THE KOOKS - student short film by Jessie Keogh

Hello! My name is Jessie Keogh, I am a Manhattan based writer/director, production designer, and actor attending The New School for Screen Studies. Having lived across 3 different countries and 6 cities, I have found nothing more beautiful than to make films about the people and ideas I’ve stumbled upon along the way. I have a passion for telling fictional narrative stories that explore the human condition and womanhood in fantastical ways.

I am fundraising for a short film project that doubles as one for passion and for my Directing course at The New School. I am the writer, director, production designer and co-producer of The Kooks, co-producing alongside my long-time partner Colin Eckardt. The Kooks is a fantastical thriller that explores suppressed female sexuality and the problems of un-confronted topics in relationships in a campy and surrealist way. This project is being taken on my a wonderful cast and crew that are all young passionate artists. I intend to submit The Kooks to festivals and have release it as my debut professional short film.

The Kooks is the child of all of my coming of age influences - from reading Roald Dahl to experiencing a Rocky Horror show, and of course, David Bowie’s music - the film's namesake being from Bowie's 1971 song "Kooks". As a writer, director, and production designer I wanted to incorporate my love for design and vintage aesthetics along with the joy of campiness - pulling from my own wacky dreams and self-realizations I intend to explore complex ideas in the most outrageously beautiful way.

My mission for this film is to first and foremost to facilitate a project that brings together a breath of creative and passionate individuals - opening the space for not just my creativity and ideas, but the entire cast and crew's to flow freely, mixing together to make some movie magic! I want this project to be a space of love and light that carries to the completed project - and from then on out touching each and every viewer with the movie magic the cast and crew brewed up.

I want to create a project that hopefully ignites a thrill and excitement in people that prompts discussions of any kind. I want to evoke thought and passion in the viewers. The arts have always been a space for thought and introspection and I want to find my way to people with fantastical visuals and challenging characters.

I cannot even begin to express the joy and excitement this project has already brought me and I am feeling so much gratitude for the help from my family, friends, and teachers.

The funds raised will go towards the stunning production design, nourishing my cast and crew, and payment for my wonderful cast and crew.

If you can find any amount to donate it would help me immensely to create something timeless and beautiful. It would simply mean the world to me.

With much love and gratitude,

Jessie Keogh