Dear Friends,

Some of you know that I’m going to direct my first feature film based on an original screenplay that I wrote last year. Production starts in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, in three weeks! One way or another, the film is getting made. I’ve begun hiring crew; the cast is almost entirely in place; the final locations are being hunted down.

One of my goals is to add to the local economy, hiring as many Cambodian folks for both crew and talent as possible, while paying a fair wage. I’m also hiring a professional local film crew. I’ll also need to pay for the use of a few key locations.

As of now, I’m using some of my retirement savings to pay for everything. Now that we’re in the thick of pre-production, costs are running a bit higher than I was hoping. Hence, this fund raiser.

But first: a few words about the movie itself. It’s an indie crime drama titled Black Sheep.

The story follows a retired American homicide detective and a struggling travel vlogger whose lives intersect after a popular online figure disappears. What begins as curiosity turns into something far more personal, pulling them into a world they don’t fully understand. Black Sheep is a character-driven thriller, shot on location in Phnom Penh.

Let me add that this is also a love song to Phnom Penh and to the friends I've met here. I told a good friend recently that you reach a certain point in your life when you start thinking your best years are already behind you, and yet here I am, sixty years old, in a city nine thousand miles from home, and I'm having one of the best years of my life, thanks to the friendships and to this warm, beautiful, and sometimes unruly city.

My goal is to submit the film to major festivals, where this kind of story has the best chance to find its audience.

I’m hoping to raise $10,000, which will adequately cover necessary expenses without having to cut corners. Any amount raised will be helpful.

This would be a donation, not an investment, but I want to recognize the people who help make the film possible.

Support Levels:

$25-$99 – “Thank you” credit on our media platforms

$100-$999 – Name in end credits

$1000-$4900 – “Special Thanks” credit

$5000-$9999 – Associate Producer credit

$10,000+ – Executive Producer credit

Every dollar goes directly into production—paying cast and crew, securing locations, and finishing the film properly.

If you want to support independent filmmaking, I’d be grateful to have you aboard.