fiscal sponsorship
The American Can
TYPE: Narrative Feature
GENRE: Drama
STATUS: Pre-Production
LOGLINE
Based on actual events in the chaotic aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, a recon Marine veteran, John Keller, navigates haunted memories serving in Iraq while risking his life for the safety and rescue of over 200 people trapped in his building during one of the greatest natural disasters in American history.
SYNOPSIS
Based on an epic true story, Marine John Keller barely gets by with his dog and tortured memories of Iraq when Hurricane Katrina strikes New Orleans. Gruff and despondent, he wants to be left alone. But then the levees breach and the city is underwater. Outsiders, low income citizens, arrive seeking refuge, but it's made clear that the are not wanted at “The Can”. With each day and no rescue in sight, the growing pressure of tensions rise and it becomes a different war - a protest out of control - and the clock is ticking.
ARTISTIC STATEMENT
The creative vision of the film is to disrupt the biased singular lens of Hurricane Katrina depicted by the media, into an authentic and immersive experience. Using a lens filtered through trauma and the environment, the journey of a three-dimensional reluctant hero (Keller), is witnessed from multiple perspectives: The Lens of the Can (Claustrophobic) The Lens of the City (Surreal) The Lens of the Media (Voyeuristic). The overall look is a nostalgic 16mm feel combining the colorful vibrancy of New Orleans before the storm, and the bleached bypass apocalypse of a submerged city.
KEY CREW
Adetoro Makinde - Writer | Director | Producer
A first-generation Nigerian-American, Adetoro Makinde is an award-winning filmmaker, and graduate of Georgetown University and Duke Ellington School of the Arts. Founder of Backdoor Films and its social impact arm, Hyphenate Africa, she's produced multiple Sundance premiered with a diverse portfolio of projects spanning from the Magnolia acquired "A Good Day to Be Black & Sexy", Golden Globe nominated (THE TALE) to social impact-focused narratives (THE BOY WHO HARNESSED THE WIND) and documentaries (STRUGGLE: THE LIFE AND LOST ART OF SZUKALSKI) with HBO, Participant Media, Netflix and Leonardo DiCaprio respectively.
Noted by IMDBPro as a “2022 Producer To Watch", among her recent honors are the 2024 Incubator for Executive Leaders of Color and 2022 Women's Fund by the New York Foundation for the Arts and the NYC Mayor’s Office for Entertainment and Media. Additional fellowships include Film Independent Project Involve, Facebook SEEN Filmmaker, the Blackhouse Foundation Multicultural Producers Lab, Made in NY, Kodak Emerging Filmmaker and grants from Ford Foundation, IFP | NYSCA, and HBO Corporate and Social Responsibility.
She is current President and Co-Founder of Women Independent Producers, as well as the former Chair of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for Film Fatales and Program Director of the USC School of Cinematic Arts | Netflix Africa Partnership Program.
Connect With The Filmmakers:
ACCOLADES
Help promote my fundraising campaign
Put our donation widget on your website
The Gotham Film & Media Institute is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to finding, developing and celebrating the people and projects that shape the future of story.