Trivial Pursuits: A Mental Health Film
Donation protected
Hi, I'm Susanne McDonald, an actor with a passion for creating my own work.
Trivial Pursuits is the first short film that I am Executive Producing, writing, and starring in to raise awareness around suicide and mental health through the medium of film.
Our priority is to tell this story with care and quality above all else, which is why we need YOUR help!
WHY THIS FILM? WHY THIS FILM NOW?
In 2021, I lost someone very close to me to suicide and have since noticed depictions of grief and suicide in the media. These depictions often triggered me or left me feeling unsatisfied, even alone. This short explores the complexities of grief in its earliest stages just when life begins to pick up and move around you again despite if you (the person in grief) feels ready or not.
This is Personal, this is Relevant, this is Necessary
I'll tell y'all something I have never shared before. In 2019 and 2021, I wanted to send my late loved one a postcard and a letter but I never did. When I was struggling with depression in college, my best friend, sent me a postcard and it really helped me through that time in my life. A small, sweet note to a friend can change their day for the better. Support the film to find out why letters are essential to the plot!
Soon after their sudden passing, I realized that I wanted to share my experience to start a conversation around mental illness. As an actor and creator, I knew this had to be through film. The media we consume plays an important role in our everyday life and can move us to connect in new ways.
WHAT'S THE STORY?
With the help of her supportive boyfriend, a young woman must find a way to graduate from NYU after the sudden loss of her best friend, until a letter from her late friend postmarked before their death arrives, potentially changing everything. A grounded mental health drama that explores the many perspectives that grief touches.
WHAT WILL YOUR DONATION DO?
Your donation will make this film possible by paying and feeding the cast and crew, renting the best equipment, support location costs, expediting the editing process, and cut the costs of festival submissions so that we can share the film.
No donation is too small.
Examples of where your donation would go:
$1 could go towards the cost of props
$5 could go towards the cost of set dressing
$10 could go towards the cost of locations
$20 could go towards the cost of renting equipment
$30 could go towards the cost of our sound mixer
$50 could go towards the cost of our gaffer
$100 could go towards our director
$130 could go towards our DP
$150 could go towards the rest of our crew
$200 could go towards our casting director and actor
And we have gracious backers willing to match $3500 by AUGUST 18th! Please help us reach our goal, we cannot do it without you.
BENEFITS TO DONATING
You donate...
$5 receive a Social Media Shout Out
$20 receive a Trivial Pursuits Post Card to Send to a Friend
$100 receive a Cast and Crew Signed Copy of Script
$250 receive an Early Access to a Virtual Screening
$500 receive a Producer Credit + 1:1 Professional Speech Coaching Session with Susanne!
AND you support a team of Indie Filmmakers during a double strike.
OUR INCREDIBLE CREW
KAITLIN KEMP is a film director and writer dedicated to creating work that underlines our similar need for love and connection. She values: Collaboration with diverse teams dedicated to making deeply personal, authentic work, Hard-working artists who know their worth, Challenging concepts, and Stories about female empowerment and liberation. http://KAITlinkemp.com/
CORY FELLOWS, DP
With over a decade of experience in production, Cory is always trying to improve his skills and expand his creativity, understanding, and broaden their experiences. A cinematographer, sound recordist, editor, producer, and all around useful for anything every project may need.
DAVID WALTON SMITH, Producer
A director and cinematographer with experience in commercial, short-form documentary, and branded content. His work has taken David around the globe creating content for major brands and companies such as Google, Subaru, Hyundai, Aleve, and Adidas.
TERESA-ESMERALDA SANCHEZ, Sound
As a first-generation Dominican American, she's had a passion for storytelling from an early age, which has taken her on a journey aroundthe world. Her directorial debut, "Bradley Eros: The Performance of Cinema," premiered at BAM as part of the Brooklyn College Film Festival and was featured at the Oscar-qualifying American Documentary Film Festival. Later that piece would be selected for the university's Film Retrospective 40th Anniversary in 2023.
STEPHEN TAYLOR, Gaffer
Stephen "Gadget" Taylor is a filmmaker born and raised in Queens, New York. After finding filmmaking through a summer youth opportunity, he kept up with the craft and has since gone on to found Colorway Productions as a means of broadening the visual representation of people of color.
This project is truly independent and fully supports the WGA and SAG-AFTRA Strike. Currently, the project is non-union and does not employ SAG-AFTRA actors, however, that is subject to change. If that does change, we will be working under a Micro-Budget Contact.
SPONSORED BY JOHN PRICE LAW FIRM
CREW ME UP
Organizer
Susanne Mcdonald
Organizer
New York, NY