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Hey, I'm Jim!
Brooksville, Maine
Jim Picariello is a screenwriter/filmmaker who is trying to break into the industry from rural, coastal Maine. It's a surefire plan!
His dark romantic comedy screenplay, The Cult of Us, was a Quarter-Finalist in the Nicholl Fellowship, his short script, Ninja Chiropractor, was a Semifinalist in the 2019 Austin Film Festival screenplay competition, and he's a 2-time Pitch Finalist at Austin.
Jim is also a 2018 Stowe Story Labs alum.
His first 4-minute short film, This Time It’s Shopping, made for $100, was selected by 18 film festivals and won 5 top awards.
This earned the attention of Sesame Street, who hired Jim to make a short film about “The Number 6” on a Maine farm, which aired on HBO's Sesame Street in 2018.
Jim’s subsequent 5-minute short film, Passive Aggressive Dads, was selected by 22 festivals, including Sedona, Nantucket, Breckenridge, SOHO, and BFI London. The film has also won 3 top awards, including Best Comedy (up against features) at the Beaufort International Film Festival.
He has co-written and directed a family-friendly short film, The Mushroom Huntress, starring Hoyt Richards (the world's first male supermodel) and Lacey Hannan, and is currently in festivals.
Most recently, Jim's feminist, animated, family feature screenplay, Igor and Frankie, has been a Austin Film Festival Second Rounder, Nicholl Fellowship Top 10%, a Semifinalist script at the Nashville Film Festival, and an Official Selection at the Austin Revolution Film Festival.
My Projects
Projects I'm Supporting
The Friendship
Charlotte, North Carolina• Film Short
Comedy, Satire
A click-hungry journalist gets way more than he bargained for when he reconnects with an old friend who’s joined a comically bizarre cult.
This project got the green light!
Maine Noir
Waldoboro, Maine• Film Feature
Drama
A modern noir about a woman who discovers a lot of money hidden in the walls of the house she inherited. Problem is, someone wants it back.
This project got the green light!
The Best Man's Privilege - TRAILER
Albany, New York• Film Short
Comedy, Romance
An insecure groom must disengage the operation that will spring him from his wedding, but his best man may be his worst enemy.
This project got the green light!
Night Waking
Washington, District of Columbia• Film Short
Sci-Fi, LGBTQ
In a dark time, what does it mean to protect your children? A science fiction tale from the Rosenbaum siblings.
This project got the green light!
After the Game
Oakland, California• Film Feature
Documentary, Sport
Three women from a 1999 college basketball team push to test their limits. Two decades later, they apply lessons learned off the court.
This project got the green light!
Lady Parts
Los Angeles, California• Film Feature
Comedy, Drama
When a high-risk cancer patient chooses preventative surgery, her removed organs move into her house and start talking to her.
This project got the green light!
White Crow
Los Angeles, California• Film Feature
Mystery, Thriller
A sickly young woman's life unravels when she receives a heart transplant and begins to take on her donor's personality traits.
This project got the green light!
Endless Light
Fairbanks, Alaska• Film Feature
Drama, Sci-Fi
Returning home, a bipolar woman attempts to decipher her brother's suicide through occult intervention with Alaska's wilderness.
This project got the green light!
Brown With Blue
Atlanta, Georgia• Film Short
Drama, Romance
A handyman & his girlfriend struggle with substance abuse to cope with their problems.
This project got the green light!
Passion & Progress
Lakeland, Florida• Series
Documentary
When people of color set out an ambitious goal to reach their highest potential, only to be faced with societal barriers.
This project got the green light!
Sinked Up
Los Angeles, California• Film Short
Comedy, LGBTQ
Two women started as roommates. Then they fell in love. A story told from behind the bathroom door.
This project got the green light!
Shedding - a feature film
Los Angeles, California• Film Feature
Drama, Fantasy
A cat who longs to explore the outside world transforms into a human and helps heal a broken family.
This project got the green light!
Deforming Stillness
Austin, Texas• Series
Drama, Transmedia
Web series focused around people subjected to sexual harassment/assault and what forms in the silences.
This project got the green light!
CA Shorts
San Francisco, California• Film Feature
Other, Shorts Program
The strongest magnet of all is the possibility of reinvention.
This project got the green light!
Desolation Center
Los Angeles, California• Film Feature
Documentary, Music
The untold story of influential Reagan-era guerrilla punk and industrial desert happenings that still reverberate throughout our culture.
This project got the green light!
Interiors
Middletown, Connecticut• Film Short
Drama, Thriller
In 1954, two mixed-race sisters must navigate their chances for survival in a rigid black-and-white world.
This project got the green light!
PRESENT TIME: journal of a country monastery
Berkeley, California• Film Feature
Documentary, History
PRESENT TIME will be the first and last film about life inside the Abbey.
This project got the green light!
FOR GINA
Los Angeles, California• Film Short
Drama
When 3 year old Sofia is diagnosed with cancer, the people who's lives she's touched must come to terms with love and loss.
This project got the green light!
The Apple Tree
Portland, Oregon• Film Feature
Drama, LGBTQ
A closeted high school football player is forced to volunteer at a retirement community after getting in trouble with the law, where he form
This project got the green light!
The Talk
New York City, New York• Film Short
Drama
When is it too soon to tell a child the truth?
This project got the green light!
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I Would Have Kissed You
Los Angeles, California• Series
Comedy, Drama
After college, Olivia and Mattie find the real world isn't all that it's cracked up to be. But maybe friendship can keep them afloat? Maybe?
This project got the green light!
King Ester
New York City, New York• Series
Drama, LGBTQ
Before the reign, came the rain.
This project got the green light!
Echoes in Silence
New York City, New York• Film Short
Drama, Experimental
Six women who are a manifestation of 1 woman embark on a journey of truth & self-discovery whilst formulating a sisterhood along the way.
This project got the green light!
Chrysalis
Los Angeles, California• Film Short
Drama, Sci-Fi
An astronaut trapped in cryo sleep on a damaged spacecraft uses a visceral childhood memory to break free from her coma and save her crew.
This project got the green light!
You Are Going To Explode
Los Angeles, California• Film Short
Comedy, Drama
A depressed man searches for meaning to stave off his own spontaneous combustion.
This project got the green light!
Up on the Mountain
Port Townsend, Washington• Film Feature
Documentary
A documentary about Southeast Asian refugees, Latino immigrants, and rural Americans on a year-round migration to harvest wild mushrooms.
This project got the green light!
The Battle for Ranked Choice Voting
Boston, Massachusetts• Film Short
Documentary, News
From Maine to New Mexico, citizens rise for free and fair elections but face opposition from entrenched political interests.
This project got the green light!
ABRUPTIO
Los Angeles, California• Film Feature
Horror, Thriller
A loner must uncover a sinister race of beings before the explosive they've implanted in his neck detonates.
This project got the green light!
The BLDG: Five Stories of Horror
New York City, New York• Film Feature
Horror, Other
Five chilling stories set in the same creepy NYC building, where dark forces bring about the manifestation of its residents' worst fears.
This project got the green light!
Swipe Left to Live
Long Beach, Mississippi• Film Feature
Horror
A mysterious entity pits several girls against each other on Halloween night by forcing them to play a murderous game through their phones.
This project got the green light!
Seed of Doubt
Rochester, Minnesota• Film Feature
Thriller
Melissa and Scott’s dream home turns into a nightmare when they take on new tenants to make ends meet.
This project got the green light!
What Daphne Saw
Los Angeles, California• Film Feature
Sci-Fi, Thriller
In the future, criminals are reprogrammed into silent, unquestioning servants.
This project got the green light!
Locked Alone
New York City, New York• Film Feature
Thriller, Drama
Catherine, unwillingly locked in her new apartment, discovers hidden crimes behind an evil entity. Will she have any chances to survive?
This project got the green light!
Alone
Whitefish, Montana• Film Feature
Horror, Thriller
A woman with crippling social anxiety is cursed; she cannot be alone for more than 2 minutes and 17 seconds or "They" will come for her.
This project got the green light!
The NEW FREEDOM
Denver, Colorado• Film Feature
Horror, Thriller
It's not just about survival. It's about a community.
This project got the green light!
Displaced
New York City, New York• Film Feature
Horror
A young black man in Brooklyn must prove his new white neighbors are emissaries from the Satanic cult they both survived as children.
This project got the green light!
The Atticus McLaren Mysteries
Edinburgh, United Kingdom• Series
Mystery, Drama
An autistic museum technician stumbles onto a mystery and we learn that sometimes finding the answer takes a different way of thinking.
This project got the green light!
Dying to Run
New York City, New York• Film Feature
Documentary
A documentary following the lives of three athletes diagnosed with a debilitating rare disease.
This project got the green light!
Summer Hill
Baltimore, Maryland• Film Short
Drama
The teenagers of a rural town are confronted by the not-so-charming realities of their hometown on the eve of its annual beauty pageant.
This project got the green light!
Watchdog
Seattle, Washington• Film Short
Crime, Film-Noir
An investigative reporter is on the trail of corruption which leads her to cross paths with her past and an ethical dilemma.
This project got the green light!
One Bird at a Time
Portland, Oregon• Series
Comedy, Drama
When do-gooder and lovable neurotic Julie strives to save the neediest and the craziest in the world, she has to start in her own backyard.
This project got the green light!
VOWS
New York City, New York• Series
Comedy, Drama
Two actresses from conservative immigrant backgrounds agree to a green card marriage hoping to pursue their very American passions.
This project got the green light!
Or So the Story Goes: Knock Knock
Weehawken, New Jersey• Series
Horror, Thriller
Or So the Story Goes brings alive a new terrifying tale- a home invasion horror story based on 'Jack and the Beanstalk.'.
This project got the green light!
Agent of Change
Los Angeles, California• Series
Comedy, LGBTQ
A secret agent is on a mission to save the future of food, and as a transgender man, save humanity... one gender stereotype at a time.
This project got the green light!
New Recruits
Fremont, California• Film Short
Comedy, LGBTQ
New Recruits is a military satire about why young men and women choose to serve in the Army and the headstrong leadership that prepares th
This project got the green light!
Cohabitation
Milwaukee, Wisconsin• Film Feature
Drama, Thriller
While a former paramedic lives a low-key life to cope with PTSD, her new roommate has other plans, and a vendetta against medical personnel.
This project got the green light!
In the Blue Hour
New York City, New York• Company
Drama, Experimental
What are we supposed to make of a life? A perfect hostess invites her friends to attend one last party - and you are invited!
This project got the green light!
Speak Easy, B
Los Angeles, California• Film Short
LGBTQ, Experimental
Take a tender journey inside the desert of the mind, as B meditates on heartache, depression, and identity as a queer Asian woman.
This project got the green light!
Wasteland
Los Angeles, California• Film Short
Comedy, Drama
A comedian rescues her estranged sister from being alone in LA and they fall apart together.
This project got the green light!
Passive Aggressive Dads
Blue Hill, Maine• Film Short
Comedy
Two dads try to spend a nice day at the park with their daughters and end up avenging their life's failures upon a group of obnoxious teens.
This project got the green light!
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Planet Earth Symphony Film
Saugerties, Ulster County• Film Feature
Experimental, Global Celebration
Sure, the planet is in peril but don't buy into doomsday. Humans become extraordinary problem solvers when properly motivated.
This project got the green light!
Birth of Pleasure
Atlanta, Georgia• Film Short
Drama, Experimental
Narrative dance-film which explores sensuality and modern issues around the female body, through a retelling of the Psyche and Cupid myth.
This project got the green light!
People Like You
Los Angeles, California• Film Short
Drama, Thriller
The heir to a fortune returns to his family estate to find a corpse, a beautiful woman, and the keys to an empire that hangs in the balance.
This project got the green light!
ROTTEN
Seattle, Washington• Film Short
Drama, Comedy
Forced to move from his home, an elderly widower must come to terms with his own identity, with the help of his vivacious best friend.
This project got the green light!
Shield
New York City, New York• Film Short
Drama, Family
Zoe overcomes her unusual attachment to a blanket with her foster mom's creative use of comic books.
This project got the green light!
Karaoke People - A Documentary (Formerly: Tip The KJ - A Karaoke Movie)
Portland, Oregon• Film Short
Documentary
Some people sing karaoke. Others are karaoke people. This is a story about why it matters.
This project got the green light!
Hello World: The Film
Atlanta, Georgia• Film Feature
Documentary, Other
Software is everywhere. But who makes it? This film will uncover this hidden army of coders who make our lives work.
This project got the green light!
The Forgotten
Los Angeles, California• Film Short
Drama, Western
In the Old West, two women must defy the bigotry of their time to save an innocent life.
This project got the green light!
Bye, Alicia
Los Angeles, California• Film Feature
Romantic Comedy, Comedy
Two quirky loners begin a romance off a dating app before it quickly descends into chaos thanks to a crazy ex-girlfriend named Alicia.
This project got the green light!
Woke
New York City, New York• Series
Comedy, Drama
A racially mixed , outspoken actress in New York City constantly being told ‘no’ and offering herself a 'yes'
This project got the green light!
Smoked
Los Angeles, California• Film Short
Comedy
A Postmates courrier's world is turned upside when she has to deliver bagels and lox to her old high school.
This project got the green light!
The Mark
Atlanta, Georgia• Film Feature
Comedy
Where we're going we don't need ropes...
This project got the green light!
Pineapple 菠蘿
Hong Kong, Hong Kong• Series
Teen, Drama
In Hong Kong, a group of teenagers struggle for cultural validation while planning a fashion show at their international high school.
This project got the green light!
YAZIDI GENOCIDE FILM
Los Angeles, California• Film Feature
Drama, War
When ISIS turns a mountain into a massacre, who can you save?
This project got the green light!
Phosphene
New York City, New York• Film Short
Drama, Fantasy
As drugs consume their lives, a homeless musician and an awkward office worker begin to experience magical symptoms.
This project got the green light!
39 1/2
San Francisco, California• Film Feature
Animation, Comedy
A comedy about a single female indie filmmaker who is pushing 40 and determined to have a baby before time runs out. Starring Beth Lisick.
This project got the green light!
The Laser Effect
Baltimore, Maryland• Film Festival
Drama, Sport
The story of Ty Laser, a high school star athlete, who struggles with the gravities of the past and the high expectations of the present.
This project got the green light!
Are You Ok? Cause I'm OK.
New York City, New York• Film Short
Other
Would you take mushrooms with your mother?
This project got the green light!
Dom na Marse
Los Angeles, California• Film Short
Drama, Sci-Fi
A bipolar woman must choose: follow her wife to an unfamiliar planet led by a cold-blooded regime, or endure alone on a deteriorating Earth.
This project got the green light!
Multiverse
New York City, New York• Film Short
Fantasy, Sci-Fi
Joanne gets a new perspective on a big life decision when she falls for Trudy, a vampire for whom all possible universes are reality.
This project got the green light!
Hello Henry
Denton, Texas• Film Short
Comedy, Drama
A lonely man finds the love of his life when a married woman moves in next door. Together they hire a hitman to kill the abusive husband.
This project got the green light!
KNIGHT WATCH - Sci-Fi/Horror Proof of Concept Short
Los Angeles, California• Film Short
Horror, Sci-Fi
An ambitious and reckless astronomer becomes obsessed with her husband’s secretive research of an ancient UFO.
This project got the green light!
Park Slope Moms
New York City, New York• Series
Comedy
A high-powered attorney turned 'stay-at-home' mom regains power as PTA President, but ruling with an iron fist sparks a coup.
This project got the green light!
Conversations in Apartment 3A
New York City, New York• Series
Comedy
A comedic web series about two women in their late-20s facing the realities of living in New York City.
This project got the green light!
Full Moon
Ellicott City, Maryland• Film Short
Horror, Thriller
Four high school friends nearing the end of their senior year, encounter strange horrors one fateful night.
This project got the green light!
Romance Analyst
New York City, New York• Film Feature
Comedy
A platonic love triangle between a woman, her best friend, and her therapist.
This project got the green light!
On Story Project
Austin, Texas• Series
Film-related Business, Filmmaker Resource
On Story shares passionate discussions about the creative process of storytelling to audiences worldwide for free.
This project got the green light!
Relations
Los Angeles, California• Film Short
Comedy, Drama
Two cousins have conflicting views on a secret sexual encounter from their youth.
This project got the green light!
Period
Austin, Texas• Film Short
Documentary
A documentary about the unheard needs of unheard women.
This project got the green light!
I AM NOT ALONE
Hartford, Connecticut• Film Short
Documentary, LGBTQ
After a diagnosis of ALS, a man determines to clarify his relationships: with his family, his community, with life itself
This project got the green light!
Patient
New York City, New York• Series
Comedy, LGBTQ
Adrian Irons can recreate the symptoms of any disease, which he uses to train med students. But things get messy when the symptoms stick.
This project got the green light!
SPIN - a short film
Los Angeles, California• Film Short
Action, Drama
When a once-optimistic college color guard captain must work as a sign spinner to make ends meet, she's forced to reconsider her life plan.
This project got the green light!
Dawn of Hearts
Ashland, Oregon• Film Feature
Documentary
A pulsing journey through human life, from before birth to beyond death, revealing our heart is not a pump, but the biggest mystery of life.
This project got the green light!
Roots of Fire
Lafayette, Louisiana• Film Feature
Documentary, Music
The story behind a new generation of musicians keeping one of America’s last true cultures alive in the heart of Louisiana.
This project got the green light!
Pozole
Los Angeles, California• Film Short
Comedy, Drama
Maia prolly killed her Nana.
This project got the green light!
XJW | Coming Out of the Jehovah's Witness Religion
Denver, Colorado• Series
Documentary, Global Celebration
XJW | Coming Out of the Jehovah's Witness Religion Documentary Series
This project got the green light!
F1
Los Angeles, California• Film Feature
Comedy, Drama
An Iranian student’s F1 visa gets revoked, forcing a family friend to babysit her for a weekend of LA adventures before being deported.
This project got the green light!
Michael And Michael Are Gay
Los Angeles, California• Series
Comedy, LGBTQ
A satirical look at gay marriage through the eyes of two neurotic married misfits named Michael.
This project got the green light!
Junie & Frank
New York City, New York• Film Short
Comedy, Family
Frank's granddaughter, Junie, won't answer his calls. So he fibs a little.
This project got the green light!
Feral - A post-apocalyptic feature film
Denver, Colorado• Film Feature
Sci-Fi, Thriller
"Boyhood meets The Road" - A post-apocalyptic tale of a boy trying to survive after the collapse of society.
This project got the green light!
The Rings of Saturn
Saint Paul, Minnesota• Film Feature
Documentary
A documentary that highlights professional wrestler Perry Saturn's rise to fame and the consequences of it.
This project got the green light!
A Room Full of Nothing
Austin, Texas• Film Feature
Adventure, Romance
In this Swiss Army Man meets Eternal Sunshine adventure an artistic couple's life takes a bizarre turn when they wake up alone in the world.
This project got the green light!
Aperture
New York City, New York• Film Short
Drama, Family
A grad student's life is turned upside down when he is named the guardian for his little cousin.
This project got the green light!
Rich Kids
Houston, Texas• Film Feature
Drama
A group of Latino teens in a poor community break into Los Ricos, a local mansion, to forget their difficult lives and live a different one.
This project got the green light!
Carbon
Metuchen, New Jersey• Film Feature
Drama, Science
Unable to accept her daughter's sudden death, Dr. Lauren Atwood, attempts to clone her deceased daughter and carry the clone to term.
This project got the green light!
Swine Country: A Community Polluted Fighting For Change
Raleigh, North Carolina• Film Feature
Documentary
In eastern North Carolina, animals are sick, fish are dying, and people are fighting to make sure they aren't next.
This project got the green light!
Mama Drama
Fairfield, New Jersey• Film Short
Comedy, Drama
A suburban mom has a falling out with her friends via text messages. It takes her 10-year-old daughter to remind of what really matters.
This project got the green light!
The Extraordinary World of Cecily Blinkstop
Boston, Massachusetts• Film Short
Drama, Family
After the death of her baby sister, a 7-year-old girl, with the help of an imaginary friend, creates an extraordinary world to save her fami
This project got the green light!
Architect Blues
Atlanta, Georgia• Film Short
Drama, Other
A short film that explores the side hustle every black woman has that keeps her pockets empty.
This project got the green light!
Closure
Los Angeles, California• Film Feature
Comedy, Film-Noir
Following her mother’s funeral, Nina flies to Los Angeles and navigates a bizarre mix of Angelenos as she searches for her missing sister.
This project got the green light!
Hide and Seek
Washington, District of Columbia• Film Short
Drama, Sci-Fi
An indie rock musician turned stay-at-home dad makes an impulsive wish, propelling him into an alternate reality.
This project got the green light!
Her-POW! New Adventures of Vintage Comic Book Heroines!
Los Angeles, California• Series
Action, Other
All new live-action adventures from 3 heroines from the Golden Age of comic books: The Woman in Red, The Veiled Avenger, and Ghost Woman!
This project got the green light!
EMIKO
Seattle, Washington• Film Short
Horror, Thriller
A kind caregiver watches over a deeply ill woman only to discover not everything appears as it seems and something far sinister lies within.
This project got the green light!
Joanne
Brussels, Belgium• Film Feature
Horror, Thriller
Joanne thinks she's normal; the Conspiracy knows better, she’s a bellwether. They kidnap her and find she's more than even she knew.
This project got the green light!
EN MACHINA
Los Angeles, California• VR Experience
Comedy, Sci-Fi
Two inventors, Steve and Steve, create the world's first true artificial intelligence in their garage.
This project got the green light!
The Benefits of Gusbandry
Portland, Oregon• Series
Comedy, LGBTQ
Love is so gay. One Woman, One Man, a lot of weed, a little crying and NO sexual attraction whatsoever. "Hilarious, irreverent.." - OUT.com
This project got the green light!
Nyogon: together
Dissan, Mali• Film Feature
Documentary
Sometimes global change starts with local action.
This project got the green light!
Groupers
Los Angeles, California• Film Feature
Comedy, Drama
A female grad student captures 2 homophobic males to be a part of a controversial experiment at the bottom of an empty pool.
This project got the green light!
Thirsty Girl
Los Angeles, California• Film Short
Drama
A young woman is consumed with her obsession over LA's drought as a means to avoid the fact her mother is dying of cancer.
This project got the green light!
Root For The Villain
New York City, New York• Series
Comedy, Drama
In a world where 1% of the population has superpowers, Lana is a young parole officer who works with nonviolent super-villains.
This project got the green light!
Pieces Season 3 Web Series
New York City, New York• Series
Action, Drama
Pieces is about a group of girls from Brooklyn NY who discovers this secret world of Credit card scamming.
This project got the green light!
HH
New York City, New York• Film Feature
Sci-Fi, Thriller
Trapped in a strange facility, prisoners must solve puzzles and learn to trust each other while dealing with the virtual warden, a talking c
This project got the green light!
Boys on the Inside
Seattle, Washington• Film Feature
Documentary
Boys on the Inside is a feature documentary about ‘boy’ culture in women’s prisons in Washington State.
This project got the green light!
The Ties That Bind
Chapel Hill, Orange County• Film Feature
Documentary, LGBTQ
When the youngest sibling unexpectedly “gets real”, an uneasy yet courageous journey of transformation ensues for a Southern family.
This project got the green light!
DUST: A Fairy Tale
New York City, New York• Series
Comedy, Drama
What would you give up, to grow up? A group of fallen fairies trade in their wings and pixie dust to become "real women" in New York City.
This project got the green light!
Docket 32357
New York City, New York• Series
Drama
A high profile case gives Alex, a gifted lawyer, the rare opportunity to ascend to the elite in his profession and he is willing to achieve
This project got the green light!
The Things We Do When We're Alone (feature)
Brooklyn, New York• Film Feature
Comedy, Drama
what happens when you don't just love music, but live by it.
This project got the green light!
El Migrante
Chula Vista, California• Film Short
Drama, Foreign Film
A young boy is forced to migrate out of the Mexican countryside into the city to work.
This project got the green light!
The Sibling Code
United States• Film Short
Comedy
A hilarious comedy about a sister and brother who must come to consensus as they plan a funeral.
This project got the green light!
Actress
New York, United States• Film Feature
Documentary
A film about starring in the movie of your life.
This project got the green light!
A New York Pair
New York City, New York• Film Short
Romantic Comedy
What happens when Molly and Charles must decide between ambition and love in New York City?
This project got the green light!
FOG CITY
San Francisco, California• Film Short
Drama, Mystery
A solitary amateur ballplayer confronts an invisible past in plain view of a new teammate.
This project got the green light!
