MER

Experimental, LGBT

Short

Brooklyn

In an experimental retelling of The Little Mermaid, a young woman struggles with the inability to express her true inner self. One fated night, a mystical infomercial from the legendary House of Lah Dee Dah dares to shift her existence - for a price.

Wishlist
Use the WishList to contribute cash and loan items - or - Make a contribution by selecting an incentive directly.

Flights

help megyn get to nyc!

$440 to go

costs $600

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$

Catering

feed the people!

$260 to go

costs $270

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$

Cinematographer

for our brilliant dp, jessica bennett!

$400 to go

costs $400

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$

Set Designer

for the divine tate a.k. o.

$150 to go

costs $150

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$

Production Sound Mixer

featuring daniel hui on boom

$240 to go

costs $240

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$

Wardrobe Stylist

you are what you wear

$150 to go

costs $150

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$

Production Assistants

a helping hand

$150 to go

costs $150

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$

Make Up Artist

mira needs to get ready for her close up

$200 to go

costs $200

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$

Actor

mira, ursulah & the prince come to life

$900 to go

costs $900

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$

Prop Package

what's a girl without her accessories, or a witch without her potions?

$1,100 to go

costs $1,100

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$

Location fees

location, location, location

$250 to go

costs $250

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$

Hard Drive

our main hard drive - for editing

$350 to go

costs $380

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$

Festival Fees

we'll submit the finished film to festivals so more people can enjoy it

$300 to go

costs $300

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$

Sound Designer

music to your ears

$500 to go

costs $500

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$

Backup Hard Drive

backup hard drives - just in case!

$260 to go

costs $260

×
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$

Compact HD - Canon EOS C300

to capture the magic

$950 to go

costs $1,000

×
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$

Lighting Package

let there be light!

$150 to go

costs $150

×
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$

G-Technology® Hard Drive ($500)

G-Technology® is the gold standard for storage solutions specifically designed for content creators. We’ll get a storage grant from them when we get the Green Light!

FULFILLED

costs $25

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Select This Incentive

$10 USD

• A social media shoutout & our unconditional love!

Claimed: 6 of 'Unlimited'

Select This Incentive

$20 USD

• Digital hi-res download of LIL' MER & social media shoutout!

Claimed: 34 of 'Unlimited'

Select This Incentive

$50 USD

• Specially designed LIL' MER mobile/desktop wallpaper

• Digital hi-res download of LIL' MER & social media shoutout!

Claimed: 8 of 'Unlimited'

Select This Incentive

$100 USD

• Set of six behind-the-scenes photographs from our upcoming production in NY & all of the incentives above!

Claimed: 15 of 'Unlimited'
Select This Incentive

$200 USD

We'll send you a signed prop from the shoot!

+ all the incentives above.

Claimed: 0 of 5
Select This Incentive

$250 USD

• Limited LIL' MER poster & all of the incentives above!

Claimed: 6 of 'Unlimited'

Select This Incentive

$500 USD

• Limited mermaid lapel pin to show off your MER pride!

• An Invitation for you & a guest to the Los Angeles or New York premiere & all of the incentives above!

Claimed: 0 of 20

Select This Incentive

$1,000 USD

• Associate Producer credit

• Personalized thank you video from the cast & crew of LIL’ MER & all of the incentives above!

Claimed: 0 of 10

Select This Incentive

$3,000 USD

• Executive Producer credit

• 30-min Skype session with the director & producer to dish on filmmaking, LIL' MER, whatever your heart desires & all of the incentives above!

Claimed: 0 of 2
The Story
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About The Project

Bending the narrative of the classic Hans Christian Andersen tale, LIL’ MER repurposes elements from The Little Mermaid to explore the topics of gender identity and self-actualization. Tapping into the vibrant drag scene in New York City, as well as featuring the legendary Mermaid Parade on Coney Island, LIL’ MER presents a unique approach to narrative storytelling, grounded in documentary and experimental video.

Director Megyn Cawley brings her visual style, anchored in a 90s pop aesthetic, to LIL’ MER. Her exploration of gender and self is visible in her 2012 short film, GIRL, and she continues to explore these topics in depth in LIL’ MER.

LIL’ MER is the first in a series of short films, produced and curated by Alex Herboche. The films aim to document underrepresented and misrepresented communities in the United States through the lens of classic fairy tales. By reusing and subverting these beloved narratives, the series, lead by LIL’ MER, aims to offer a radical and collaborative re-appropriation of these well-known tales. The films hope to raise awareness of the communities and different forms of womanhood, allowing them equal representation within our shared, collective storytelling, while offering the opportunity for each to express their individualities and complexities with the support of diverse filmmakers and crews.
Incentives
Select This Incentive

$10 USD

• A social media shoutout & our unconditional love!

Claimed: 6 of 'Unlimited'

Select This Incentive

$20 USD

• Digital hi-res download of LIL' MER & social media shoutout!

Claimed: 34 of 'Unlimited'

Select This Incentive

$50 USD

• Specially designed LIL' MER mobile/desktop wallpaper

• Digital hi-res download of LIL' MER & social media shoutout!

Claimed: 8 of 'Unlimited'

Select This Incentive

$100 USD

• Set of six behind-the-scenes photographs from our upcoming production in NY & all of the incentives above!

Claimed: 15 of 'Unlimited'
Select This Incentive

$200 USD

We'll send you a signed prop from the shoot!

+ all the incentives above.

Claimed: 0 of 5
Select This Incentive

$250 USD

• Limited LIL' MER poster & all of the incentives above!

Claimed: 6 of 'Unlimited'

Select This Incentive

$500 USD

• Limited mermaid lapel pin to show off your MER pride!

• An Invitation for you & a guest to the Los Angeles or New York premiere & all of the incentives above!

Claimed: 0 of 20

Select This Incentive

$1,000 USD

• Associate Producer credit

• Personalized thank you video from the cast & crew of LIL’ MER & all of the incentives above!

Claimed: 0 of 10

Select This Incentive

$3,000 USD

• Executive Producer credit

• 30-min Skype session with the director & producer to dish on filmmaking, LIL' MER, whatever your heart desires & all of the incentives above!

Claimed: 0 of 2
Updates
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The Team

Current Team

About This Team

Megyn Cawley (writer, director) is a multimedia artist and filmmaker based in Los Angeles, California. By channeling nostalgia and camp ethos through the juxtaposition of analog and digital media formats, her work explores the expression of ego, self and gender identity. Megyn holds an MFA in Film & Video from the California Institute of the Arts, and has exhibited her films and multi-channel installations across the western US. Her latest work, the award-winning short, GIRL, is a study of the collective experience of the adolescent female through identity, personification, and a desire for the validation of self.

Rhyan Hamilton (actress) is a fashion videographer and installation artist from Monterey, Ca. In 2010 Rhyan was awarded the Edward Weston Scholarship for photography. She has produced video lookbooks for TOME's Spring/Summer 2012 and 2014 Collections. In 2014, she produced her first installation, I WANT THEM TO TURN BLACK, infusing elements of sound and performance to question the Art of Beauty. Rhyan is drawn to fusing avant garde and minimalist aesthetics with a neo-noir approach to color, motion, and style. She lives and works in Brooklyn.

Originally from Miami, Florida, Jessica Bennett (cinematographer) most notably shot AWOL the awarded short film which premiered at Sundance in 2011. Bennett has shot an array of projects for independent filmmakers, musicians and artists of all mediums including narrative, commercial, fashion and conceptual art. She has been in lighting-shading and camera support in motion picture for more than a decade. From a great independence in her youth she's developed a unique perspective on the innocence of beauty and the deception of darkness. With the wealth of knowledge from a wide experience in film, photography, music and fine arts, she uses lighting and movement to guide the viewer to the essence of any subject.

Alex Herboche (producer) is a Franco-Iranian filmmaker and producer currently based in Brooklyn, NY. She holds an MFA in Film and Video from the California Institute of the Arts and co-founded Nuhr Film with fellow filmmaker Andrea Franco.
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