Paradox Lost
by Daniel Hart Donoghue
Daniel Hart Donoghue
Follow
Paradox Lost
by Daniel Hart Donoghue
Daniel Hart Donoghue
Follow
A pair of gangsters capture the bookie that betrayed their mentor, but a case of mistaken identity turns thugs into philosophers and takes their interrogation down a rabbit hole to catastrophic enlightenment.
A pair of gangsters capture the bookie that betrayed their mentor, but a case of mistaken identity turns thugs into philosophers and takes their interrogation down a rabbit hole to catastrophic enlightenment.
-
Story
About The Project
Daniel Hart Donoghue (Writer & Actor):
Why do we tell stories? What is it about storytelling that makes it such an integral part of the human experience? In many ways, this question has shaped my journey into filmmaking and sits at the heart of Paradox Lost. The question has been with me since childhood. As a kid, I lived with my grandparents and spent a tremendous amount of time around my grandfather and that generation – this little crew of old Irishmen that would sit around at night and tell stories in an animated, almost competitive way. I’d sneak down at night and listen - in the summer I didn’t even have to, I slept on this little sofa bed right near the kitchen so I’d just stay awake listening. My grandmother called them “Seanchaithe” which roughly translates to “Storytellers” from Irish Gaelic. I fell in love with the sounds and rhythms of the language and at a very early age knew I wanted to be a writer. But it was more than simply the sounds; it was the intent. I never heard any of the men from that generation say “here’s what I think you should do,” it was always “let me tell you a story about a guy I know.” There is not only something infinitely beautiful about that concept but it also is at the center of our humanity, what our stories have always done. But are now struggling to do.
More than any other time in our history, we live in the absence of the sacred. The old stories we have told to provide meaning in this life have all but dissolved in a sea of technological advancement, scientific understanding, and the complexity of a unified global society. Whether we are conscious of it or not, we all feel its weight. Some have turned fanatical in the attempt to hold on to the old stories while the rest of us import our confusion and hopes in some vague notion of being “spiritual but not religious, at least I don’t think religious, but I’d like to believe in something…” Paradox Lost is an expression of that weight.
Milan Kundera once said, in an attempt to define the art of the novel, that the novel “must express the complexity of life in the modern world, the dilemma of living now.” As a filmmaker, I am passionate about applying that same metric to this art form. By placing the seed of our shared modern existential dilemma into a character and situation where we don’t expect it, a film noir gangster in an interrogation, we are able to draw out the absurdity of the situation and examine it in a way that allows for both humor and intellectual contemplation. If we can create a situation, where we can make people laugh and think, then we’re onto something. After much effort in the writer’s room and at the pre-production table, that’s what we are prepared to do. With your help, together we can give people an experience where they are entertained and also incited to dialogue, where they leave the theatre a little bit lighter with a smile and on their face and just a tiny bit smarter with a question in their heart. That’s our goal. That’s our dream. That’s Paradox Lost.
Luca Ceccarelli (Director):
The paradox is finding meaning in the most unexpected of places. The riddle is pushing forward when the answer contradicts the question. The rush is finding the next question.
“Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now.”
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Incentives
$10
SHINE BOY / GIRL
- We'd give you a kiss if we could, but at least you'll get a public "thank you" that you can share on social media.
$25
CONNECTED GUY or GAL
- A digital copy of the script +
- A social media "thank you"
$50
ENFORCER
- A digital download of an original stand-up comedy sketch from Co-Director, Daniel Hart Donoghue +
- A digital copy of the script +
- A social media "thank you"
$100
SOLDIER
- A digital copy of our movie poster with your face inserted as a character +
- Limited time, early access streaming of the finished short film / segment (to be delivered approx. Nov 2015) +
- All Enforcer level incentives
$250
LIEUTENANT
- You get to name a character in a future segment of the feature film +
- 2 tickets to a screening of the short film / segment +
- All Soldier level incentives
$500
O.G. ("ORIGINAL GANGSTA")
- A signed print of our movie poster with your face inserted as a character +
- A "thank you" in the credits for the short film / segment +
- All Lieutenant level incentives
$1,000
WISEGUY (or GAL)
- An invitation to a private screening of the short film / segment in Los Angeles (Dec 2015) +
- An invitation to our wrap party (Sep 2015) +
- All O.G. level incentives
$2,500
CAPO
- A role as an extra in this short / segment or future segments of the feature film +
- A special lunch with the filmmakers +
- All Wiseguy level incentives
$5,000
UNDERBOSS
- Associate Producer credit on this short film / segment or your product or logo used in the film +
- A visit to set while we're filming +
- Your personalized chair back souvenir from your visit +
- All Capo level incentives
$7,500
CONSIGLIERE
- You become a creative contributor and join the virtual writer's table for the feature film script +
- A personalized 50 caliber souvenir bullet +
- All Underboss level incentives
$10,000
BOSS / DON
- Executive Producer credit on this short film / segment +
- Souvenir bronze or sterling silver Ouroboros ring +
- All Consigliere level incentives
-
Wishlist
Use the WishList to pledge cash and loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an incentive directly.
$10
SHINE BOY / GIRL
- We'd give you a kiss if we could, but at least you'll get a public "thank you" that you can share on social media.
$25
CONNECTED GUY or GAL
- A digital copy of the script +
- A social media "thank you"
$50
ENFORCER
- A digital download of an original stand-up comedy sketch from Co-Director, Daniel Hart Donoghue +
- A digital copy of the script +
- A social media "thank you"
$100
SOLDIER
- A digital copy of our movie poster with your face inserted as a character +
- Limited time, early access streaming of the finished short film / segment (to be delivered approx. Nov 2015) +
- All Enforcer level incentives
$250
LIEUTENANT
- You get to name a character in a future segment of the feature film +
- 2 tickets to a screening of the short film / segment +
- All Soldier level incentives
$500
O.G. ("ORIGINAL GANGSTA")
- A signed print of our movie poster with your face inserted as a character +
- A "thank you" in the credits for the short film / segment +
- All Lieutenant level incentives
$1,000
WISEGUY (or GAL)
- An invitation to a private screening of the short film / segment in Los Angeles (Dec 2015) +
- An invitation to our wrap party (Sep 2015) +
- All O.G. level incentives
$2,500
CAPO
- A role as an extra in this short / segment or future segments of the feature film +
- A special lunch with the filmmakers +
- All Wiseguy level incentives
$5,000
UNDERBOSS
- Associate Producer credit on this short film / segment or your product or logo used in the film +
- A visit to set while we're filming +
- Your personalized chair back souvenir from your visit +
- All Capo level incentives
$7,500
CONSIGLIERE
- You become a creative contributor and join the virtual writer's table for the feature film script +
- A personalized 50 caliber souvenir bullet +
- All Underboss level incentives
$10,000
BOSS / DON
- Executive Producer credit on this short film / segment +
- Souvenir bronze or sterling silver Ouroboros ring +
- All Consigliere level incentives
- Updates
-
Current Team
About This Team
Executive Producer
Originally from the midwest, Luke received a BFA from the Acting and Directing program at the University of Arizona. In 2003, he founded Satyr Entertainment, a live production company servicing all of the southwest. Since its inception, Luke and his team have produced numerous live events and have seen gross sales rise on average of 25% each year, with sales in 2014 grossing over $1,000,000. His team at Satyr Entertainment has helped produce many independent films including A Boy’s Life, Phase Two, and Legend of the High Desert. Luke is also a member of SAG-AFTRA.
Director, Producer
Originally from England and raised in Rome, Italy, Luca received a BA in Moving Image Arts (with honors) from College of Santa Fe. He is a director and producer, as well as a director’s coach. Luca directed the multiple award-winning proof-of-concept short, Eve Angelic and the award-winning reality-tv pilot Planet Snowkite – Episode 1, Ushuaia/Argentina. He has produced and line-produced film and television features, including Triggerman (Lionsgate 2009) and Doc West (Lionsgate 2009), Shoot First & Pray You Live (Lionsgate 2008), and Naked Fear (Cinetel Films 2007).
Writer, Producer
Hailing from Lowell, Massachusetts, Daniel received a Bachelor’s Degree in English from the University Of Massachusetts, Amherst, along with a Masters Degree in Education. After several years as an English teacher, Daniel began working as a stage actor. He is a member of AEA, SAG and AFTRA and has performed in over twenty stage productions throughout the country, along with a handful of appearances in television and film. Paradox Lost marks Daniel’s debut as a Writer & Director and he is thrilled to be stepping into the space that is closest to his heart as an artist.
Producer
A Brooklyn native, Gabe attended the BFA Acting and Directing program at the University of Arizona. He has worked with various theatre companies, such as Arizona Theatre Company, Arizona Repertory Theatre, Teatro Bravo, Southwest Shakespeare, Shakespeare Sedona, and the Production Company. He can be seen in the Indie films Above the Line, The Elephant Clan, Wrongly Accused and the History Channel series Triggers: Weapons that Changed the World. He currently studies at the Ivana Chubbuck Studio.
Cinematographer,
Associate Producer
Peter is a freelance cinematographer, based in Los Angeles. He is originally from London, U.K. & was schooled in Sydney, Australia. Peter has a raft of international feature films, TV series, commercials, music videos and documentaries under his belt. He has received many wonderful awards and acclaim for his cinematography, including the Gerald Hirschfeld A.S.C. Cinematography Award presented by the Ashland Independent Film Festival for Drunktown’s Finest, which premiered at Sundance in 2014. Pete says, "The greatest reward is working with truly inspirational people.”
Producer, Line Producer
Eileen received a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration (with honors) from the University of New Mexico. She retired from her first career as CFO of a mutual fund company to begin her second as a film producer. She produced the multiple award-winning proof-of-concept short, Eve Angelic and the award-winning reality-tv pilot Planet Snowkite – Episode 1, Ushuaia/Argentina. Prior to that, she was Unit Manager/Controller of Triggerman (Lionsgate 2009) and Doc West (Lionsgate 2009), and Accountant for Shoot First & Pray You Live (Lionsgate 2008) and Naked Fear (Cinetel Films 2007).
-
Media
Videos
Images
-
Community
Supporters
Followers
