Falling Planes BFA

Falling Planes is an intimate family drama that gives insight to the experience of having a child struggle with addiction.

Lindsey wants nothing more than to keep Oscar safe and watch him become the man she knows he has the potential to become. Everything changes when Oscar becomes an addict, and Lindsey begins to fight with her own identity as a mother in coping with his disease. While Lindsey reflects on her memories with Oscar as a child, she starts to learn that blaming herself is something to be left behind.

We follow Lindsey as she applies a fresh coat of paint to the walls of an empty bedroom. Anxious excitement of welcoming a newborn fills what will become a nursery. Not long after, her adorable baby comes and Lindsey quiets him down after receiving his first vaccinations. Time progresses and Oscar grows into an excited toddler. She matches his curiosity of the world and developing imagination, however something feels wrong when, as a late teen, Oscar becomes absent and cold. Lindsey begins to understand that the growing distance between them is not due to a young adult “phase,” and soon realizes that she must face Oscar and his addiction. Crushed by defeat, Lindsey internalizes his decline as her own failure.  She then reflects on a memory of Oscar in his younger years; it used to be him that made her feel strong and confident. Now, Lindsey learns to find strength in being the mother Oscar believed her to be, even when he doesn’t show that he believes it anymore. Eventually, Oscar goes to rehab and reaches sobriety with due diligence and the trust of others. His demons are seemingly defeated, but we all know - something as strong as addiction can never be underestimated. Lindsey will learn that Oscar’s disease is simply out of her control. A person’s life will always look and be remembered differently by their mother, because she is there every step of the way. In Falling Planes, Lindsey is forced to face her biggest fears and gather any strength she can to navigate them.

Themes and Aesthetic
Falling Planes portrays the intimacy of a mother/son relationship. Through shallow depth of field and various close-up shots, we will bring the audience into a world of two and highlight moments in time when Oscar and Lindsey’s connection shifts. We hope to visually portray the feeling of growing apart using the space of our locations as well as precise blocking, dynamic wide shots, and unique pacing. Inspired by Hollywood family dramas such as Ordinary People and Hereditary, our vision of the characters’ late-stage relationship will exercise and develop our style and love for visual storytelling. Much of what we know about family trauma reflects the idea that many things going unsaid. Our team will speak with the camera - for example, through slow and deliberate movements, scenes will sit and breath for just a little too long, making the audience as uncomfortable as the characters are in the moment. Unique sound design will also be used as a guide to the emotional weight of respective situations.

So much of this film is about what happens behind the facade we create for ourselves. Through the performances of our actors and the deliberate creative decisions of our crew, we will see, hear and feel the struggle deep within each character. Our visual style and taste is the opposite of explicit, as the film’s unique touch will come with the audience’s ability to make connections between events on their own. Grief is a very personal experience, so the film will feel just as personal at times, but distant at others when being too close can feel intrusive. The representation of trauma requires a certain distance to execute properly and respectfully, and we have given much thought and attention to the angle through which we believe we can approach it best.


Cameron (Cam) Raser, a Junior Visual Media Arts Production major at Emerson College, is very excited about this production. Born and raised in the heart of Texas, Cam grew up with a long-running innate passion for movies. His experience making films with friends and classmates has prepared him for taking major steps in his career. Most recently his independent production Return to Sender was a finalist for best College Level Short at Worldfest- Houston International Film & Video festival. After nearly a year since his inception of this project, Cam is thankful for how far this production has already developed and is excited to see it come to full fruition.

Alara Siegel is currently a Junior Visual Media Arts Production student at Emerson College. In her time at Emerson thus far, Alara has produced and edited multiple short films and TV segments, and has become equally passionate about both digital and analog filmmaking. When she is not in the library or an editing suite, you could most likely find Alara on shift at Emerson’s Digital Film Post Lab or in a dance studio learning different styles and choreographing for the stage or screen. Deeply connected to the content of this production, Alara is excited to continue her work on Falling Planes alongside the talented and passionate team involved.

Inclusion Statement
Our cast and crew is a diverse group of individuals from various ethnicities, cultures & backgrounds to celebrate human connection and embrace the emotion people share. Regardless of our religion, culture, beliefs, race, sexuality or where we come from - in one way or another, we all experience the same universal phenomenon of grief, and having a diverse group of voices behind the creative can both enrich and strengthen our story.

Transportation and Housing:
With a smaller crew of about fifteen people, we'll be transporting our team and equipment from Boston, MA to Orange County, NY. Ensuring the safety and comfort of our crew and equipment is a priority, as we will be traveling by car, bus, and train. Because we are shooting in a somewhat remote area, we will be providing housing for both our crew and talent. Comfortable and private accommodations for our team are crucial for the happiness and success of the whole production.

Scouting and Locations: 
To create an authentic representation of an upper middle class family from the northeast, we are utilizing real homes and offices, of real people, and the real towns they live in. Multiple homeowners, office managers and town representatives are kindly welcoming us to document our narrative within the context of their communities, and we would like to reimburse them for their help.

Family House
Lindsey and Oscar’s home, although a characteristically “perfect” house with a white picket fence, is not on the inside what it seems on the outside.

Doctor’s Office
Doubling as a pediatricians office and a morgue, this medical space becomes a link connecting Oscars first days to his last.

Town Park
In this public area, we are reminded by the setting of Oscar’s immaturity/innocence/young age while his self-destructive actions present a twisted contrast.

Cemetery
Reflecting themes of death and decay, some of Oscar’s darkest moments in addiction occur in a place where he can find silence and be completely alone.

Crafty:
A well fed crew is a happy and hard working crew! A good plate of food can boost morale on set, as well as keep everyone healthy and energized throughout the shooting process. Meals, snacks, water, coffee/tea, and more are essential to maintaining a positive attitude throughout production.

Post Production: 
We have the footage, now what? Post production is the phase which drives the project home, as everyone’s hard work thus far comes together in the form of what our audience will eventually see. In order to properly work through the editing process, reliable hard drives are key to ensuring safe and secure storage of our files. A passionate and clean score becomes the thread connecting each shot and maintaining the overall mood throughout the piece, and color correction as well as potential VFX can be the final touches in making our dream visual style a reality.

Distribution:  
Once the film is complete, we will be submitting Falling Planes to film festivals across the the country! Submissions to these festivals can be rather costly, and we ask for your support with submission fees as well as travel expenses should we be fortunate enough to receive a nomination or award.


With your generous donation, you can help make our dream a reality. This film is very close to the hearts of those on the team, as highlighting those living in the aftermath of addiction presents a new perspective on the effects of the disease in film. We honor those who show such strength in this face of adversity and grief.

In addition to donating to our fundraiser, sharing our Facebook page, telling your family and friends about this film and following us on social media are amazing ways to support the project further! Visit our Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/FallingPlanesBFA/

From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you.

This GoFundMe campaign would not have been possible without the help of our incredible Marketing Team, Jenn Redington and Hannah Lemke!