Who am I?

My name is Gwennyth Paulson, and I'm a film student at the University of Michigan. This is my last project that I'm making before I graduate in May, and it's my most ambitious by far. We've hired a full cast and crew that we're compensating through food, lodging, gas, and good times. The film tackles self-worth, imposter syndrome, and body image through a plus-size protagonist in the music industry. It challenges the return of thinness in pop culture, while punk and drag serve as subversive art forms offering space for those told to shrink—physically, vocally, and emotionally.

Follow the Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stagefrightshort?igsh=MTBmd25zdXE2eGgwNQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr

What's the story?

Within our narrative, we meet Diamond, a college dropout who has always felt like she took up too much space. As a plus size woman, the world around her has told her to be smaller and with a suffocating family life, she learned that in order to survive she needed to put her needs on the back burner. Inside of Diamond’s head is a stage, and there we will see her transform as she moves through the narrative. Navigating her struggles alongside the drag world, she’s shown what self love can and should look like, but she has never been able to embody it herself. So, when up-incoming punk rock band Final Warning puts out a local guitarist call in the midst of a high profile record deal, Diamond must learn to step into her most confident self– the one we’ve been acquainted with in the liminal space of her brain– if she wants to be able to achieve her dreams. To sweeten the deal, the promise of the band’s record deal will ensure that Diamond can support herself and her mother through financial hardships.

However, Diamond doesn't believe in her abilities as a guitarist, even though her best friend, Gracie, knows what she's capable of. Gracie is a drag king, and using her connections within the community, she pulls some strings to get Diamond an audition. What follows is Diamond's inner panic as she's thrust out of her comfort zone and learns that in order to get what she wants, she has to star taking up space.

Why do we need money?

The money we're asking for will go towards feeding our cast and crew, paying for hotel rooms, reimbursing folks for driving to set (sometimes from the other side of the state), and helping to pay the fees to submit to film festivals. We already have a total of $1300 from two university grants and some of my own donated funds. However, our total budget comes to $3,335, so any money donated will be money I don't have to take from the pockets of myself and the generous people working on the film.

Here's a link to our budget: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1kInZAGpWMMPAsplR6dAmvBAyvk-9TGMqGpZBRZqmBZw/edit?usp=sharing

What do you get?

Anyone who donates to this project will receive updates of the project's progress through production, post-production, and the festival circuits. Additionally, they will be invited to a private screening upon the film's completion, and be featured in the 'Special Thanks' section of the credits.

*2nd photo is of one of the set locations, 3rd photo is of me on a different set, 4th photo is of the costume designer for 'Stage Fright'