TUTTO (everything)
New York City, New York | Film Short
Family, Comedy
A middle-aged woman finds herself the calm at the center of the hurricane at her first Sunday dinner with her newly discovered Italian-American family. Secrets are revealed and a dream comes true. Based on a solo show and the real life events of a DNA test. Think MOONSTRUCK meets SECRETS AND LIES.
TUTTO (everything)
New York City, New York | Film Short
Family, Comedy
1 Campaigns |
86 supporters | followers
Enter the amount you would like to pledge
$7,961
Goal: $11,900 for production
A middle-aged woman finds herself the calm at the center of the hurricane at her first Sunday dinner with her newly discovered Italian-American family. Secrets are revealed and a dream comes true. Based on a solo show and the real life events of a DNA test. Think MOONSTRUCK meets SECRETS AND LIES.
About The Project
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
Log Line
A middle-aged woman finds herself the calm at the center of the hurricane of her first Sunday dinner with her newly discovered Italian-American family. Secrets are revealed and a dream comes true. Based on a solo show and the real life events of a DNA test. Think Moonstruck meets Secrets and Lies.
Mission Statement
What happens when you realize that the lies your family told you were for good reason? Will new-found family members embrace you, a stranger at their door? We're making TUTTO to celebrate finding long-lost family members against all odds and to explore and test the Italian phrase: "la famiglia e tutto,” family is everything…
Story
I recently found out, I'm half Italian! In my late 50s, I became a “new” Italian-American when I took a DNA test in search of finding the father I never knew.
I am proud to be Italian-American. I think it’s important to show all types of Italian families on screen. Mine was not the traditional “la famiglia e tutto” version. My mother was my father’s goomah; a young girl, fresh off the bus from Ohio who met an older, married man. I learned that my father was a bar owner who was murdered. A genealogist gave me newspaper articles reporting his murder and included the phrase, “although he had no criminal record he was under investigation for ties to organized crime.” I’ll never forget the epiphany I had when I read these articles: My mother didn’t just lie to me. She was protecting me. That’s famiglia. "La famiglia e tutto" (everything) refers to not only a family's warmth, but all of its dynamics.
I was so moved, not only to find my deceased father’s identity, but a slew of relatives I share blood with, whose features are similar to mine, including a deceased half-sister, that I had to put all those feelings somewhere. Finding his identity. Finding his photo. Finding out why everyone lied to me. First I wrote and performed a sold out solo show, DNA DOESN’T LIE, BUT MY MOTHER DID! and it was when was directing someone else's short film, I thought my story should be a film. Now, I want to bring this story to the screen.
We're in pre-production and your support will help us with tutto! Crewing up, paying our actors, feeding our crew, and filming on location in an authentic, old-school Italian-American home.
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Props
Costs $300
We have a lot of food on set, some of it won't be real but it has to look good enough to eat!
Director of Photography (Cinematographer)
Costs $1,200
Our director's key collaborator in bringing our story to the screen!
All the Rest!
Costs $7,615
Producers, Director, 1st AD, Script Supervisor, PAs, Sound, Food, Costumes, HMU, Cast, Editor, Composer, Film Festivals, Marketing & More!
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
Christine McBurney (Christine/Writer) is a multi-hyphenate. Acting credits include the films THE ALTO KNIGHTS (dir. Barry Levinson) and TUTTO (writer/actor); TV: Lazarus (coming this spring to Apple TV), FBI: Most Wanted (CBS), Fleishman is in Trouble (Hulu); Selected Stage: Her recent sold out solo show at the Spark Theatre Festival, NYC, DNA Doesn't Lie But My Mother Did!, The Metropolitan Opera, Cleveland Play House, Cleveland Public Theatre. Christine was a co-founding, producing co-artistic director of Cleveland's critically-acclaimed classical theatre, Mamaí Theatre Company. Selected directing credits include: the short film, FORTUNE FAVORS THE BOLD (staring Catherine Curtin), the NYSCA/NYFA funded opera, Moon in the Mirror, Arcadia, Boston Marriage, lots of Shakespeare, and the world premiere of Fanny Burney’s The Woman Hater. Her remount of Cathleen O’Malley’s Milkdrunk goes to the Edinburgh Fringe in August. Honors: 2024 finalist for the inaugural Tina Packer Women of Will Directing Fellowship at Shakespeare & Co., 2017 Cleveland Critics' Circle Superior Achievement Award for both Mamaí and her production of A Doll's House, National Endowment for the Humanities recipient and other grants to study Shakespeare at The Juilliard School, Shakespeare & Company, and The Globe Theatre in London. She was an adjunct instructor at Baldwin Wallace University’s Department of Theatre & Dance, Cleveland State University's School of Film and Media, and Dept. Chair of Shaker Heights High School’s Theatre Arts Department. She is the Executive Director of Bluestocking Productions, LLC, a teaching artist for Hudson Valley Shakespeare, and a private acting coach. Member: Stage Directors & Choreographers Observership Class 2019-21, Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab, Directors Lab West, Directors Lab North, SDC, SAG-AFTRA, AEA & New York Women in Film & Television (NYWIFT). BA Columbia University, MFA Kent State University. www.christinemcburney.com.
Anthony Robert Grasso is an award-winning actor, director, and educator with 37+ years of industry experience. He’s appeared in 35+ award-winning films (Sundance, BIFF, Garden State, et al.) and is the recipient of 84 awards and 63 nominations, most recently receiving Best Director for CRUMB CAKE at the Southern Shorts Awards and Best Actor for SOOTHSAYER at the Cutting Room International Short Film Festival. He has directed the films FRESH AIR, EXTRADITION, and RETREAT: RESISTANCE. On television, Mr. Grasso has appeared on The Sinner, Jessica Jones , Gotham, FBI, and all three Law & Order series. Streaming credits include the Hulu Series, Pam & Tommy as well as the recent Netflix Feature I'M THINKING OF ENDING THINGS directed by Oscar winner Charlie Kaufman. Mr. Grasso is the founder of ARG Studio with students who also work regularly in film, television, and theater. He previously served as the Artistic Director of Breakthrough Studios for 16 years. In addition to in-person and virtual classes, he teaches masterclasses and workshops for colleges, universities, and performing arts studios around the world. A third-generation New Yorker, Anthony studied at The Actors Studio, The Neighborhood Playhouse, Larry Moss Studio, and The British American Drama Academy (Oxford, England). He also holds a B.F.A. in Fine Art from School of Visual Arts. He’s proudly played the role of Dad for 22+ Years and Husband for 24+ years to Actor/Writer/Producer, Diane Harrington.
Heidi Hackney is an Associate Producer on TUTTO (everything) and an actor and teaching artist based in New York City. She’s drawn to intimate human stories—projects that explore hidden pasts, unexpected bonds, and the search for belonging. Her recent work includes an award-nominated performance in the world-premiere play THE ROBERTASSEY, as well as her work as a teaching artist with young people through the Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival. On TUTTO, Heidi supports the project’s development alongside the creative team and helps bring the story from page to screen.
She is inspired by the power of independent film to build community and spark understanding, and is thrilled to help bring TUTTO (everything) to life with Christine and Anthony. When she’s not producing, you can find her DIY-ing around her apartment or enjoying the outdoors with friends and her cat Daniel. heidi-hackney.com, Insta: @heidihhackney
Current Team
Incentives
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
Log Line
A middle-aged woman finds herself the calm at the center of the hurricane of her first Sunday dinner with her newly discovered Italian-American family. Secrets are revealed and a dream comes true. Based on a solo show and the real life events of a DNA test. Think Moonstruck meets Secrets and Lies.
Mission Statement
What happens when you realize that the lies your family told you were for good reason? Will new-found family members embrace you, a stranger at their door? We're making TUTTO to celebrate finding long-lost family members against all odds and to explore and test the Italian phrase: "la famiglia e tutto,” family is everything…
Story
I recently found out, I'm half Italian! In my late 50s, I became a “new” Italian-American when I took a DNA test in search of finding the father I never knew.
I am proud to be Italian-American. I think it’s important to show all types of Italian families on screen. Mine was not the traditional “la famiglia e tutto” version. My mother was my father’s goomah; a young girl, fresh off the bus from Ohio who met an older, married man. I learned that my father was a bar owner who was murdered. A genealogist gave me newspaper articles reporting his murder and included the phrase, “although he had no criminal record he was under investigation for ties to organized crime.” I’ll never forget the epiphany I had when I read these articles: My mother didn’t just lie to me. She was protecting me. That’s famiglia. "La famiglia e tutto" (everything) refers to not only a family's warmth, but all of its dynamics.
I was so moved, not only to find my deceased father’s identity, but a slew of relatives I share blood with, whose features are similar to mine, including a deceased half-sister, that I had to put all those feelings somewhere. Finding his identity. Finding his photo. Finding out why everyone lied to me. First I wrote and performed a sold out solo show, DNA DOESN’T LIE, BUT MY MOTHER DID! and it was when was directing someone else's short film, I thought my story should be a film. Now, I want to bring this story to the screen.
We're in pre-production and your support will help us with tutto! Crewing up, paying our actors, feeding our crew, and filming on location in an authentic, old-school Italian-American home.
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Props
Costs $300
We have a lot of food on set, some of it won't be real but it has to look good enough to eat!
Director of Photography (Cinematographer)
Costs $1,200
Our director's key collaborator in bringing our story to the screen!
All the Rest!
Costs $7,615
Producers, Director, 1st AD, Script Supervisor, PAs, Sound, Food, Costumes, HMU, Cast, Editor, Composer, Film Festivals, Marketing & More!
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
Christine McBurney (Christine/Writer) is a multi-hyphenate. Acting credits include the films THE ALTO KNIGHTS (dir. Barry Levinson) and TUTTO (writer/actor); TV: Lazarus (coming this spring to Apple TV), FBI: Most Wanted (CBS), Fleishman is in Trouble (Hulu); Selected Stage: Her recent sold out solo show at the Spark Theatre Festival, NYC, DNA Doesn't Lie But My Mother Did!, The Metropolitan Opera, Cleveland Play House, Cleveland Public Theatre. Christine was a co-founding, producing co-artistic director of Cleveland's critically-acclaimed classical theatre, Mamaí Theatre Company. Selected directing credits include: the short film, FORTUNE FAVORS THE BOLD (staring Catherine Curtin), the NYSCA/NYFA funded opera, Moon in the Mirror, Arcadia, Boston Marriage, lots of Shakespeare, and the world premiere of Fanny Burney’s The Woman Hater. Her remount of Cathleen O’Malley’s Milkdrunk goes to the Edinburgh Fringe in August. Honors: 2024 finalist for the inaugural Tina Packer Women of Will Directing Fellowship at Shakespeare & Co., 2017 Cleveland Critics' Circle Superior Achievement Award for both Mamaí and her production of A Doll's House, National Endowment for the Humanities recipient and other grants to study Shakespeare at The Juilliard School, Shakespeare & Company, and The Globe Theatre in London. She was an adjunct instructor at Baldwin Wallace University’s Department of Theatre & Dance, Cleveland State University's School of Film and Media, and Dept. Chair of Shaker Heights High School’s Theatre Arts Department. She is the Executive Director of Bluestocking Productions, LLC, a teaching artist for Hudson Valley Shakespeare, and a private acting coach. Member: Stage Directors & Choreographers Observership Class 2019-21, Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab, Directors Lab West, Directors Lab North, SDC, SAG-AFTRA, AEA & New York Women in Film & Television (NYWIFT). BA Columbia University, MFA Kent State University. www.christinemcburney.com.
Anthony Robert Grasso is an award-winning actor, director, and educator with 37+ years of industry experience. He’s appeared in 35+ award-winning films (Sundance, BIFF, Garden State, et al.) and is the recipient of 84 awards and 63 nominations, most recently receiving Best Director for CRUMB CAKE at the Southern Shorts Awards and Best Actor for SOOTHSAYER at the Cutting Room International Short Film Festival. He has directed the films FRESH AIR, EXTRADITION, and RETREAT: RESISTANCE. On television, Mr. Grasso has appeared on The Sinner, Jessica Jones , Gotham, FBI, and all three Law & Order series. Streaming credits include the Hulu Series, Pam & Tommy as well as the recent Netflix Feature I'M THINKING OF ENDING THINGS directed by Oscar winner Charlie Kaufman. Mr. Grasso is the founder of ARG Studio with students who also work regularly in film, television, and theater. He previously served as the Artistic Director of Breakthrough Studios for 16 years. In addition to in-person and virtual classes, he teaches masterclasses and workshops for colleges, universities, and performing arts studios around the world. A third-generation New Yorker, Anthony studied at The Actors Studio, The Neighborhood Playhouse, Larry Moss Studio, and The British American Drama Academy (Oxford, England). He also holds a B.F.A. in Fine Art from School of Visual Arts. He’s proudly played the role of Dad for 22+ Years and Husband for 24+ years to Actor/Writer/Producer, Diane Harrington.
Heidi Hackney is an Associate Producer on TUTTO (everything) and an actor and teaching artist based in New York City. She’s drawn to intimate human stories—projects that explore hidden pasts, unexpected bonds, and the search for belonging. Her recent work includes an award-nominated performance in the world-premiere play THE ROBERTASSEY, as well as her work as a teaching artist with young people through the Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival. On TUTTO, Heidi supports the project’s development alongside the creative team and helps bring the story from page to screen.
She is inspired by the power of independent film to build community and spark understanding, and is thrilled to help bring TUTTO (everything) to life with Christine and Anthony. When she’s not producing, you can find her DIY-ing around her apartment or enjoying the outdoors with friends and her cat Daniel. heidi-hackney.com, Insta: @heidihhackney