THE GHOSTS IN OUR MACHINE

"I am a fan of filmmaker Liz Marshall's previous film "Water On The Table".  I don't doubt that "The Ghosts In Our Machine" will be as important and well done."  

                                                   - Woody Harrelson, Actor

OUR STORY

THE GHOSTS IN OUR MACHINE focuses on the plight of animals used for human profit, an issue that is generally ignored by mainstream culture. We, the Ghosts team, are committed to shining a light on the stories of non-human animals living in the shadows of our highly mechanized urban world. Sadly, animals have been categorized into three parts: domesticated pets; wildlife, and the ones we dont like to think about: the many species used within global industries. The GHOSTS are the cogs, the objects within our powerfully advanced and haunted MACHINE.

We launched our flash website and film trailer on April 11th, 2011 - these are tools to help us present the project to the world in a professional manner. We have since received a lot of encouragement in Canada and abroad from colleagues, activists, artists, independent media and some celebrities. For our project to move forward now we need to keep content fresh, delve deeper and recoup some of our expenses. We need your help to achieve our next steps, which is why we have launched this Indiegogo campaign. Any amount helps.

Thanks for your consideration! 

- Liz Marshall - writer, director, producer    

 "I only hope that THE GHOSTS IN OUR MACHINE can change the way people treat animals the way Food Inc. changed the way people eat."

                                                                                                            - Jason Priestly, Actor

WHAT IS THE GHOSTS IN OUR MACHINE?  

Animals are central in our lives yet they are invisible members of society. With the exception of our companion animals and a few wild and stray species within our urban environments, we experience animals daily only as the food, clothing, animal tested consumer and biomedical research goods and entertainment we make of them. Animals are hidden within the shadows of our highly mechanized world. THE GHOSTS IN OUR MACHINE is a cross-platform documentary in development: a cinematic character-driven film and an unfolding web experience and educational resource. Together they seek to uncover the dark recesses of our anthropocentric society to illuminate the lives of  individual animals used within global industries, and to highlight some of the healing bonds taking place between humans and animals. The project poses the question: Are non-human animals property to be owned and used by humans, or are they sentient beings, deserving of rights? 

THE GHOSTS IN OUR MACHINE features award-winning documentary photographer Jo-Anne McArthur of We Animals as she photographs global stories of individual ghosts in the machine of our modern world. The film intimately captures Jo-Anne's personal journey as she bears witness to the plight of animals used for human profit and consumption. Her powerful photographs are portals into the lives of the animals the documentary brings to the fore. Haunting, intimate and heart warming, Jo-Anne McArthur's photographic lens and the cinematic point of view of the documentary are attuned to the world of non-human animals and how their daily lives are overlapped and shadowed by humans.

"The potent images and storytelling of this film and website will bring hidden lives to light. By making these animals, and our complicity in their suffering, real, vivid and urgent, this project has the potential to call forth compassion and galvanize action for animals."

                                                   - Susie Coston, National Shelter Director, Farm Sanctuary

OUR IMPACT NEEDS TO BE GLOBAL

 Our aim is to attract a broad colourful spectrum of animal lovers, and to go mainstream! Ambitious, YES! This issue needs to be on the radar; part of public discourse, and we hope that TGIOM is a part of that wave. 

Community building is key to the success and true meaning of our project. Already, in just a short period, we have sprouted a global community/audience for this project. Our goal is to attract a larger audience leading up to the production of the film and to sustain and foster community engagement throughout the lifecycle of the project. THE GHOSTS IN OUR MACHINE is borderless. While our core team is Canadian, the project has already earned friends & supporters in the US, Europe, Australia and beyond, and we will continue to connect with people around the globe as we film international stories for the film and website documentary.

You can help us make an impact by supporting our next crucial steps. 

"I believe that our descendents will be appalled by our behavior. They will wonder why we didn't heed the call to compassion that documentaries such as THE GHOSTS IN OUR MACHINE so powerfully and so movingly send out." 

                                                                                                   - Barbara Gowdy, Author

WHAT WE NEED & WHAT YOU GET  

 To date, we have completed Phase One Development which consists of two trailers; a flash prototype website; branding and initial design concepts; and a featured Ghost web segment called "Maggie's Story". This has been self financed and made possible through deferrals and the generosity of the Culture & Animals Foundation.

Now, we need to prepare for the next phase, keep the project alive with fresh content and to expand our community and support base so that we can attract international investors to make this story go global. 

"I strongly endorse the efforts of Liz Marshall to raise the consciousness of our society to the plight of countless animals in the machine of our modern world.

                                                                                         - Robert Bateman, Wildlife Artist

We need twelve thousand dollars ($12,000) to achieve our next steps:

1) The recruitment of 10 new international Animal Ambassadors to be added to the "ANIMAL AMBASSADORS" section of the website (artists, activists, celebrities).

2) A new featured story for "THE GHOSTS" section of the website.

3) Deferrals to team members who generously helped us out for Phase One. 

4) To recoup some expenses. 

5) Deeper research, writing and architectural design concepts to apply for funding. 

In a nutshell: Your support will help us keep content fresh and alive. You will also help us go deeper into the research and creative process, to get us ready for production. 

IF we get over asking (sometimes these online fundraising campaigns raise more than the target) we will happily make a donation to the tremendous ongoing work by Jo-Anne McArthur of We Animals. Jo-Anne has been photographing the plight of animals around the world for over a decade. We love what she is doing for animals. Check out her extensive archive of images. 

"The rights of animals is the next frontier in the search for both justice and environmental sanity. I fully support the premise and integrity of Liz Marshall's new and extremely relevant project THE GHOSTS IN OUR MACHINE." 

                                                                 - Maude Barlow, Activist, Author, Public figure

OTHER WAYS YOU CAN HELP 

If you cannot afford to make a financial donation there are other important ways you can contribute. You can help us with our fundraising goals by sending this Indiegogo campaign link to your networks via email, facebook, twitter etc. Here's how you can help build awareness about THE GHOSTS IN OUR MACHINE:

a) talk about the project

b) join our facebook group

c) "join" our mailing list on our website and receive monthly updates

d) follow us on twitter

e) share this campaign with as many people as you can

Learn about some of the practical ways in which you can decrease your impact on the lives of the billions of animals (GHOSTS) who are suffering. Some examples of how you can make a difference: Choose to be a conscious consumer; Include the rights of animals in your definition of what it means to be "green"; Look for "cruelty free" labels; Boycott factory farming. 

Thank you for taking the time to learn about our project.

PEACE