SAUDADE- Low Budget Episodic Series

Saudade is a Portuguese folk word that means “a deep emotional state of melancholic longing for a person or thing that is absent”. This story is an episodic series that delves into the lives of best friends Lorenzo, Calvin, Lee, and Adam, and how they cope with major loss a year out. Each episode follows a different boy- how their lives intertwine, how they live day-to-day, and how they support each other.

Saudade is a low-budget non-union series. Our goal is to raise 1,300 dollars, which will go towards paying for locations, props, and catering.

The Team:

Kielan Ellis is a writer, producer, director, and award-winning editor from Toronto, Canada. He is a co-founder of 512RED, an independent film production company. He has directed three feature films and produced over twenty shorts. His most recent feature film, Will and Ben Versus Time, screened at the Brooklyn Science Fiction Film Festival.

Ben Jeffries is a writer, producer, director, and actor from Toronto, Canada. He is another co-founder of 512RED and half of Hearts and Spades. Ben made his film festival debut in Will and Ben Versus Time playing one of the titular characters, which he also helped write. Ben graduated from the Stella Adler Acting Conservatory in New York City last summer.

McKenna Grantier is primarily an actor, and this is her first time writing, producing, and directing something for the screen. She is from Staunton, Virginia, and moved to Toronto in January. She graduated from the College of William and Mary and the Stella Adler Acting Conservatory. She has acted in various shorts and two feature-length films, one of which (Sinners) will be coming out at the beginning of next year.