by Guest Contributor Aymar Jean Christian, originally published at Televisual
This week I’m starting a new feature on this blog called “Web Series Spotlight.” I regularly get pitched series by creators and find it difficult to write about all of them, because I often write about trends and bigger ideas, sometimes good, indie series just don’t fit. No longer! The web series market has a larger, oft-discussed curation problem, something which networks and news sites are trying to fix. I figured I’d pitch in.
First up is Chrysalis, an urban web series by filmmaker Nia Malika Dixon. Dixon is a new independent filmmaker, who a few years ago decided to pursue her passion. She didn’t go to film school, instead she learned the old-fashioned way: on set (how refreshing!). Chrysalis is her third short, a five-episode crime drama intended to build investor interest in a feature-length film.
Chrysalis, whose title refers to the cocoon a caterpillar creates before it transforms, tells the story of Jamal, a young Muslim man living in Baltimore with an infant child and a less-than-desirable career choice: drug dealing. The series kicks off by introducing Jamal’s world and an act of violence which sends it into chaos.
The series is dark and moody, intimately shot and confident. It’s worth a look. The first episode, recently released for early fans, is below. But first, let’s hear from Dixon:
Dixon’s passions are thrillers and crime, along the lines of The Wire and Law & Order: SVU. What she adds to the genre is a focus on spiritual struggle: people who have made morally complicated choices at odds with their faith — in this case, Islam. She focuses on strong female characters, though Chrysalis stars a young man.
“I haven’t seen a film in my life where an African American woman stars in it and has to do with that struggle,” Dixon said, referring to a crisis of faith. “I wrote the story that way to show that not just men deal with that.”
Dixon was born and raised in Baltimore, and while the series is not autobiographical, she does understand the circumstances facing her characters. “It’s not my life. It’s the life of others that I’ve grown up with that I know.”
For now, Dixon is enjoying her outsider status as an indie filmmaker telling her own stories. “It’s very difficult to get funding as a director,” she acknowledges, but she adds, “I didn’t want to be a part of the corporate culture of making movies.”
Projects like Chrysalis are small, Dixon understands, but for her are part of a broader project for media change. “You can make change on certain levels, and the entire construct itself is so big. It won’t actually change. That sounds so bleak!”
“I don’t consider myself trying to do an overhaul of the entertainment industry, but I do see myself trying to inject myself as a virus.”
OUR STORY
Who: Indie Filmmaker Nia Malika Dixon
What: Chrysalis, An Urban Web Series: A young Black, Muslim father in Baltimore struggles with his choice to be a drug dealer as his lifestyle clashes with his strong Islamic beliefs.
Where: Baltimore, MD
When: Thanksgiving Holiday Season
How: Using All Her Personal Savings
Here’s the scoop:
My latest short film, City In the Sea, is in the can and I am ready to shoot another film. I have to keep the momentum going to stay in the business of making films. But, the world of film financing is harsh and unrelenting. It isn’t easy getting funding, and my next short film, Shadow Aspect (Visit my website to find out more: http://niamalikadixon.com), is in need of investors.
So, I create a kick-ass production package (including a teaser trailer and a talented prospective cast) and go see my friend and mentor, Keith Clinkscales, a major film producer, to get his opinion.
His advice: pursue the internet as a medium for filmmaking. Keith suggests that I create a web series.
I take his advice and brainstorm with my Cinematographer, Antar Hanif, and we come up with the great idea to create Chrysalis: a prelude to a feature film that I’ve been planning for years to shoot. (If not for that pesky problem of finding funding!)
With Chrysalis: An Urban Web Series, we will not only entertain a wide audience through the internet, but also garner the interest of potential investors for the feature length version of Chrysalis.
I fly home to Baltimore, hold auditions, crew up with the help of my Cinematographer Antar, and prepare to shoot the web series. I write 10 episodes that tells the story of Jamal, a young African-American Muslim man faced with the choice of staying a major drug dealer, or choosing to follow his moral compass and get out of the game.
After a long pre-production, we shoot for four days on location in Baltimore, MD. (Including a major shoot-out in the rain involving lots of “blood”!) Click here to see all the AWESOME behind the scenes photos & my production journal:http://bemorecareful.wordpress.com
Chrysalis: An Urban Web Series serves as a prelude to the feature film Chrysalis, and takes you on a journey into the unknown world of drugs, money, and murder in an African-American Muslim community. (Yes, sounds exciting doesn’t it?!)
WHY YOU SHOULD CARE
If we don’t raise this money, Chrysalis may not get to air.
In the world of indie filmmaking, no investors means no movie. Studios have the luxury of having hundreds of millions of dollars at their disposal to churn out the Iron Mans and the Clash of the Titans of the movie world.
But, amazing stories of true-to-life drama, courage, and triumph that entertain as well as tell a good story often don’t get made into movies. Independent filmmakers like me don’t have the luxury of hundreds of millions of dollars at our disposal. Most, like me, drain all of their savings to fund these projects. We need investors.
We need people like you who want to be entertained by a good story. You are the difference between our projects languishing unfinished or getting completed and distributed to audiences.
We can’t finish this project without you. We’re asking you to be the investor. Help us finish Chrysalis and get it online. We’ve finished the long journey through pre-production and shooting the film during four days of production, but we’re stuck in post-production.
WHAT WE NEED & WHAT YOU GET
Post-production is the toughest stretch of the filmmaking process. This is the part of filmmaking that can either make or break a film.
Editing each episode requires weeks of fine tuning: choosing the best shots, putting them all together, making sure the color and light is consistent throughout, perfecting sound, adding effects, scoring, music, etc.
All of this costs time and money, and we’ve run out. We need funds for all these post-production needs, and to pay the salaries of the people who’ve worked hard to bring Chrysalis to life.
So, we’re calling upon you, dear potential investor! Here’s your opportunity to be a part of filmmaking at the grass roots level. You can get Chrysalis completed and on the web for millions of people eager to see a good story. When you contribute, the film is completed. You’ll be an indie film supporter and you will help create something great!
Here’s what you get in return:
*Recognition on our official websites!
*Copies of the series soundtrack on CD!
*Copies of the series on DVD!
*Your name in the rolling credits!
*Credit as either Associate Producer or Executive Producer in the rolling credits! (depending on level of contribution)
*Personal phone call to thank you from the creator of the series, Nia Malika Dixon! (depending on level of contribution)
HOW ELSE YOU CAN HELP
This is the easiest part of the DIWO — Do It With Others — factor! Get the word out! Make some noise!
Along with monetary contributions, you can do one of the most important things to this campaign: spread the word.
The more you share it with others, the more successful our campaign will be. No matter how little or big your contribution, spreading the word exponentially increases our chances to succeed! Remember, if we don’t reach our funding goal, we lose ALL the contribution pledges.
Here’s what you can do:
Paste a link to our campaign page in an email and tell all your friends about it. Post it on Facebook and Twitter. Tell all the people you know about us and our mission to get Chrysalis online. You never know who’ll see our campaign and make a contribution. You can make a huge difference!
>via: http://niamalikadixon.wordpress.com/2011/02/13/chrysalis-indiegogo-campaign/