To Mike
To Mike
by Lauren Skillen
Lauren Skillen
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Working at a NYC based art journal, Holly struggles to fit in professionally and socially. After being belittled by coworkers at an office party, she takes the next train home. There she meets Mike, an 18-year-old community college student who connects with her like no other person has before.
Working at a NYC based art journal, Holly struggles to fit in professionally and socially. After being belittled by coworkers at an office party, she takes the next train home. There she meets Mike, an 18-year-old community college student who connects with her like no other person has before.
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Story
About The Project
I have always viewed filmmaking as a means of expressing the truest forms of humanity. It allows us to get in direct contact with subjects and experience the world as they do, even if it’s just for a brief moment in time. To me, there is nothing more personal than that. I also believe that it’s the many little moments in life that mold us in to the people we are today, and the people we are to become. I want to tell these hidden stories with a sense of hyper-realism, and in a way that shows that the ordinary can indeed be something extraordinary.
To Mike is based off of one of those life-changing moments that happened to me. I met "Mike" on my seemingly ordinary train commute home, and even though we were complete strangers, he saw me for me without any judgment. Like a lot of 21-year-old college students, I felt I lost my identity and purpose in life. And when Mike sat next to me, he spoke with a genuine and kind voice. I felt like the only person on that train. And in that 10-minute conversation with a stranger, that cloud of uncertainty evaporated. Many times we forget there are people we pass everyday who experience the same feelings we do. We take for granted these possible connections- if only we had the courage to say "Hi, what's your name?”. I met my Mike, and I want my audience to meet theirs. Hopefully this film will inspire them to do so.
Incentives
$10
A Drunk "Thank You" Note! You'll receive a personalized, hand-written "thank you" postcard written while we were drunk, which we will probably regret later.$25
Social Media Fame
We'll create a unique, customized (and seceretive) Photoshop image of yourself and blast it on our social media AND you'll get a digital copy of the film for your viewing pleasure.
$50
A Rad To Mike T-shirt
That's right. You'll receive your very own To Mike T-shirt PLUS the previous incentives.
$100
A Handmade To Mike Print
You'll receive an original To Mike inspired, handmade print made by the director, Lauren Skillen PLUS the previous incentives. Now that's pretty cool.
(Warning: Example of Skillen's work- Not actual incentive piece)
$250
A Personalized Lip Sync Video
The Director will personally record a lip sync performance of ANY (within reason... but most likely ANY) song of your choice and blast it on our social media for the world to see PLUS you'll receive the previous incentives. Oh boy...
$500
Name Dropping
We'll name a supporting character after you and tell the whole world! (AKA our social media followers) PLUS you'll receive the previous incentives.
$1,000
Executive Producer Title
You'll be given the title of "Executive Producer" and be listed in the film's credits! PLUS you'll receive the previous incentives. Welcome to the team!
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Wishlist
Use the WishList to pledge cash and loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an incentive directly.
$10
A Drunk "Thank You" Note! You'll receive a personalized, hand-written "thank you" postcard written while we were drunk, which we will probably regret later.$25
Social Media Fame
We'll create a unique, customized (and seceretive) Photoshop image of yourself and blast it on our social media AND you'll get a digital copy of the film for your viewing pleasure.
$50
A Rad To Mike T-shirt
That's right. You'll receive your very own To Mike T-shirt PLUS the previous incentives.
$100
A Handmade To Mike Print
You'll receive an original To Mike inspired, handmade print made by the director, Lauren Skillen PLUS the previous incentives. Now that's pretty cool.
(Warning: Example of Skillen's work- Not actual incentive piece)
$250
A Personalized Lip Sync Video
The Director will personally record a lip sync performance of ANY (within reason... but most likely ANY) song of your choice and blast it on our social media for the world to see PLUS you'll receive the previous incentives. Oh boy...
$500
Name Dropping
We'll name a supporting character after you and tell the whole world! (AKA our social media followers) PLUS you'll receive the previous incentives.
$1,000
Executive Producer Title
You'll be given the title of "Executive Producer" and be listed in the film's credits! PLUS you'll receive the previous incentives. Welcome to the team!
- Updates
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Current Team
About This Team
Director: Lauren Skillen
Lauren Skillen is a director, producer, and fine artist. Inspired by human nature and handcrafted, holistic practices, Lauren works primarily through film and printmaking. One of her prints is currently on exhibit at the Student International Small Print Show in Cairo, Egypt. As a filmmaker, Lauren has produced numerous short films including the award-winning Sea Odyssey (2014), These Words Illuminated (2014), and Gilad (2015). To Mike will be her directorial debut- and she is super excited. This will be her second time collaborating with the film's producers Susan O'Brien and Lucas Gregg, and her third collaboration with DP Tate McCurdy and producer Adam Nelson.
Originally from Middlebury, IN, she is currently pursuing a BFA in Film & Television from the Savannah College of Art and Design. She plans to graduate in the spring of 2015.
Producer: Susan O'Brien
Susan O'Brien is a writer, filmmaker, and fine artist from upstate New York. Her works have been featured in numerous galleries, online stores and several film festivals across the country. With a guiding passion for capturing the intrinsic beauty in the fleeting moments of our lives, Susan hopes to captivate audiences with stories that tell of people on the verge of personal discovery through a poetic narrative lens. Susan graduated from the Savannah College of Art and Design in Fall 2014 with a BFA in Film & Television.
Producer: Adam Nelson
Adam Nelson is a rising filmmaker whose works have screened at some of the most renowned film festivals across the globe. In 2012, he made his directorial debut with his ambitious historical short film, Where the Mangos Grow, which premiered at the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival and for which he was honored with the prestigious Rising Star Award at the Canada International Film Festival in Vancouver. In 2014, Nelson directed his second short film, Sea Odyssey. The film premiered at the 2014 Savannah Film Festival and was honored with the Jury Award for "Best U.S. Short" at the Roseville International Film Festival in Sacramento. The film will continue it's tour in 2015. Nelson is currently in development for his next short film, Gilad (2015), and his feature length directorial debut Finders (2015). In addition, Nelson is currently collaborating with Oscar-winning producer John Carls (Rango, Where the Wild Things Are) in the development of an animated feature film.
Director of Photography: Tate McCurdy
Since adulthood, Tate McCurdy has possessed an immense passion for cinematography and continues to grow as an artist with each project he takes on. McCurdy adamantly believes in the power of light, framing, and movement to strengthen a story’s message and actively seeks to embrace these tools to engage the audience.
Through past collaborative efforts and artistic exploration, McCurdy has realized that he is less drawn to commercial- oriented storytelling and would rather help create films which are meaningful and shed light on the human condition. It is McCurdy’s ambition that through the medium of cinematography, he can play an innovative role in producing work that challenges and enlightens audiences. Furthermore, he aims to create visual experiences that transcend individuals beyond the scope of their ordinary worlds and into uncharted territory.
Production Designer: Jameson Everett
A life changing experience occurred for me at a pre-college summer program at the Rhode Island School of Design: realizing the depth of the process involved in expressing yourself creatively. It was the reality of the responsibility, or discipline, needed to express Art. The creative process involves change, newness, substance over style and is in the end tested by “truth”. I was just a typical preppy-by-style walking into an environment of spiked red hair, art savvy strangers…I needed to come to terms with my place, and a deeper sense of “what is creativity really all about”. I learned to embrace change, not necessarily for the sake of it, but for the freedom it gives you to see. This was an important experience that made me realize that film is much more than a hobby for me, but a form of artistic expression.
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