My name is Beck, I am an Albuquerque-based filmmaker, and I'm raising funds for my short film WHODOUNT.

A workplace comedy meets high-stakes whodunnit. When a man’s gourmet donut vanishes, an intense investigation begins—all captured in one seamless, 15-minute single-take shot.

Set in the wilderness of corporate America, WHODONUT follows Eric, an ambitious office worker whose day implodes spectacularly after he’s denied the promotion he was pretty sure he deserved. Moments later, his artisanal, limited-batch gourmet donut goes missing from his desk— an injustice he takes far more personally.

Sensing the incoming spiral, his work bestie Maya volunteers to help crack the case. What begins as mild concern quickly devolves into a full-scale, self-appointed investigation featuring accusatory whisper-interrogations, questionable detective logic, and two coworkers who absolutely do not want to be part of whatever this is. Before long, even their annoyingly young boss, Lydia, becomes a prime suspect—mostly because she looks like someone who would commit corporate-sanctioned crimes.

As Eric’s paranoia skyrockets and Maya tries (and fails) to keep things normal, the hunt for the missing donut sets off a chain of escalating office chaos. Alliances break. Cubicles shake. An ex-wife gets mentioned unnecessarily. And Eric slowly transforms from “mildly disappointed employee” into “man unravels in front of office.”

WHODONUT is a one-shot workplace meltdown masquerading as a mystery where the real question isn’t just who stole the donut, but how many people Eric can alienate before he figures it out.

Why THIS film:

There are THREE reasons I'm making this film.

1. Making comedy in times of suffering.

It sounds ridiculous — because it is.

But it’s also that simple. If you’re a person with empathy or morals, living through 2025 has been audaciously difficult. There’s no resolution in sight — just the ongoing absurdity of being human. Most of what I’ve written since late 2024 has reflected this. Political, angry, revenge driven scripts. Stories written with radical frustration and unmedicated anxiety. The kind of projects that made me feel like I had control — like punishing the bad guy on the page could somehow fix the real world.

Because speaking out is power.

Using art is power.

Giving a voice to the scared and underrepresented is power.

But I also know that constantly creating from anger takes its toll. And if I was going to pour myself into this right now, it could not sink me deeper into the fear.

So, this one’s for relief. For distraction. for a quick escape. Maybe even a laugh (we’ll see. comedy is hard)

2. I want to grow as a filmmaker

That means I need to take the next step.

I’m using WHODONUT as a deliberate learning ground—an opportunity to develop real, hands-on experience with grant proposals, community sponsorships, hiring, contracts, social media marketing, and large-scale project management.

For this film, I’ve planned a multi-step marketing strategy to grow both audience reach and social media presence, alongside a multi-tiered festival submission plan. The goal is for any momentum or success WHODONUT generates to be strategically leveraged into the development and launch of my first feature film.

3. I want to make a story about accountability

Many of us have felt the exhaustion of watching someone do wrong and then refuse to own it, apologize, simply do better. This culture of deflection is more than just frustrating; it is harmful. And it is hard to change. I’m making this film to show that while the truth is heavy, holding yourself accountable is always the right thing to do. By placing responsibility at the center of the narrative, I want to prove that integrity isn’t found in being perfect, but in the courage to face what you’ve done and fix it.

Funding:

Thank you for supporting WHODONUT!