Prick
LOGLINE
After learning her husband has been in a life-threatening car crash, Ana must make a difficult decision.
SYNOPSIS
Prick is a story about the costs of secrets. And how our lives can change dramatically once we confront what we have hidden away.
We meet Ana, a devoted housewife in the middle of cooking an elaborate meal. She is interrupted by a phone call and rushes to the hospital to find her once imposing husband now crumpled on a bed.
As his life hangs in the balance, Ana sees multiple roads laid out before her.
With the taste of possibility still fresh in her mind, she must make a decision about her future.
FUNDING
There's a saying in Spanish that “what is cheap, is expensive” meaning that if you try and cut corners you'll end up spending more because you get what you pay for. In order to make a high caliber film, we need to make sure that we are paying for the right talent and best equipment and locations.
With our minimum goal of $15,000 we will be able to pay for our locations which is a heavy part of our budget. Most of the short takes place in a hospital, and we need to rent hospital equipment as well.
With our target goal of $20,000, we can pay for food and crew. It's important to pay our crew a reasonable wage for all their hard work and efforts.
With our stretch goal of $30,000, we would be able to pay for all the above and all the equipment we need to make this short look the best it possible can be.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
The joy of filmmaking for me isn't just in the end product but in getting to work with so many talented and dedicated people.
It was my pleasure on my previous short, Every Night at 3:30, to employ not just professionals but also film students. It's something I will continue to do on Prick. I love giving people opportunities since I was so lucky to have others before me do the same.
It is my goal to always have a diverse and safe set environment. I will be shooting again in Atlanta, Georgia and am excited to have many of the same crew members I had before joining me.
DIRECTOR'S STATEMENT
Growing up as the daughter of Cuban refugees, I never saw myself in movies or television. Most of the leads were white males from upper middle class families. I've been glad to see how over the years, that has been changing slowly. But I still struggle to find Latin characters who aren't relegated to nannies, nurses, drug dealers or hookers. I want to tell stories that not only feature us but have us represented like everyone else - a human being simply trying to do their best in this complicated world.
I especially love using genre for this reason. It's an easy to use framework that can subvert expectations and people. And you can insert more complicated and darker themes while still entertaining your audience. This time I'll be using the format of a thriller with its twists and turns in order to put you in the mindset of someone making what would seem to be a drastic decision.
THANK YOU
To anyone who has taken the time to read this page, share or donate - thank you, thank you, thank you. I know how valuable your time and money are.
Another big thank you to my amazing team of producers, and my wonderful friends who helped shoot the pitch video and lent their voices.
Lastly to my family and my mom, whose response to all my big leaps is simply “Porque no? You can do it.”
Besos,
Natalie De Diego
Natalie De Diego is a daughter of Cuban refugees and a writer/director whose background is in editing and co-producing documentaries. Her work has played on HBO, CNN, Hulu and Netflix. In 2017, her episodes of CNN's History of Comedy screened at Sundance. In 2020, she was nominated for a Sports Emmy for Netflix's We are the Champions. She worked on The Way Down which had the largest debut of any docu-series on HBO Max. Her first short, Every Night at 3:30, premiered at the HollyShorts Film Festival in 2023 and now lives online under the Film Shortage Youtube Channel.
Viviana ("Vivi") Chavez is an Atlanta native, proud daughter of immigrants, and accomplished actress and producer in the Southeast. In high school, she discovered her passion for the performing arts and subsequently double majored in Acting and Production at University. Vivi's journey has landed her roles in over 180 projects including,The Walking Dead, The Resident, Baby Driver, Dynasty, and most recently, Class of '09, opposite Oscar nominee, Brian Tyree Henry. Beyond the screen, she's contributed her creative talents to produce content for major brands such as Coca-Cola and The Home Depot, as well as for local indie productions. In 2018 she co-founded Latinas In Media Atlanta to highlight Latine talent in GA's film & TV industry. She sits on the advisory board of ARTE-GA, is a Bronze Telly Award winner, and a dedicated advocate for fostering a thriving film industry in Atlanta. She is currently working on launching her own production company and relaunching her local director's group. When not immersed in the world of entertainment, Vivi enjoys savoring coffee and hanging out with friends.
Christine Odilia, a freelance producer based out of Atlanta, GA, has always felt at home within the world of entertainment. Prior to pursuing a B.S. in Film and Digital Media from the University of North Georgia, she nurtured her creativity and developed her business acumen working within broadcast radio and podcasting. Christine was born and raised in Queens, New York, the most culturally diverse metro area in the world, and has always been proud of her Afro-Latina heritage. As a filmmaker she remains committed to producing projects that reflect the rich diversity of culture and experiences that exist in reality.
A native of Nebraska, Tom Pritchard brings a midwestern steadiness and work ethic to set. Now calling Atlanta home, Tom graduated from the University of Georgia with a degree in Video Production. As Tom moved through his career, the gravitational pull toward cinematography couldn’t be ignored. Tom has a passion for every aspect of cinematography, from composition, to camera movement, to lighting, to the collaboration with the director. Tom has left his mark on commercial work through national campaigns for Coca-Cola and Racetrac, and documentary work where he is the proud owner of two Southeast Emmys. Making movies for a living though is definitely the goal. Tom has teamed up once before with Natalie De Diego on the suspenseful short film ‘Every Night at 3:30.’ Natalie’s directing and editing, combined with Tom’s cinematography proved to be a winning combination. Any and all future collaborations with these two filmmakers will undoubtedly create a film that all involved can be proud of.
When I started this, I had no idea how it was going to go and how much we would ultimately raise. I'd seen other successes and failures and tried to go in with an open mind. In the end our campaign raised $16,535!!! And of course, it's all thanks to you all.
THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!
Now as far as next steps, if you chose an incentive, depending on which one, it will be coming to you shortly. And remember, if you chose for instance a Signed Script, you will receive all the other incentives under that tier automatically.
Here's a rough timeline for each incentive -
VIP MAILING LIST - Our first email will be sent soon.
VIDEO SHOUT OUTS - I have a lot of these to do, so they will start coming your way later this week.
SIGNED SCRIPT - If you don't live in LA, I will need to ship this to you. I will be reaching out soon for your address. This won't be shipped until later in July after we're done shooting since only then will the cast and crew be gathered to all sign it.
Q & A with Directors and Producers - This will be sometime after July as well. I will keep you all posted.
Special Thanks - As we finalize our end credits, we will be reaching out to make sure your name appears as you want it to be on screen. This will be later this year.
Business Credit - We will be reaching out later as we finalize credits for your logo.
I will be posting updates on Instagram and Facebook as well. So please follow there if you want to learn more.
Thank you again for coming with me on this journey! I look forward to sharing the final product with you all!
We're finally here, our final day. I'm exhausted but so deeply grateful. Thanks again and always to our wonderful supporters. We couldn't have made it without you all. Now as we head into our final hours, let's see how much we can raise.
Feel free to share our posts on Instagram and FB and to share directly with family and friends. We're almost to 17K. And hey, let's see how close we can get to our ultimate goal of 20K.
The campaign officially ends on May 12 at 5am PST/ 8am EST.
Let's do this!
On Sunday May 12th at 5am PST/8am EST, our campaign will officially close. Thank you so much to those who have contributed and helped us get to our minimum goal of 15K. Our ultimate goal is 20K and there's still time to get closer to the finish line. We are very close to 16K.
From now until the end of the campaign, whenever anyone gives, I will post a video on Insta and FB of me dancing. You can choose the song as well.
If you'd like to contribute, now is the time to. Please also feel free to share the fundraiser directly with friends and family.
Thanks again!
WE DID IT! We reached our minimum goal of 15K and we were only able to achieve it with the help of you all! Thank you again for your time and generosity. This story means so much to me, and it's wonderful to have your support.
As promised, I did go live and danced the Macarena but instagram did not like that I was playing licensed music and cut me off. So I will later today post a short video recreating some of that magic. (I am so exhausted from dancing the Macarena twice. That song is longer than you think.)
Now with four days left, please help us to get fully funded. Our ultimate goal is 20K and I think we can get close in these final days. Please feel free to share this campaign with anyone and consider adding more to your contribution if you're able.
THANK YOU!
Great news! We leaped past 13K this morning and now my music video is live on Instagram and FB. Please enjoy!
We are now one week out from our final deadline, May 12, and we're just $120 away from reaching 14K. Can you help us hit that today?
15K is within sight now, and I promise that once we reach our minimum goal that I will dance the Macarena live for the world to see on Instagram and FB. So if you've been enjoying watching me humiliate myself, by all means consider giving more. :)
Thank you again to everyone who has given so far and who has shared. I am deeply grateful for all your support!
We are now so close to $13,000. Just $190 away! If we reach it, I will once again take to the internet to embarrass myself. This time I will drop a music video I shot and starred in for a friend's birthday back in 2021. I've never posted it publicly before. It's me lip syncing (rather terribly) to Juice Newton's “Angel of the Morning.” Here are some screenshots.
Only 8 days left for us to reach our minimum goal of 15k! Please contribute if you can and share with anyone you feel would want to help.
Thanks again for helping us get here. This short only happens with your support.
Thank you so much to all of our wonderful contributors. It's been incredibly moving seeing so many people I've known over the years come out and give what they can to this project that means so much to me.
We are so close to 12K. Only $378 to be exact. Once we reach it, I, Natalie De Diego, being of sound mind will pie myself live on Instagram and Facebook.
Feel free to share our page with family and friends and thank you again for your support! We couldn't get this done without it.
We're posting on all the socials and letting everyone that we're trying to get to 130 supporters today. Thank you so much to those who have contributed so far! We're so close to 10k. And remember, our campaign ends on May 12.
We are now officially more than halfway to reaching our minimum goal of 15k. Thank you so much to everyone who has given so far. Your contributions and support mean so much to myself and my team.
Thank you so much to those who have contributed so far. I am deeply grateful to your generosity and support. With our first week completed, we are getting closer to our minimum goal of $15,000.
Thank you so much to those who have given so far. We are officially off to a great start. Follow our instagram page @prick_shortfilm for more updates and more fun videos to share.
We hope to keep the momentum going this week!
