Help Dan Fund 2024 Screenplay Contests Submissions
Donation protected
2024 is here! It's time to be UNDENIABLE.
Hi. I'm Daniel, a filmmaker and writer whose work you can find at www.Bealsebub.com. I launched into 2024 with a singular goal: to make this my most productive and career-advancing year yet. I want to thank everyone who has had my back throughout my career and my creative endeavors over the years. I cannot express how much your support has meant to me.
Though my experience lies behind the camera as a director, my creative career first began behind the pen (or laptop, as the case may be) when I was hired to write the web pilot Sexy Nightmare Slayers for horror director Adam H. Green. I went on to write a few of my own projects before then getting hired on the writing staff for the web series Dwelling, created by former writer on The Office, Anthony Q. Farrell.
I enjoy and am focused on my career as a director. However, in 2023, I focused on pushing my writing further. I submitted 3 feature scripts I'd written to a few notable screenwriting contests. These contests are expensive, especially when you want feedback and notes, so I could only afford to submit to a handful of contests. Lo and behold, EACH script managed to find prominent placement in 1 or more of the contests I submitted them to, as you can see below!
If you're interested in learning more about these scripts, which we'll be further submitting throughout 2024, the story details of each are now available on the Script Page of bealsebub.com.
Turns out, I am a much better writer than I ever gave myself credit for. Determined to achieve higher creative and professional success, my goal for 2024 is to get these scripts into top-shelf shape and submit them to MORE festivals for my big 2024 "Undeniable" push!
This is where I could use your help.
As mentioned above, screenwriting is an expensive business. Last year's Writers and Actors Strike hit this industry's pocketbooks hard. We're all bouncing back, but it takes time, time that can stall or outright kill career momentum like what I've been blessed to accumulate this past year. My current fundraising goal covers entry fees and feedback for notable contests that, if my scripts advance far enough, can offer access to mentors, development, and continued growth through professional feedback.
WHERE YOUR SUPPORT GOES.
I firmly believe that when you're selling quality goods, everything else is just a numbers game. It's time to play the game the whole breadth of the field; taking my scripts from good shape to UNDENIABLE shape; putting them in front of as many industry decision-makers as possible; connecting with, building, and lifting my peers (my wolfpack, as it were); and ascending to the next level as a professional writer and filmmaker.
Successful people are only looking for other successful people, people who are already doing the thing. That's me. The more momentum I accrue through peer and mentor engagement (i.e., taking notes and feedback with grace and implementing them efficiently in a way that elevates and benefits the script), the more doors I'll open to producers, executives, agents, and managers.
All donations will go towards paying Feedback and Entry Fees, which are high and add up quickly. Click on the images below for a breakdown of where all support will go in the months ahead.
Further information on these contests can be found below:
• Nicholl Fellowship (already submitted!)
• Austin Film Festival (already submitted!)
WHO AM I? WHY HELP ME?
I started writing and directing movies (With a LOT of help from an army of amazing friends) amid an illustrious career working in production on sets such as The Office, Parks & Recreation, Castle, Thor (1), The Girl w/ the Dragon Tattoo, Star Trek (2009), The Dark Knight Rises, and Brooklyn Nine-Nine (to name only a few). Inspired by having worked with the best comedic actors and directors on the best comedies ever made, I dove headfirst into writing and/or directing comedy short films such as Mediating Kidnapper, Geek Cred, and Watch Dogs 2 In Real Life (which has been viewed over 6 million times since debuting on YouTube.)
Confident in the skills I picked up directing and writing one of the most difficult genres around, I directed horror and thriller films next. Amidst lockdown during the quarantine era of the Covid-19 pandemic, my wife, our neighbor, and I worked within the confines of CDC guidelines to create the horror short film Don't Be Afraid. Three actors, a three-person crew, no frills, bare-bones filmmaking.
That project was the blueprint for what I hope to achieve here, again, with you. We crowdfunded then to pay the entry fees for all film festivals and, thanks to you, Don't Be Afraid was an Official Selection at 15 festivals, a Finalist at 3, AND went on to win BEST THRILLER at the 2021 Couch Film Festival and BEST MUSIC (Go, Nando Garza!) at the 2021 Independent Horror Movie Awards.
Let’s be Undeniable. Together.
The goal isn’t solely to chase accolades or contests but to gain actionable feedback from industry pros that will allow me to grow as a storyteller while building my wolfpack of fellow writers, filmmakers, and mentors. Nothing is done alone, not in this business, not in any business.
In addition to my journey as a screenwriter, I’m concurrently working towards directing my first feature (the above-mentioned thriller, The Crimson Pool, if I have my say) and all attention from these contests can only bolster mine and that project’s pedigree.
Professional and peer feedback on The Crimson Pool has been overwhelmingly positive:
You joining my efforts won’t just make it possible to move forward on my endeavors, but you’ll also be an integral component in my telling large-scale, genre-bending stories about characters who, as messy as they may be at times, only want to be better. That’s a common theme in my work that I think we can all relate to.
It’s time to do what I’ve always wanted to do. If you join me on this one, I’ll never forget that you did. Please share this campaign with everyone you know. Stay tuned for updates. Thank you.
If you're interested in supporting more artists, I encourage you to check out other projects on GoFundMe's Creatives Page.
---------------
Subscribe to Bealsebub.com to receive updates on this and future projects: https://bealsebub.com/#subscribe
Organizer
Daniel Beals
Organizer
Los Angeles, CA