 |
| Actor Scotty Murray during auditions for Big Snore |
As many will know, I've been working part-time on film projects for over ten years. My first success was co-writing and helping produce a beautiful short film, The Golden Pin, back in 2009 with director Cuong Ngo (the link to view the film is on the right.) I also worked with Ngo on his first feature film, Pearls of the Far East, as an additional writer and associate producer.
In 2015, I finally decided to overcome my fears and take on a project as director. The result was the short narrative film called Tri-Curious, a comedy about how last minute anxiety threatens to ruin a young couple's first threesome together. It was an awesome experience and I remain very thankful to those artists and friends who shared their talents with me making that film, and to those individuals who donated generously to the Indiegogo campaign that helped finance it.
Tri-Curious played in several international film festivals, it earned over 1.5 million views on YouTube before it was exclusively licensed by gay streaming service Dekkoo, and released on a DVD compilation by TLA Releasing.
Since then, I've literally spent the last couple of years contemplating what kinds of film projects to do next. Making something that authentically expresses my values as an artist and a human being is very important to me.
INSPIRATION FOR THIS NEW FILM:
As I detail on my new Indiegogo campaign page, inspiration for Big Snore happened one late night last year when I was lying next to my partner Samuel in bed while he slept. I've always been a light sleeper, easily awoken. Samuel, on the other hand, is a heavy sleeper who occasionally snores. (In truth, Samuel tells me I occasionally snore as well.)
That night, I couldn't find rest as his snores were unusually loud. I struggled, I shifted in bed often, I took a sleeping pill. Momentary frustration eventually gave way to inner peace when I remembered how lucky I am to be able to share my bed and my life with this wonderful man! "What would I do if you ever stopped breathing?" I whispered. Suddenly, EUREKA! This could be my new story! This could be an idea that I can carry all the way to production and beyond. This story could say something I'd like to say about relationships and love in general. Inspired, I soon fell asleep and slept like a baby.
I've been working on the script and preparing for this shoot since. The script details one night in the life of a young gay couple, one of whom snores very badly, the other a light sleeper who struggles to get some needed rest.
I'm not one to spend months drafting up applications and waiting for responses from public funding agencies. I've found such endeavours in the past to be somewhat futile, especially since competition for such dollars is so fierce. For now, I'm hoping that this crowd-funding campaign will raise the necessary funds to give some compensation to my actors and crew, as well as fund the film's crucial post-production sound design.
One of my ambitions as a storyteller is to normalize the lives and experiences of LGBTQ people, without whitewashing the elements of our lives that make us unique. All audiences want stories that are honest but also connect with them emotionally. I'm hopeful that Big Snore will earn many chuckles and nods of appreciation from all audiences.
I hope you might consider contributing to this project.