fiscal sponsorship
East Of Hollywood
TYPE: Narrative Short
GENRE: Drama
STATUS: Pre-Production
LOGLINE
In the underbelly of Hollywood, a down-and-out street performer, convinced he's Marilyn Monroe, gathers a crew of local misfits to help produce her grand performance.
SYNOPSIS
Marilyn needs three things: a motel room to rehearse, a white dress, and a producer to finance the former two.
Tonight is Marilyn's big night: it's her big show on Hollywood Boulevard. She's been talking about it for a long time but has irresponsibly procrastinated. She finds herself with a few hours to get ready for her grand performance.
The spectacle is in the streets as Marilyn takes us from abandoned buildings to run-down motels, from neglected alleyways to empty cafes. Marilyn and her motley posse confront the harsh realities in the land of dreams.
ARTISTIC STATEMENT
I arrived in LA as a young artist with a big dream, only to realize that the glitzy Hollywood facade was just that - a facade. Walking out of my apartment, I saw my neighbors living in poverty and despair. The Hollywood Dream felt not only out of reach, but perversely mocking, its inaccessibility underscored by the plight of those around me.
Hollywood sells us a dream, an often unattainable image, and most of us chase it; yet many are left behind. In a time marked by acute national division and pervasive loneliness, this film aspires to rekindle a sense of hope, regardless of the price. Marilyn’s tenacity emerges as a beacon of optimism amidst a world often characterized by indifference. At its core, it's a film about chasing dreams and remaining resilient, it reminds us that we can always rise again.
KEY CREW
Ben Segal - Writer / Director
Ben is an Israeli-American writer-director. Having earned his B.A. at NYU's Gallatin School of Individualized Study, Ben returned to his roots to study an M.F.A. in Directing and Screenwriting at Tel Aviv University's Steve Tisch School of Film and Television. His most recent film, ABC // AN AMERICAN RENDEZ-VOUS IN TEL AVIV, written and directed in three languages, was accepted to Montreal Independent Film Festival, Roma Prisma Awards, and was a semi-finalist at New York Indie Shorts and Venezia Shorts. He currently lives in East Hollywood, Los Angeles.
Audrey Biche - Cinematographer / DoP
Audrey is a French cinematographer, raised between France, Spain, China, and the Caribbean, based in Los Angeles. She attended the American Film Institute Conservatory as a Fulbright/Georges Lurcy Scholar and is the recipient of an ASC Vision mentorship. Shooting on both film and digital, Audrey has worked on narrative films as well as documentaries throughout France, Italy, Kenya, Bulgaria, and the USA. Her films have played at notable film festivals such as Palm Springs, Zagreb Film Festival, Raindance, and Urbanworld.
Santi Naidoo - Producer
Santi Naidoo is a South African creative producer based in Los Angeles. She is a graduate of the American Film Institute Conservatory producing program and currently works in production at Submarine Entertainment. Santi holds a triple major BA from the University of Cape Town and a postgraduate degree in Film and Television Studies. Her AFI Thesis film, MIS-ALIGNMENT, is currently doing an international festival circuit. Her projects have been featured at the Pan African Film & Arts Festival, Palm Springs ShortFest, and Fixion Fest. Santi is passionate about creating spaces for underrepresented and marginalized filmmakers.
Zach Shields - Executive Producer
Zach is a multi-hyphenated filmmaker, musician, writer-director. He co-wrote and directed second unit for cult classic film KRAMPUS and blockbuster GODZILLA: KING OF THE MONSTERS. He was executive producer on both and writer on the sequel GODZILLA vs KONG. Over the past decade, Zach directed the renowned multimedia projects DEAD MAN’S BONES with Ryan Gosling, SF Short Jury Prize-winning CRAGGIO, starring Zach Cregger and Addison Timlin, and I DON’T WANT TO BE YOUR LOVE, starring Jared Harris and Kelli Garner. Zach has also worked with director Alma Har’el as Co-EP on the Natalie Portman Apple+ series, LADY IN THE LAKE.
Dasha Gladkov - Producer
Dasha is a born and bred Los Angeles producer and creative. She started her film production journey at The New School, studying film and creative entrepreneurship. Since then, she’s Produced and AD’d on feature films, short films, and music videos. Outside of film, she is a creative producer for artists and brands. Her recent work includes field producing for EDC and event photography for Coachella.
Jo Hsu - Producer
Jo Hsu is a Los Angeles-based producer. She recently graduated from the American Film Institute's Producing Program in 2023. She also has a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration from National Taiwan University. Jo entered the Taiwan film industry in 2017 on the production side, progressing through roles such as script supervisor and director, finally landing herself as a writer/producer.
Jo has taken part in films such as THE BULLFIGHTER, THE QINGMING KID, and VOCÊ MEANS YOU, which have been selected to prestigious film festivals such as The Palm Springs International ShortFest and LA Shorts.
Landon Liboiron - Marilyn
Landon Liboiron is a Canadian-born actor from the prairies of Alberta having a career in both film and television. Such television projects include the Netflix series HEMLOCK GROVE and FRONTIER. In more recent years, he has worked on the independent films COME TRUE and HANDS THAT BIND, and also delved into creating his own work after writing and directing two short films. He currently resides in Los Angeles.
Avaia “Zee” - Gracie
Avaia is an East Hollywood resident and actor. This will be her true acting debut.
Ted Monte - Elvis
Theodore Mark Monte grew up on a small ranch outside of Denver, Colorado. He graduated from Colorado State University and moved to New York City to study acting with renowned acting coach Phil Gushee. In 1991, Ted was cast in his first feature film as an FBI agent in Jonathan Demme's SILENCE OF THE LAMBS.
Ted has peppered his work with television appearances in WESTWORLD, THE OFFER, MERLOSE PLACE, THE LAIR, and more. Ted has just wrapped two independent films: ABNER, THE INVISIBLE DOG and the 3rd in a trilogy of Steampunk movies where he plays the lead in MELANIE'S LOCKET.
Connect With The Filmmakers:
$5,970
$15,000
It's tax deductible!
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.