Stars - Liann Downs' Senior Thesis Film

Synopsis

Stars explores grief and dealing with parent mortality through a young child's imaginative perspective. The story focuses on a 9-year-old girl, Jane. She imagines her mom, Eliza, is an astronaut going on a space mission while in reality her mother has terminal cancer. Eliza encourages Jane’s imagination while her father, Mark, is against it.

I want to make this short film because it's based on my personal experience of when my mom was diagnosed with cancer (they caught it super early and she’s been in remission for a long time now), and how even though she survived, it triggered a universal fear of losing a parent. I hope that people can resonate and relate with this story, even if they have not experienced it personally. Currently in Hollywood, there are lots of sequels to previously done films and not many films are coming out that have new or original ideas. Many films that have new things to say are often being left out of the mainstream.

About Me

Hi, my name is Liann Downs and I am a rising senior pursuing a B.F.A in Film at Syracuse University. I am also in the Renée Crown Honors program and have a minor in business. Sophomore year, I received a VPA internal grant for my film What We Mean To Each Other. Last semester I studied abroad in Prague at FAMU where I co-directed and co-wrote alongside Katie Pearcy, The Feather Pillow, a film shot on 35mm. Now, I am super excited to be in pre-production for my film and honors thesis, Stars.

Allocation of Funds

All the funds raised through GoFundMe will be used to:

I am so excited to make this project! Even if you can’t donate feel free to follow along on the journey on instagram: @stars.shortfilm.2025 Thank you so much!