Road to Sundance

A villa on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, California.
A young woman floats face-down on the surface of the pool, dead.

What happened to her?
Theres no time for an explanation. The same woman, Anna,drives alone in the desert. Shes going to Sundance Film Festival, invited to a premiere by a big producer. It could be the chance she has been waiting for: the chance to break into Hollywood.
But her encounter with Elle, a young hitch-hiker, will interfere with Anna's plans. Strangely, Elle seems to know quite a lot about Anna, about her dreams and about all her failures...

Watch teaser #2 here.

Anna always wanted to be a famous actress, but  so many obstacles have stood in her way.. What if this is her last chance to catch her dream?

Road to Sundance is the story of a young woman driving not only toward her dreams, but through them. 
Featuring an international cast and crew, stunning visuals and a universal story of wanting to reach our goals, Road to Sundance is a labor of love that is sure to strike a cord with audiences.

Watch extra video: What is Road to Sundance about?
And watch ANNA's introduction to herself and to her journey.

The Director

My name is Tak Kuroha (view profile for more info and watch my works on my website). My last short film, Clacson, was a huge hit in the film festival circuit, selected for more than 50 festivals around the world and winning 15 awards, including best film, best director, best actress and best soundtrack (watch it here).

What we've done so far

Road to Sundance is a short film about people who not only struggle to be in the movies, but who struggle to escape them. Its a road movie with a strange atmosphere suspended somewhere between a relatable drama and a surreal dream.
We decided to start shooting when we got a minimum amount to cover the first expenses. The goal was to catch the unmissable opportunity to shoot during the actual Sundance Film Festival 2011. We shot one of the main scenes of the movie during the festival, and also saw the desert in a uniquely wintery light.

Carpe Diem
A small crew and cast travelled along those roads. It was the first time for all of us, so became a sort of initiation for the whole team. We spent two weeks along the deserted magic roads of Southwestern USA, stopping to film a scene whenever we found a place we loved. Our trip took us through Cailfornia, Nevada, Arizona and Utah, providing us with some truly gorgeous scenery. We didn't stick too closely to the script, allowing the cast to improvise according to the location and lighting. What mattered was catching the moment and putting it on film, forever.

Back from the Road Trip
We have shot 90% of our movie, and the footage looks unbelievable! Looking back on these shots, we feel like the characters: awestruck at the natural beauty discovered during the course of our journey. 
What we have to do from now on is deal with the post production process.  Our goal is to be finished in time to enter our film in the Sundance Film Festival 2012, allowing our project to come full circle.

What We Ask of You

100% genuine filmmakers' meat.
No preservatives. No steroids. Only love.

We decided to ask for your support only after the main shooting was completed. This is because we wanted to give you the chance to decide if it was worth helping us based on the actual footage and not just on a nice story full of good intentions.

I funded US$8000 around 50% of Road to Sundance budget through my independent company Killerrabbit and our partner production company Kid Dandy, based in Milan, Italy.

Along the way we found the support of some other independent companies from all over the world. Some of them helped us with technical support, others helping to cover another 15% of the budget of this film: Guerrilleros (France), Psyop (Usa), Suede Pictures (Usa), Smashbox Digital (Usa), Movieco (Italy).

The cast and crew gave incredible support too, taking part in this film purely out of their belief in it. Thank you, everyone!

We still have to cover some rental fees (thanks to the rental companies for their patience and their trust!) and then the whole post production process. This includes editing, color grading and the addition of all of original music, sound and visual FX. All of this will be completed during summer 2011.

And last but not least we need to cover promotion and distribution (to festivals, film markets, etc) of Road to Sundance. The cost of promotion and distribution are often underestimated, but they can pose a significant challenge to independent productions. Just as an example, most US film festivals charge US$30-50 per application!

So what do I do?

Please pick a voucher and pledge! Then, tell your friends and ask them to pledge, too.   :)

Other Ways You Can Help

If you prefer, you can also buy a Road To Sundance gift from a few special limited items listed on our website. Each gift you pick from there will become a donation for our movie. Get them for your family, your friends and your coworkers. And of course, don't forget to get one for yourself! Have a look at our gift corner.

Also, please spread the word about Road to Sundance to anyone you know! Tell people about it through email, Facebook, Twitter, your blog or any other social network! If you want to put a link on your website, just let us know and well send you a banner in your preferred size.

And dont forget to join the Road to Sundance page on Facebook, which is constantly updated with a lot of juicy extras.

Thank you!!!

Tak