fiscal sponsorship
Paramours
TYPE: Narrative Feature
GENRE: Drama
STATUS: Development
LOGLINE
A unique predicament erupts between best friends, one gay and one straight, as their deeply co-dependent relationship splinters when a woman comes between them.
SYNOPSIS
Despite the freedom of their seemingly autonomous single lives, best friends Elliot and Aaron prefer being with each other. They embark on making a film together. They cast Di, who impresses them but shifts their dynamic. Before the film falls apart, Aaron, Elliot, and Di must face the lies they have been telling and the truths they have been running from. Or else, not only will the film fall apart, so will their love for each other.
ARTISTIC STATEMENT
The two of us, Matt and Matt, began working on the first draft of this script in 2018, just weeks after we graduated from our MFA programs. Having already lived together for five years (now ten!), and with our ambitions set on making independent films, this project is most personal to us. Inspired by our own long term relationship as roommates, best friends, and as some call us, platonic lovers, this script explores romance, friendship, love, loyalty, and codependency; and how complicated these factors can be in situations of ‘non-traditional’ love. When Aaron and Elliot, our two male protagonists, decide to produce their first feature film together, the beautiful relationship they’ve cultivated suddenly enters a new, unknown realm. And when both are immediately struck by the woman they cast as their lead actress, Di, they are forced to confront the true nature of their relationship.
KEY CREW
Matt Consalvo - Writer/Actor/Producer
Matt Consalvo is a filmmaker based in NYC and originally hails from Brookfield, CT. He has a BA in International Studies from Boston College and an MFA in Drama from Columbia University. Current acting credits include: Blue Bloods, Hightown, and Adam & the Water, which he also serves as a producer on. His first feature script, Translation, was optioned to LA-based Upgrade Productions with a tentative shoot in Mexico City for 2024 and 2025.
Matthew Appleby - Writer/Actor/Producer
Matthew Appleby is a director, writer, actor, and producer based in Brooklyn, NY. His debut feature film, Adam & the Water (2022), premiered at the Washington DC Independent Film Festival, where it won the “Best of Fest” Award. The film continued on to win “Best Micro-Budget Feature” at the Paris Independent Film Festival and “Best Feature: Romantic Drama” at the Manhattan Film Festival, where it was selected as the closing night film. Adam & the Water was released across major VOD platforms (Amazon Prime, AppleTV) in April 2023 via distributor Freestyle Digital Media. Raised in Silver Spring, MD, Matthew holds a BA from Boston College in international relations and theater, and an MFA in acting from the Actors Studio Drama School at Pace University.
Eric Schleicher - Director of Photography
Eric Schleicher is a Brooklyn-based Director of Photography. His naturalistic style often blurs the lines between documentary and fiction. His shorts have been featured by The New Yorker, Comedy Central, Short of the Week, NoBudge and received multiple Vimeo Staff Picks. His films include the feature documentary, A House Is Not A Disco(SXSW 2024) and Feature Narrative, Cicada (Strand Releasing, BFI 2020, Outfest 2020).
Brian J. Smith - Associate Producer
Brian Smith is a Texas native and NYC based actor best known for his role as ‘Will Gorski’ in the Wachowski’s hit Netflix series, "Sense8". He’s been nominated for Tony and Olivier Awards for his work on stage both on Broadway and London’s West End. Smith's documentary directorial debut, A House Is Not A Disco, premiered in 2024 at SXSW and is currently slated to play at the Sarasota, Inside Out, and NewFest Film Festivals.
Kieran Altmann - Producer
Kieran Altmann is an Independent Spirit Award winning Australian-born, New York-based producer for Film, TV, & New Media. He produced the feature films Shiva Baby (SXSW ’20, TIFF ’20), distributed by Utopia Films, and Dating & New York (Tribeca ’21), distributed by IFC Films. In addition to being awarded the 2022 John Cassavetes Award at the Independent Spirit Awards, Shiva Baby was nominated for two 2021 Gotham Awards and was named one of 2021's Top 10 Independent Films by the National Board of Review. In 2022, Kieran produced 20th Digital Studio’s TICKS, directed by Sam Max and starring Brigette Lundy-Paine. The project premiered on Hulu in October of 2022 as part of Hulu's Bite Size Halloween digital series, the project was also programmed at the Palm Spring International Short Fest and Newfest 2023. Kieran is currently developing the half hour television series Bugged alongside producing partner Katie Schiller, and Matt Consalvo and Matthew Appleby’s Paramour. Also an experienced commercial producer, Kieran has produced spots for work clients such as Excedrin, Milkbone, State Farm, and Mastercard.
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