GOO

A Fiscally Sponsored Independent Film Project.

March 2027Filming starts
7%Funded
75Days to deadline
$287,047Total raise

Help save American movie magic and
the craftspeople who make it happen.

The recent flood of Ai generated 'content' has decimated the very industry it used to train its models. Never have we seen an entire sector be so quickly supplanted by machines.

And audiences aren't happy with what they're seeing.

As a result, many experienced American craftspeople with decades of experience in creating practical movie magic moments will soon be gone forever.

It's a crucial moment and we need your help.

We are taking a radical step in the opposite direction to Ai, in an effort to keep these skills alive and these talented folks employed -- we are going back to traditional crafts practices that have served stories and their audiences for more than a century.

A Feature Presentation

An alien terror set in rural America

America has long nurtured the extraordinary talents of practical special effects filmmakers like John Carpenter, George Lucas and James Cameron for decades.

But like any good movie, story comes first.

We've spent 24 months developing a production ready feature film story to thrill audiences with all the suspense and terror they have come to know and love from films of this genre.

No splashy CGI, explosive superhero visual effects or Ai generated slop, just good old fashioned practical on-set special effects crafts --- think Aliens meets The Thing.

Out in this small Oklahoma town where everyone knows each other and nothing out of the ordinary tends to happen, a newly engaged local architect, Jake Henderson stumbles upon an ancient artefact one night in the middle of nowhere and takes it home to show his family.

Nothing can prepare him for the consequences that follow his blind curiosity as he comes to discover the curse he's brought upon himself and his family by removing this sacred object from its natural resting place.

Before long, Jake finds himself chasing his own tail and doing everything in his power to right his own wrong. Desperately he tries to figure out how to stop what he set in motion and keep the ones he loves alive.

Creature Design

By Two Industry Giants

Under the experienced leadership of renowned creature designers and special make-up effects artisans, Tait Steinsiek (USA, Illwilled) and Steven Boyle (AUS, Formation), our creature is a practical on-set character built in the traditional way by craftspeople with deep experience in the field.

Appearing across 8 hero kill scenes and the moments around them, the creature will become a key driver of our film's visual language and atmosphere of terror.

Before filming, we will work together to design and test the creature on-camera, for movement, light and colour, to ensure the character is feasible for all necessary sequences and importantly, sells on-screen to our audience.

Similar Films

Comparable in mood and tone

“THE SUBSTANCE”

Director, Coralie Fargeat
© 2024, Working Title Films, Blacksmith

“CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND”

Director, Steven Spielberg
© 1977, Columbia Pictures

“THE BLOB”

Director, Chuck Russell
© 1988, TriStar Pictures

“ALIENS”

Director, James Cameron
© 1986, 20th Century Fox

“THE SUBSTANCE”

Director, Coralie Fargeat
© 2024, Working Title Films, Blacksmith

“THE FLY”

Director, David Cronenberg
© 1986, 20th Century Fox, Brooksfilms

“THE THING”

Director, John Carpenter
© 1982, Universal Pictures

“E.T. THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL”

Director, Steven Spielberg
© 1982, Universal Pictures

“SLITHER”

Director, James Gunn
© 2006, Universal Pictures, Gold Circle Films

Why Now

Timing Matters

What started with the impact of the Covid-19 era downturn, continued with tech giants demanding more and more for less and less, which soon became a race to the bottom for everyday American producers and their crews. Now with the explosion of generative Ai tools, the film business and the practitioners who make it run are on life support.

There's never been a more critical time to support storytellers like us.

In this attention economy, audiences are demanding more from their movie going experiences. The generation of audience (18-36) that typically drove theatrical box office revenues pre-covid, is today seeking out independent stories that stand outside of the superhero universes they've endured for more than a decade in theatres.

The legacy success of older films like E.T., Gremlins, Aliens, The Fly, The Thing and most recently, Coralie Fargeat's Academy Award-Winning body horror starring Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley, "The Substance" proves there are ravenously hungry audiences for this kind of practical effects terror -- it's a welcome reaction to doomscrolling and Ai slop.

Our only hurdle now is donor financing.And that's where you come in ...

Donation Financed

A New Strategy

These days, there are so many amazing opportunities for investors to gamble on prospective upside, with seemingly more ways to lose than to win.

In the film trade, the majority of winners are those who understand there's a 28:1 ratio of wins to losses when you're playing in the high stakes studio-based movie world.

Consider this a better opportunity ...

As an alternative to risking investment money, we instead provide you with the safety of a guaranteed instant tax benefit for supporting this arts endeavor through a charitable donation.

In addition to receiving a tax benefit (and a great feeling inside), we can acknowledge your support with bonafide credits in the movie.

To protect the exclusivity of the offer, the project will be funded by 8 or less donors.

  • Donors at $100K or $75K may use a Company Name for "______ Presents" and "In Association With ______".
  • All Executive Producer and Associate Producer credits must be named individuals.
  • Company logos can appear in opening or closing credits by negotiation.

Express Interest

Non-binding expressions close January 05, 2027.

As a supporter, you can give from a DAF (Donor-Advised Fund), or directly with cash, check, wire, cryptocurrency or even as stock.

Our total raise is $287,047, including our Fiscal Sponsor's fee (5%).

To meet our commitments we have set two crucial milestones:

  1. 50% budget in escrow by or before January 15, 2027;
  2. 100% budget in escrow by or before January 30, 2027.

Email us to review our Production Budget, Shooting Schedule, or for more information.

Synopsis

Story Overview

Jake Henderson is an everyday architect who lives a simple life in a country Oklahoma town with his Fiancée, Tessa Newsom and their beloved daughter, Lucy.

One night, Jake happens upon a beautiful artefact, a fossil like object which he takes home as a keepsake. But as news breaks that a local man's half-torso has been recovered near where he found it, Jake starts to suspect the object might be more than just an artefact.

Unexpectedly, the region’s most respected news reporter covering the torso discovery story is also found dead. Things immediately escalate and soon, everyone Jake loves and some he simply comes in contact with, become prey to a strange nebulous creature that will stop at nothing to avenge extraction from its sacred resting place.

Fighting for the lives of his Fiancée and Child, Jake faces a series of life-altering challenges that test his loyalty, resilience and his will to survive as he battles the cruel and unspeakable evils of an ancient amorphous creature.

It's an existential battle with a nihilistic twist!

Talent

Key Cast

JAKE HENDERSON (32)

Male Lead; SAG-AFTRA

MICHAEL BONINI - CONFIRMED

A devoted father, partner and caregiver to his grandmother, Jake protects his family at all costs. A victim of his own curiosity, he is tested in ways few humans could ever hope to survive.

TESSA NEWSOM (30)

Female Lead; SAG-AFTRA

TO BE CAST

A fiercely protective mother and strong-willed defense attorney, Jake’s quick-witted and affectionate wife-to-be, seeks truth in all situations while staying loyal with her family to a fault.

PENNY SULLIVAN (32)

Female Co-Lead; SAG-AFTRA

TO BE CAST

One of the local area's most beloved television journalists, Penny is the trusted face of local news, but now finds herself questioning her life choices as her industry unravels around her.

Release Strategy

Maximum rebate advantage

By design, we have engineered the path from script-to-screen for this production to maximize State based rebate opportunities, stretching every single dollar out as far as we possibly can.

Built around very specific milestones such as shooting locations, local labor hiring rules and rural population dependencies, we can access incredible State based incentives that rebate up to 30% of our in-state spending after CPA auditing of expenses, which we can then strategically flow directly to our Marketing and Release Strategies.

These kinds of films aren't for everyone but they absolutely are for a select kind of movie goer, and because we believe this film will excite that audience cohort, we are absolutely committed to targeting and reaching exactly the kinds of people this film has always been intended for -- and hopefully expanding that reach a little as well to tap new audiences.

We have a strategic online marketing partner with the skillset to drill down to specific regions and personalities, to ensure our film is seen and discovered by the right audiences ~ it's exciting and one of the great privileges of putting a story into the world.

From the Director

Morgan Christie

We are living through a dramatic shift in the way we approach film craft and storytelling for modern audiences.

Every day, as new Ai based tools arrive to market and empower folks to create in non-practical ways, we are equally depleting the resource of real practical knowledge that our skilled artisans and craftspeople can offer to the next generation to carry the flame.

It's a sad reality but it's here and it's now -- so we are doing our best to preserve some actual craft skills.

This film and its story world exist as anathema to generative computational storytelling tools that are flooding the marketplace and honestly destroying careers. For this story we are choosing manual craft and traditional skillsets over generative computational story tools and we believe the audiences are absolutely up for it!

We truly need your support to get any of these creative ideas and story concepts from script to screen and to audiences.

Jake begins as a universally relatable every man with a fiancée and a young daughter living in an idyllic country town, but through the course of the film story his world is turned so upside down by his discovery, he transforms into a true nihilist whose entire belief system has caved in around him to the point of not believing in anything at all, including his own existence.

Creature Design, Cinematography and Production Design all play crucial roles in cultivating an unrelenting sense of foreboding, as Editing and Sound Design serve to reinforce the tension in every scene as the story rockets toward its insane crescendo.

The genre demands a director be truly confident in their storytelling and crystal clear with a sharply focussed vision for execution. I firmly believe my years of experience and determination to rock our audience to their cores will result in a win for everyone.

The director

Key Dates

Key Dates

  1. 01Rebate (Part I)December 15, 2026 – March 24, 2027
    • December 15, 2026: rebate application due
    • January 1, 2027: rebate pre-approval certificate
    • January 15, 2027: 50% of funding in escrow
    • January 30, 2027: 100% of funding in escrow, plus schedule and script
    • February 19, 2027: insurance certificates due
    • March 1–24, 2027: film office on daily call sheets
  2. 02FinancingEarly December 2026 – January 30, 2027
    • Early December 2026: recommend DAF grants for year-end giving
    • January 15, 2027: 50% of budget in escrow
    • January 30, 2027: 100% of budget in escrow
  3. 03Pre-ProductionFebruary 01 – 28, 2027
    • February 01, 2027: pre-production start: location scouting, local hires, permitting, etc.
    • February 08-12, 2027: creature testing
    • February 12-28, 2027: cast contracting and press announcement
  4. 04ProductionMarch 1–24, 2027
    • March 1–24, 2027: principal photography - 18 shoot days
  5. 05Post ProductionApril 01 – June 15, 2027
    • April 01, 2027: picture edit phase 1 (2 weeks)
    • April 12, 2027: first assembly peer review
    • April 13, 2027: picture edit phase 2 (2 weeks)
    • April 30, 2027: test audience screening 1
    • April 28, 2027: fine cut peer review
    • May 01, 2027: test audience screening 2
    • May 01, 2027: sound temp tracking start (2 weeks)
    • May 02, 2027: final edit revisions
    • May 12, 2027: picture lock
    • May 12, 2027: dialogue editing, ADR
    • May 15, 2027: sound design and spotting (2 weeks)
    • June 01, 2027: sound peer review screening
    • June 02, 2027: additional sound (1 week)
    • June 03, 2027: music record
    • June 10, 2027: sound mixing
    • June 15, 2027: film mastering
  6. 06Rebate (Part II)May 13 – August 13, 2027
    • May 13, 2027: CPA Audit starts
    • June 15, 2027: final transaction for rebate
    • June 18, 2027: CPA Audit completed & rebate claim filed
    • August 13, 2027: rebate payment (within 60 calendar days of filing)
  7. 07Film MarketsAugust 15, 2027 – July 12, 2028
    • August 15, 2027: trailer, teaser and featurette (EPK) complete (2 weeks)
    • October 07, 2027: Sitges, Barcelona, Spain
    • October 15, 2027: Telluride Horror Show, Colorado, USA
    • November 10, 2027: AFM, Los Angeles, USA
    • February 09, 2028: EFM, Berlin, Germany
    • July 12, 2028: BIFAN, Bucheon S. Korea

Contact

Silverspell Films

Producer: M. Christie
Direct: +1 (310) 980-4089

Without your generosity, creative ideas and the craftspeople who make that magic happen would simply disappear! Thank you from the bottom of our hearts, we can't wait to sit with you and enjoy this movie in a theatre - imagine that!!

SUPPORT US