Luis Figueroa Caunedo's NYU Thesis Film

As my 4 years at NYU Film come to a close, the time has come to present myself to the public as confident and capable of handling your hard-earned cash: Please feel free to donate to my thesis film, which shoots in late January 2025.

The film follows scruffy after-school counselor Mr. Carlos struggling to keep himself together around his 3rd graders upon suspecting he's being cheated on. It's a 15 minute docu-dram-edy shot on 16mm color film. The good stuff!

The majority of our budget will be allocated to feeding our cast and crew (including many real 3rd graders) and film processing/scanning costs.

All donors will be listed in the credits, no matter the amount donated. The bigger the donation, the bigger your name will appear on screen (literally - be our John Hancock ❤️). May the best donor win. We'll also take any loose change.

Before you go, take a moment to read up on our young but supremely talented crew, all of whom I consider close friends. They're all way too overqualified for this and doing me huge favors.

CAST:

Carlos Nolla (@carlosnolla) - Standup comic and also my godbrother, whose sense of humor I adopted at a young age and ability to perform naturalistically impressed me when we shot this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZBBqXTStiU (consider it a hint at what we're capable of with a budget 1/100th the size of my thesis and 2 less years of experience...)

Paula Figueroa Caunedo (@paulafigueroacaunedo) - Theatrically trained actor, also my sister, whose stage credits span the likes of "In the Heights," "Company," "Waitress," "Sound of Music," etc. Aside from the movies we made on our phones growing up, this is our first time collaborating. She's finally freed up her schedule for me.

Elsie Fisher (@elsiekfisher) - Bigshot actor, star of "Eighth Grade," Golden Globe nominated. Elsie also let me crash at her place for a month when I was at rock bottom. More importantly, she was in "Despicable Me" which I saw twice in theaters. Check it out.

CREW:

Adina Alterman (@adinamalterman) - Producer, also a Production Coordinator at Gummy Films, student at the New School, playwright/comedian. We met interning at Gummy where she quickly outpaced me and became the favorite intern. No hard feelings because as you can see I'm stealing her from them.

Julia Barlow (@notjuliabarlow) - Producer, currently interning for XYZ Films, previously assistant to film legend Jem Cohen, and student at NYU Gallatin. Avid cinephile who's helped produce all of my projects since freshman year. She loves a lot of movies that I also love, so I trust her.

Gili-Jo Froman (@gili.jo) - Producer, student at NYU Film, previously intern for ARRI Rental London. Gili and I met studying abroad at a 35mm motion picture film workshop in Prague where she produced my intermediate project. On that, I had an ambitious 2-day shoot that ran smoothly and on time thanks to her.

Connor Keep (connorkeep.com) - Co-cinematographer, NYU Film graduate.

Rhys Scarabosio (rhysscarabosio.com) - Co-cinematographer, Emerson Film graduate, also shot Jinho Myung's feature "Softshell."

I met Connor and Rhys separately on non-NYU sets my first year in New York. They're both primarily experienced at shooting film with natural light and low budgets, but are also all around great guys that set the tone for an easygoing set. Connor's more formal technique supports Rhys' run-and-gun style, both of which I'll need to make the film feel alive. It's Lennon & McCartney, SpongeBob & Patrick.

Jinho Myung (jinhomyung.com) - Sound, NYU Film graduate, also intern for NoBudge.com, director of feature film "Softshell," and my roommate. The accomplished indie darling filmmaker does not need to be doing this in the midst of his debut feature's worldwide festival run, but alas his multi-hyphenate talents are required back home.

Luis Figueroa Caunedo (lfcmovies.com, myself) - Director/Writer/Editor, former intern for Gummy Films and Kino Lorber, most recently post production coordinator on "Beatles '64," executive produced by Martin Scorsese. My latest shorts have played the likes of Atlanta Film Festival and Rockaway Film Festival, and I was the youngest filmmaker programmed by Rooftop Films last summer.

Pictured above from left to right is the film's star, Carlos, and yours truly around the time I started writing this part for him. I hope you'll join us on this one. Thank you,

Luis