to prestigious events such as Tiffany & Co.’s Blue Book collection and the Metropolitan Fashion Week Gala. Her role as a lab technician at Freemist SFX Workshop has further refined her skills in sculpting, prosthetic fabrication, and material experimentation. Currently graduated from Cinema Makeup School, Ting aims to focus her career on prosthetic makeup, whether in high-end fashion or the film industry. Passionate about pushing creative boundaries, she is dedicated to crafting visionary and transformative looks that bring artistic concepts to life.
My name is Donald LoBianco (Key Grip) and I’m currently going to LAFS in Hollywood. I've always been a big fan of horror films and I’m stoked to be part of the Tie Die Team!
I’m Justin Marroquin (Gaffer), a photographer, cinematographer, and filmmaker based in Costa Mesa, CA. With a background in directing and visual storytelling, I approach every shoot with a cinematic perspective. Whether I’m behind the camera at an event or crafting a dramatic portrait, my goal is to make images that feel honest, powerful, and timeless.