The Spartan Film Company is a veteran owned and operated independent film company seeking to produce 3x film projects -- an action short film, an Iraq War Documentary, and an adventure short film -- as well as releasing 2x action/thriller novels. This page-and-screen operation will posture The Spartan Film Company for successful follow-on operations and productions, increasing our growing audience and enhancing our skill as filmmakers as well as our total arsenal as storytellers.

SEE OUR WORK HERE:

THE BOTTOM LINE UP FRONT -- THE $64 DOLLAR QUESTION.

If you want to support a veteran-owned and operated indie film company looking to break out of shoestring budgets and into bolder journeys beyond, please consider supporting our campaign.

Our Mission:

We seek to generate funding for 1-3x years as an indie film company. Our goal is to produce 2x short films -- Cerberus (action/crime; watch the proof of concept short here: https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/1166478677) and Hades Heroes (action/adventure; sword-and-sandal film set in Ancient Greece). Additionally, we seek to produce a second feature documentary, The Infernal Warpath (Iraq War documentary, serving as a companion piece to our existing showcase for the testimonies of three American Infantry Soldiers who fought in Afghanistan, which can be seen here:https://vimeo.com/1091956090). Finally, we seek to publish 2x action/thriller novels: The Darkest Star (action/thriller/military) and Three Devils (crime/action/southwest USA). All of these projects will be available to the public at no cost.

ENDSTATE:

The Spartan Film Company will have an arsenal of projects to showcase our expanding skills as a cutting-edge indie film company.
The Spartan Film Company will have honored the testimonies of Iraq War Veterans, complimenting our existing feature documentary: the stories of Afghan War Veterans (In the Shadow of the Valley; https://vimeo.com/1091956090).
The audience and appeal of the Spartan Film Company will have grown tremendously through diligent outreach and exceptional storytelling showcases.
The Spartan Film Company will be postured to conduct increasingly ambitious productions in follow-on operations and feature film efforts in the near future.

If we raise $19,200, we'll be empowered to produce the first action short-film (Cerberus). This is our minimum goal.

If we raise $26.000, we'll be empowered to also produce the Iraq War documentary (The Infernal Warpath).

The more we raise beyond these minimum goals, the more we can invest in our company's infrastructure, personnel, and path to victory.

EACH PROJECT WE COMPLETE IN THE FIRST YEAR (to include all short films, the Iraq War Documentary, and the first 2x novels) WILL BE AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC AT NO CHARGE, via VIMEO and OUR WEBSITE. Supporting this mission will bring these short and feature projects to the public for your entertainment. We will not seek any form of revenue generation until/unless we begin producing feature films.

SEE OUR WORK HERE: vimeo.com/thespartanfilmcompany

THE BOX OFFICE BATTLEFIELD

The stories we tell in our popular culture say a lot about us as a society. A wash of rehashed, overdone, half-baked and lame-brain sequels, prequels, requels, threequels, reboots, redos, overdos, overused jargon-laden and preachy snooze fests or been-there-done-that cinematic slogs of the status quo is not what the story doctor ordered. The film gods need a new cathedral of dreams. Our mission is to supply the brick and mortar.

If you wish to support an independent and driven American storyteller with hundreds of original ideas and an Infantryman's heart and soul committed to bringing the dream to life, then please consider answering the $64 dollar question: do you believe this company and dream are meant to be?

You can have your doubts-- the storyteller himself has plenty -- because doubt is what makes faith so special. The question still remains: do you believe we can accomplish our mission and tell great stories?

If you do -- if you believe in a brand-spanking new film company coming on to the scene, committed to original storytelling -- if you believe in a storytelling company dedicated to a sense of goodness and resilience and hard fought purpose in a tough world -- if you believe in an all-American sense of identity and pride -- if you believe in a worldwide sense of wonder and respect -- if you believe in a company that wants to tell stories on the grandest scale with casts of thousands -- if you believe in stories that defy the odds and make it feel personal -- if you believe in people -- heart -- a touch of madness -- plenty of guts -- if you believe that an Army veteran can build a Fortune 500 film company from scratch with nothing but pure hustle and desire, passion and manifest intent: then...

Please consider saying yes to the dress, and answer AFFIRMATIVE to the $64 question.

All of this fuel and fire generates momentum towards producing a first feature-length film. Our long-term goal is to beat the odds and break out as an independent film company; one wholly dedicated to original and exceptional storytelling on the biggest stages of which one can dream. It isn't just about battling with Hollywood titans on a global stage and taking Tinseltown by storm. The mission is to seize a fighting chance, follow our dreams, and entertain the world on a grand scale and at a personal level. We have a long and improbable road ahead of us, but if we can just clinch a foothold and get started on the warpath, at least we have a fighting chance to achieve this.

To learn more about our mission and the projects we have planned for the year(s) ahead -- keep on rolling down the glidepath.

FRIENDLY FORCES -- WHO WE ARE

CEO/DIRECTOR/WRITER -- US Army Infantry Officer and Iraq War Veteran; the catalyst to the mission and the writer/director/producer/editor for all film projects; 31x screenplays and 2x novels completed, with 554x storylines, 14x film scores, 60x original songs, and 1x musical on deck for production).

DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY -- film industry professional with 10+ years of experience on major film shoots; invaluable team-player and creative force with input towards and control over cinematography, lighting, and camera operation; further adds value in post-production editing with color correction expertise to polish a professional and enhanced product for presentation.

PROPS MASTER/CAMERA OPERATOR/SOUND ENGINEER -- film industry professional with 10+ years of experience of major film shoots; an indispensable part of any team, directly impacting day-to-day operations on set with props, set design, and sound capture capabilities as well as assisting in the operation of the camera and the establishment of lighting set-ups; further adds value in post-production through musical score arrangement and sound design.

OPERATIONS OFFICER/LOGISTICS OFFICER -- US Army Infantry Officer and Veteran; extensive operations and logistics leadership experience in high-operational tempo environments; leadership roles at the personal, small-unit level through multi-hundred personnel organizations; acquires resources, gets jobs done, keeps the ball rolling, and achieves results.

THE 50-METER TARGET -- A SHORT ACTION FILM: "CERBERUS"

The short film Cerberus is an expansion upon a proof of concept we've already produced. The proof-of-concept is a roughly 7x minute trailer produced on a shoestring budget of just $21. It was produced over the course of 12x hours. It can be viewed here: https://vimeo.com/1166478677.

Cerberus follows the exploits of a mysterious bank robber named Pluto as he seeks revenge against a criminal gang called The Underworld -- revealing that much more was at stake in the heist than just money, and vengeance is the ultimate payback.

Cerberus will have an ideal $21,000 budget. It’ll be produced over a 2x week shoot with 2x months of post-production. The intended quality of the finished product will exceed the proof-of-concept in every dimension; in fact, it is more closely mirrored in another short-flick we produced with a $5k budget and 5x shooting days. A snapshot of that project can be viewed here: https://vimeo.com/929151657, to give a sense of the production value we intend to reach and surpass with this next project in Cerberus.

If we achieve our minimum fundraising goal, we can produce Cerberus as a part-time crew. The more funds raised, the more time and focus we can apply to improving and perfecting this operation, as well as rolling momentum and effects towards more storytelling.

THE 150-METER TARGET -- AN IRAQ WAR DOC: "THE INFERNAL WARPATH"

The Infernal Warpath is an Iraq War documentary that will serve as a companion piece to our first project -- In the Shadow of the Valley -- a showcase for the testimonies of three American Infantry Soldiers who fought in Afghanistan. You can view the Afghanistan documentary here: https://vimeo.com/1091956090.

The Infernal Warpath will seek to showcase the testimonies and honor the service of American Soldiers who fought in the U.S. War in Iraq. The story intends to span from the early awestruck days of the invasion right through the combat of the Surge and into the campaign to crush ISIS and the ruthless Daesh caliphate.

This is a story near and dear to my heart as an Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR) Iraq War veteran of the US Army Infantry. I believe this story is one that ought to be told loud and clear. We owe it to our Soldiers, to our society, and to ourselves to shake the constantly negative narrative haranguing the American warfighting experience in the Middle East and to recalibrate the national conversation regarding our campaigns in the global war on terror. It isn't about beating drums or building up egos. It isn't about lionizing or jingoistic reframing. It's just about telling the whole story. It's about more justly depicting how large of a shareholder in our nation's experience abroad both honorable action and hard fought results really were. The goal of this project is to honor what our Soldiers did in the war, why they fought, and what it took for them to get home.

There's always a place for critical analysis and bold underlining of American past and present geopolitics. I believe in a candid acknowledgement of our footsteps. There's also a heavy need to radically balance that overarching conversation. It could do with a dose of sage and visceral understanding: why we went to war to depose a tyrant, and how the honorable strength and service of American Soldiers saw our way through a brutal conflict towards a better path.

There are endless stories worth telling out there. The average American probably doesn't have a clear sense of why the global war on terror was fought in the first place, who did the savage fighting and work, and why that service matters so intensely to this day. Much of what gets printed and said about the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq doesn't highlight the everyday dutiful grit showcased by American Soldiers at the front and in the trenches of the fight. This film seeks to change how folks see the war-- honorable conflicts with tough lessons -- and to shine a light on select Soldiers who served well and fought hard. This documentary will draw on both the testimonies of Soldiers who fought in Iraq as well as Department of Defense approved footage -- showing the reality of the conflict, on the ground and in clear focus.

If we merely meet our minimum fundraising goals, I will still do everything in my power to self-finance and produce this documentary, to get the story told and the service of these Soldiers honorably captured for future generations. With every additional tier of fundraising accomplished, we can better build our team and capitalize on an opportunity to tell this story with all the attention and energy it deserves. When we made the documentary about the war in Afghanistan -- In the Shadow of the Valley -- we had no resources and we still got the job done. It was just a hell of a lot harder than being able to hire a full-time skeleton crew and a small dedicated team to see this project through. This project will be a whole-hearted goal of this company no matter what. The greater our fundraising success, however, sees us through the breach and onto the objective with a whole lot more combat power and ready to take the hill more effectively, efficiently, and with all the more confidence we'll be sharing the absolute best version of this story with the wider world.

America should be proud of her Soldiers, and the average American ought to have a better sense of what it was like to serve in Iraq through the war. This film seeks to accomplish that mission.

THE 300-METER TARGET: A SHORT ADVENTURE FILM: "HADES HEROES"

Our future ambitions involve stories in every genre and encompass the full breadth of the imagination. We seek to build a storytelling company rebuilding and surpassing the Golden Age of Hollywood; grand spectacles and heroic adventures on a colossal scale to stagger the senses and breathe fresh life into the cinematic experience. One small sword-and-sandal-clad step towards that goal is a short adventure film, complete with ancient Greek action and timeless mythological legends: Hades Heroes.

Hades Heroes tells the epic tale of a tough-as-nails Greek warrior who died on the field of battle and still doesn’t believe in life after death. He finds himself resurrected from the ether and tasked with a secret mission: Hades needs a motley crew of heroes and mercenaries to guard the gates of the underworld before a psychotic devil and his army of Persian Immortals can steal Hades mojo and unlock the power of judging souls, a weapon they would wield to lock up good folks before their time and unleash a bit of chaos by freeing evil spirits. If our hero can find in himself the fortitude to fight for the immortal balance between life and death, he may just discover a newfound belief in that same balance in the process.

Hades Heroes would give us a chance to spread our wings and push our capabilities to the limit with a historical setting and some shooting days on location in Greece. Hades Heroes would help us build key connections for future operations and projects abroad, showcase what we can do in this genre, and lend itself towards more ambitious projects on the glidepath. There would be no grander gesture than for The Spartan Film Company to complete a cosmic opening year salvo of projects with an action packed short film set in ancient Greece and with some hard-fought sword-and-sandal cinema in our repertoire.

I've been to the gates of fire at Thermopylae, where the three hundred Spartans made their last stand. I've stood in the baking-hot square in Sparta. I've journeyed through Greece many times over the last thirty years and never found an end to the mysteries and magic of that country. It's a land built for myths and for heroes. The Spartan Film Company -- armed with a fighting chance and a sense of adventure -- ought to cap off a cosmic first year with a tried-and-true dash of old school action-packed cinematic fun. I believe that mission can be accomplished with Hades Heroes.

ADDITIONAL OPERATIONS -- ACTION-PACKED STORIES

In addition to cinema, it's our intent to tell stories on every front; through music, art, and certainly through the written word. An additional goal of this campaign is to deliver 3x novels to the wider audience.

The first novel is already completed: an action/military thriller, The Extremist. The two projects to be facilitated by this campaign are a sequel, The Darkest Star, as well as a stand-alone crime/action thriller south-of-the-border, Three Devils.

The Extremist is the story of haunted counter-terror cop Atticus Marx as he unearths the mysterious alliance between an Iranian jihadist cell and a Neo-Nazi paramilitary gang plotting a soft-target attack in his home city of Dresden, Germany. Marx must take the violent investigation into his own hands after a betrayal by his sinister commanding officer, forced to become the kind of extremist against whom he's spent his whole life fighting in a last-ditch mission to stop the attack.

The Darkest Star picks up after the events of The Extremist: now Marx faces his archenemy, a Russian separatist named Gogol. This dangerous ex-Spetsnaz psychopath is masterminding a devious scheme to make an Israeli traitor disappear. Atticus Marx enters the fray in a fight to prevent the takedown of all Israeli money in Holland and uncover why the traitorous turncoat is worth so much to every side of the shadow war being fought all around him.

Three Devils is a stand-alone action/crime thriller set along the southwest border of the USA and Mexico. When a trio of mysterious ex-military men fresh off the warpath wash ashore in burning south California, they head inland to the desert take a job from a grieving cartel boss to deliver the head of a Catholic padre on the run. The Mexican mafioso says that his gorgeous daughter died because of the padre, but something is being left in the dark. The three devils sprint headlong into a quest across the darkest corners of southwest America, as gangland sicarios, a pair of shadowy Texans, a beautiful and ruthless female police lieutenant and a notoriously dangerous and psychotic sheriff all rage on in hot pursuit. Now the terrifying efficiency and die-hard resolve of the mystery men is going to shine through as the law and the villains alike draw close, and the three devils close-in on their mission to discover the truth.

This campaign will support the publication of The Extremist (completed), its sequel The Darkest Star (outline completed), and Three Devils (manuscript completed). With all three novels published for a growing audience, our position is strengthened: for follow-on operations/publications (including the remainder of the six-part series The Dark Side of the Mountain, in which The Extremist and The Darkest Star are the first two novels), for adaptations from page to screenplay, and production from screenplay to silver screen proper.

TIER PROGRESSION -- WHERE THE FUNDS WILL GO

To give donors a clear sense of how funds will be put to good use, a proposed glidepath is provided below. This showcases where the money will go as we gain additional donors, broken down by major milestones. The decisive point -- 2x targeted full-time hires for 1x year and all of our initial projects funded -- is our goal of $300k raised.

TIER 1 -- 300x donors -- The 300 Spartans -- $19,200

The production of a short film -- Cerberus [$16k budget].

WHAT WE CAN DO AT THIS LEVEL: if we get 300x donors of $64, we can make a short action film, Cerberus.

TIER 2 -- 700x donors -- Seven Samurai -- $44,800

The production of a short film -- Cerberus [$21k budget];
an Iraq War documentary -- The Infernal Warpath [$6k budget];
empowers $12k company jumpstart [input of funds to purchase props, costumes, and equipment].

WHAT CHANGES AT THIS LEVEL: we can additionally produce a feature documentary and inject some capital into the company to purchase props, costumes, and equipment for all future/follow on projects and operations.

TIER 3 -- 1200x donors -- The Dirty Dozen -- $76,800

Cerberus [$21k];
The Infernal Warpath [$6k];
a short adventure film -- Hades Heroes [$20k];
$21k company jumpstart.

WHAT CHANGES AT THIS LEVEL: we can additionally produce a 2nd short film, as well as inject more funds into the company.

TIER 4 -- 2k donors -- Godzilla 2000 -- $128,000

Cerberus [$21k];
The Infernal Warpath [$6k];
Hades Heroes [$20k];
$4k company jumpstart;
empowers 1x full-time hire for 1x year [$64k].

WHAT CHANGES AT THIS LEVEL: we can make 1x full-time hire, for 1x year.

TIER 5 -- 4k donors -- The A-Team -- $256,000

Cerberus [$30k];
The Infernal Warpath [$6k];
Hades Heroes [$30k];
$36k company jumpstart;
2x full-time hires for 1x year [$64k; $64k].

WHAT CHANGES AT THIS LEVEL: we can make 2x full-time hires for 1x year, as well as improve the budget for the second short film and inject more funds into the company.

TIER 6 -- 6k donors -- The Sinister Six -- $384,000

Cerberus [$30k];
The Infernal Warpath [$6k];
Hades Heroes [$30k];
$55k company jumpstart;
3x full-time hires for 1x year [$64k; $64k; $64k];
1x part-time hire for 1x year [$32k].

WHAT CHANGES AT THIS LEVEL: we can make 3x full-time hires for 1x year, as well as making a part-time hire and gaining the ability to inject more funds into the company.

TIER 7 -- 7k donors -- The Magnificent Seven -- $448,000

Cerberus [$30k];
The Infernal Warpath [$6k];
Hades Heroes [$30k];
$49k company jumpstart;
1x full-time hire for 2x years [$64k; $64k];
2x full-time hires for 1x year [$64k; $64k];
1x part-time hire for 1x year [$32k].

WHAT CHANGES AT THIS LEVEL: we can extend the number and duration of our full-time hires, improving the stability of our team and increasing the chances we can commit to follow-on operations.

TIER 8 -- 8k donors -- The Hateful Eight -- $512,000

Cerberus [$30k];
The Infernal Warpath [$6k];
Hades Heroes [$30k];
$42k company jumpstart;
1x full-time hire for 2x years [$64k; $64k];
2x full-time hires for 1x year [$64k; $64k];
1x part-time to full-time hire for 2x years [$32k; $64k].

WHAT CHANGES AT THIS LEVEL: we can further improve the duration of full-time hires, adding more stability to our team and increasing the capabilities of the unit.

TIER 9 -- 9k donors -- The Fellowship of the Ring -- $576,000

Cerberus [$30k];
The Infernal Warpath [$6k];
Hades Heroes [$30k];
$36k company jumpstart;
3x full-time hires for 2x years [$64k; $64k; $64k];
1x part-time hire for 1x year [$32k].

WHAT CHANGES AT THIS LEVEL: we can now hire 75% of our target team for a full two-year contract, greatly stabilizing and empowering what our team can commit to accomplish in the first two years.

TIER 10 -- 10k donors -- And Then There Were None -- $640,000

Cerberus [$30k];
The Infernal Warpath [$6k];
Hades Heroes [$30k];
$34k company jumpstart;
3x full-time hires for 2x years [$64k; $64k; $64k];
1x part-time hire for 1x year [$32k];
empowers the production of a feature film [$60k] in year two.

WHAT CHANGES AT THIS LEVEL: with an empowered team full onboard for the first 2x years, a boost of funds, and a solid budget, we can commit to producing a feature film in year two.

TIER 11 -- 11k donors -- Ocean's Eleven -- $704,000

Cerberus [$30k];
The Infernal Warpath [$6k];
Hades Heroes [$30k];
$27k company jumpstart;
3x full-time hires for 2x years [$64k; $64k; $64k];
1x full-time hire for 2x years [$32k; $64k];
empowers the production of a feature film [$60k].

WHAT CHANGES AT THIS LEVEL: at this level, we can further stabilize our team and ensure 100% of our target hires are acquired and secured over the first two years, as well as producing a feature film in year two.

TIER 12 -- 12k donors -- Twelve Angry Men -- $768,000

Cerberus [$30k];
The Infernal Warpath [$6k];
Hades Heroes [$30k];
$53k company jumpstart;
4x full-time hires for 2x years [$64k; $64k; $64k; $64k];
empowers the production of a feature film [$60k].

WHAT CHANGES AT THIS LEVEL: every one of our target hires is onboarded for 2x full years, and the company jumpstart is increased dramatically to empower future/follow on projects and operations.

TIER 13 -- 13k donors -- Operation Camp Crystal Lake -- $832,000

Cerberus [$30k];
The Infernal Warpath [$6k];
Hades Heroes [$30k];
$50k company jumpstart;
4x full-time hires for 2x years [$512k total];
empowers the production of 2x feature films [$60k; $60k] in year two.

WHAT CHANGES AT THIS LEVEL: we can now commit to producing 2x feature films in year two, greatly improving our posture to break into actually screening our projects, building an audience, and generating revenue.

TIER 14 -- 16k donors -- Sixteen Blocks -- $1,024,000

Cerberus [$30k];
The Infernal Warpath [$6k];
Hades Heroes [$30k];
$108k company jumpstart;
4x full-time hires for 2x years [$512k total];
empowers the production of 3x feature films [$60k; $60k; $60k] in year two.

WHAT CHANGES AT THIS LEVEL: we can now commit to producing 3x feature films in year two, greatly improving our posture to break into actually screening our projects, building an audience, and generating revenue. We also vastly increase our company jumpstart, providing an insane boost to our arsenal of props, costumes, and equipment while also enhancing our capabilities.

Army Veteran Owned and Operated Indie Film Company Start-up

Still $23,700 to go. Help us build momentum.