What?

Wannabe Famous is about an unemployed film auteur who agrees to direct a superficial, uninspired television project: a reality show where all of the contestants are celebrity impersonators. This project is a PILOT for a TV SERIES, the details of which--including a Pilot synopsis--can be found below.

Where?

This story is centered around the entertainment company ABBOV TV, a predator multinational conglomerate similar to our world's Disney or Succession's Waystar Royco. Both the main setting and thematic antagonist, ABBOV TV and its reality show are a personified satire of the modern media industry--a corporate, bloodthirsty world focused on vapid consumerism and reliable dividends.

Who?

Our two main characters are the personification of two clashing concepts: idealistic naivety and cutthroat realism.

Ben Wolfe Bradley is an entitled "film auteur" struggling against a superficial industry to produce something meaningful. After peaking in film school, he spent years looking for work before agreeing to direct a vapid, reality TV project.

Diane Tsung, once Ben's college buddy, is now a cutthroat executive willing to step over anyone in order to make it to the top. As someone who understands and masters the rules of the industry, she isn’t here to make friends. Sardonic, witty, and sharp.

How?

Wannabe Famous is a show within a show, a reality TV production captured behind the scenes via a mockumentary style close to The Office and Succession.

Our comedy can be satirical and absurd, but more than anything it's real. With a documentary style, we see characters for who they are, and in between the bits are darker glimpses of shattered dreams, deep fears, and harsh realities. Wannabe Famous is often funny and lighthearted, but it's got a bite to it.

Why?

A meta-satire at heart, Wannabe Famous? comments on current media via current media, creating the "realest" depiction of "reality" TV there'll ever be. It critiques all sides--both the money-grabbing corporations and the insufferable artists who call themselves auteurs--and in doing so portrays TV's "golden age" as the gilded cage it really is. Our project has something to say and isn't afraid to say it, and with your help, it can have a voice.

More so than anything, however, besides it's current opinions, cutting themes, and one-of-a-kind concept, you should donate to Wannabe Famous because there's a team behind it who truly cares--University students who got together to write, develop, and produce a story that we care about telling.

What happens in the Pilot?

Enough about the show itself--what happens in the first episode, aka the Pilot that will be produced using this money? Besides all the aesthetic stuff, what is the content that will actually be made?

We're glad you asked. Our pilot (written by TV writing and screenwriting students in a collaborative, 7-person writers room) focuses on Ben's entry into the absurd world of reality TV. His "first day" of sorts, Ben is put in charge of auditions, tasked with casting the crazy troupe of celebrity impersonators that will make up the reality show he will be running: "Wannabe Famous?"

The episode's plot goes something like this:

ACT 1 - "The Job"

Ben Wolf Bradley, a washed-up, unemployed director, is approached by his college-buddy-turned-cutthroat-producer Diane Tsung, who offers him the only opportunity he has to stay alive in the industry: a reality TV gig. It pays well (for his standards), but Ben has trouble accepting the loss of dignity and creative control that comes with it. Nonetheless, he signs the contract.

ACT 2 - "The Circus"

Ben, Diane's assistant Evan, and a cameraman, Calvin, run auditions. Since the reality show Ben is casting for--"Wannabe Famous"--is about celebrity and historical impersonators trying not to break character, auditions consist of a wild medley of funny, absurd, and outlandish characters. Everyone from Emperor Ceaser and Batman to Cleopatra and Kanye West create a circus of wacky personalities in the casting room, but despite this hilarious pandemonium, Ben does find a few candidates he enjoys.

ACT 3 - "Welcome to the Show"

Creating his cast list, Ben begins to show optimism for the project. It may be reality TV, but it can still mean something--after all, it's still his, and he's confident it can be something to feel proud of. Except, when Ben shows Diane the list, she takes it as a joke. Did Ben really think he was in charge of casting? That's why her assistant was there! Is Ben really so arrogant that he thought he could just make every decision? Ben, angry and hurt, tries to quit, but finds that he can't--seems he was also too arrogant to read that contract. Looks like he's stuck here, along with the cast he didn't get to choose, finding that he's no longer the director of the circus but part of it.

FAQ's

• Why a TV pilot, and not a short film?

Wannabe Famous was written as a group exercise by a collaborative writers team, but they didn't just write one pilot. Outside of this first episode exists an entire season of already-written scripts--an completed TV show just waiting to be picked up--and this pilot is just the proof-of-concept.

Unlike short films, proof-of-concept pilots such as this one can be marketed to real production houses with the promise of a much bigger series, making pilots much more useful to getting concepts made in the real world. Not only is TV a better medium to tell this story, but it's a more marketable one, and as a donor, you see a much greater chance of seeing this project really go somewhere.

• What will you be using this money for?

Our crew of experienced film students works for free, and as such, we have the ability to make a professional pilot with a much smaller budget than what is usually required. However, we do need your help to finance the small budget that we have built for the following expenses:

1. Food to feed our crew and cast
2. Safety necessities, such as first aid kits and fire extinguishers.
3. Industry-standard camera, lighting, and sound equipment rentals
4. Insurance coverage for equipment and personnel
5. Location permitting and processing fees
6. Fair gas compensation and SAG compensation for cast members
7. Set dressing and a wide assortment of costumes (for the celebrity impersonators that are on the reality show).

• What are your plans for this pilot once it's finished? How will I access it?

Wannabe Famous will be uploaded to Vimeo after release and will be public to all viewers, easily accessible via this website and our social media pages. All donors will receive advanced private links directly to their email for ease of access, as well as early access before the pilot is made public.

Wannabe Famous will additionally be submitted to film and TV festivals after completion, where all special thanks credits and associate producer credits available as donor incentives will be recognized!

• What else can I do to support Wannabe Famous and help it get made?

Every donation and pledge to our project helps, but to truly make Wannabe Famous possible, share it with your family, friends, coworkers, neighbors and the world! To share, simply copy the website URL and send it to anyone with a dollar to spare! Once they're here, we'll explain the rest!