Chuck and Fern
Fern, our hero, and Chuck, our villain, just want to go about their programmed video game lives…there’s just one problem; some player is controlling Fern incorrectly. Frustrated, Chuck yells through the TV screen at the player and realizes…the player is an 8-year old boy who lives in an abusive household.
Can our hero and villain team-up and find a way to save this little boy?
Chuck and Fern is a live-action comedic short film about friendship, courage, and the power video games have to change our lives.
"Videogames saved my life. This story is for those who use video games to cope & find their inner Hero.” – Henry A. Kelly
Costume designs by Fresaboba (film is live-action)
Henry Alexander Kelly is a venti-caramel, cause he’s chubby and brown, Afro-Latino comedic writer with San Francisco Bay Area and Nicaraguan roots. He was an Artist Development Consult for the Sundance Institute's 2022 Uprise Grant Program as well as a recipient of the grant in 2021. He is a 2022 Film Independent Project Involve Writing Fellow, 2022 Sundance BIPOC Mentorship Recipient and in 2020 graduated from the National Hispanic Media Coalition’s Series Scriptwriters Program sponsored by ABC and NBC. His half-hour adult-animated, mockumentary, comedy, NOW-WHAT?! (NAHUATL), about the Nicarao-Aztecs in the 1400s dealing with an ever-changing world, is optioned by Campanario Entertainment. He co-founded Circle of Writers LA, a pilot writing development group with Makeda Declet that got sponsored by Final Draft and CoverFly in 2022. He creates zany, larger-than-life, genre-blending worlds exploring the intersection of cultural identity, interpersonal struggles, and the absurdity of society.
Ya'll making a film is expensive and we need money for crew, equipment, location fees, and the whole she-bang! By contributing to this project not only will you help us make this hilarious and heartfelt film a reality; you get some awesome perks too!
Share this campaign far and wide with the heroes and villains in your networks and encourage them to join us in bringing Chuck and Fern to life!
Your support not only means the world to us but will help move the entertainment industry forward by showing Afro-Latinos in fantastical, comedic, and zany worlds!
Latinos are heroes! Periodt!
Mucho amor,
Henry Alexander Kelly
8-Bit art by Cesar Carmona.
Henry Alexander Kelly is a venti-caramel (cause he’s chubby and brown), Afro-Latino comedic writer with San Francisco Bay Area and Nicaraguan roots. He was an Artist Development Consult for the Sundance Institute's 2022 Uprise Grant Program as well as a recipient of the Uprise Grant in 2021. He is a 2022 Film Independent Project Involve Writing Fellow, 2022 Sundance BIPOC Mentorship Recipient and in 2020 graduated from the National Hispanic Media Coalition’s Series Scriptwriters Program sponsored by ABC and NBC. His half-hour adult-animated, mockumentary, comedy, NOW-WHAT?! (NAHUATL), about the Nicarao-Aztecs in the 1400s dealing with an ever-changing world, is optioned by Campanario Entertainment. He co-founded Circle of Writers LA, a pilot writing development group with Makeda Declet that got sponsored by Final Draft and CoverFly in 2022. He creates zany, larger-than-life, genre-blending worlds exploring the intersection of cultural identity, interpersonal struggles, and the absurdity of society.
Eduardo Ayres Soares is a Brazilian producer, director and editor living in Los Angeles. He is currently the Head of Post-Production at Anastasia Beverly Hills Studios. He was director for Slamdance TV part of the acclaimed Slamdance Film Festival, has worked with the AFI Film Festival, and was a judge for Film Quest. He’s directed six short films, edited TV and web series’, and hundreds of corporate and commercial videos. His short film, Chasing the Dragon, received praise worldwide, 13 nominations, and four awards, until reaching distribution through Revry Streaming Service and HereTV. He’s taught commercial filmmaking and film production at the university level. He has an MFA in Film Production from the University of Utah and BA in Visual Arts from NYU Tisch School of the Arts. More info: www.eduardoayressoares.com
Gabe Figueroa is a Los Angeles based director and producer who creates bold stories that provoke internal reflection and social change, such as his award-winning short film “Cold Winter’s Night”. It was honored in the ‘Best Children’s Programming’ category by the Television Academy and is streaming on Amazon Prime. He led content production at Shots Studios, creating hit short-form videos and music videos as Lead Producer of their stars Lele Pons and Juanpa Zurita – including Lele’s ‘Bloqueo’ video, which amassed viral acclaim with its unique “one-take” concept. Cumulatively, Gabe oversaw the creative production of over seventy-five videos, amassing 750+ million views on YouTube. He has collaborated on producing teams of feature films, commercials, and music videos, supporting Artists such as Pink and Alesso, in addition to brands like T-Mobile, Toyota, and Crystal Geyser. He received his BFA in Film Production from Chapman University. More info: www.gabefigueroa.com
Chuck and Fern on Deadline
We are so honored to have been featured on Deadline. Please read below. 😊🙌🏾
https://deadline.com/2024/07/henry-alex-kelly-chuck-and-fern-la-shorts-film-festival-interview-1236024488/
Chuck and Fern on the Festival Circuit
The film is on the festival circuit and we are so honored to have been selected in some of the most exciting festivals!
RECENTLY SCREENED AT:
- LA Shorts international Film Festival www.lashortsfest.com/
- DreamCon Film Festival www.dreamconvention.com/
UPCOMING SCREENINGS:
- New York Latino Film Festival (Date TBD) nylatinofilmfestival.com
- New Filmmakers LA (Sept 21st 2024) www.newfilmmakersla.com/events/event/september-21st-2024-monthly-film-festival-infocus-latinx-hispanic-cinema/
And we have some more surprises coming your way very soon! Stay tuned and thank you all for your support on our short film! We couldn't have made it this far without you! 😭🙌🏾🥰
Dear Chuck and Fern Supporters!
We are world premiering at the Oscar-Qualifying L.A. Shorts International Film Festival 2024! Woo hoo! Thank you for your support and magic!
Schedule:
Film Title: Chuck and Fern
Program: 48
Date & Time: Friday, July 26th at 3:15 PM (PST)
Location: Regal L.A. Live in Downtown Los Angeles
L.A. Shorts International Film Festival 2024 | July 17 - 28
Ticket sales go live on July 9th:
https://www.lashortsfest.com/2024-film-schedule
🍃PRESS START on your hero's journey! 🎮 "Chuck and Fern", a short film, is coming to a film festival near you! 🍂 Follow us on the official Chuck and Fern Instagram for upcoming screenings: @chuckandfern
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Enjoy the trailer and thank you for making this dream a reality. 🥺😭🥰
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https://youtu.be/BARXlRfFAE4?si=83CxuwHfGG_it-lK
Dear Chuck and Fern Supporters!
Our short film is complete! Thanks to your generous support and our amazing cast, crew, composer, music producer, 11-piece orchestra, and post-production team our film is done! We can't wait to share all the magic with you soon! Our adventure has just begun, and it's all thanks to you! Enjoy this little sneak-peek still from “Chuck and Fern”. WE DID IT! Next stop…film festivals! :)
THANK YOU! THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF OUR HEARTS!!!! WE REACHED $20k and are greenlit for production! WOOOO HOOO!!! Thank you!
We're gonna make an Afro-Latino, fantasy comedy! 😭😭😭🥰🥰🙌🏾🙌🏾
You alld made this happen!!! 😭🙌🏾🥰 THANK YOU!!!
SO EXCITED! For the next 48 hours, our BRAND NEW Executive Producers BY ASSOCIATION will be matching all contributions! Welcome aboard the magical Kat Croft and Harriet Cauthery to "Chuck and Fern"! :)
Website: wearebyassociation.com/
With 134 supporters we've reached over 25% of our goal! Woo hoo! In more exciting news, a production company wants to hop on board and co-produce. I will be meeting with them soon to finalize details, but until then, please feel free to keep sharing the campaign! Thank you all so much for this magic and making this little gamer kid's dream come true.
Chuck and Fern is not just a love letter to video games. But to my mom. A hero. Who showed me the magic and power of video games and using one's imagination.🥰.
Baby Me con mi mami :)!
Thank you all so much! We've reached over $5200! 15% of our goal!
Because of you, we are so much closer to making this short film a reality! We've sent all the “THANK YOU” emails so check your inbox/spam for that to see all your awesome perks and a special little surprise document :)!
Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!!
This was Henry's unfiltered joy when we hit $5000! Yaaaassss :)!
Yahoo! Celebrate mis amigos! We've hit 10% of our goal! Because of you! Thank you! Mil gracias!
Your magic has gotten us to the first dungeon of Fern's journey! At 20% we'll be able to unlock the second dungeon! Just like a videogame, your actions are gonna unlock these fun beautiful benchmarks! Thank you so much for your contribution! We'll be emailing out individual thank you's, your incentives, and other fun stuff very soon :)!
THANK YOU! We've reached 5% of our goal because of you!
As a special treat meet Mateo Mpinduzi-Mott aka FERN! :)
MATEO MPINDUZI-MOTT is a Houston-born Stage/Film/Voice Actor now hanging his hat in Echo Park. Raised in the theatre, Mateo studied acting at the University of Houston before moving to Los Angeles to further pursue his passion. He has gotten to play many parts on stages across the country on all three coasts including Romeo & Juliet - Romeo (VSF/SBTS) Tybalt (House of Bards), Much Ado - Benedick (AST) Claudio (SBTS), Merchant of Venice - Lorenzo (HSF), Jesus Hopped the A Train - Angel (4th Wall Theatre), I Carry My Heart - Josh (Bootleg Theatre Co), I and You - Anthony (Stages Rep. Theatre). He’s also provided English dubbing for several anime and live-action series including Haikyuu!, and Netflix’s Elite and appeared on Fox’s Pivoting and FX’s American Horror Story. While not treading the boards he works with Creating Creators to help pass the powers of filmmaking and storytelling to a younger generation.
We can't wait to bring “Chuck and Fern” to life! We want to hit 10% of our goal by today! Please share this magic far and wide! Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!
