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Filleted
TYPE: Narrative Short
GENRE: Drama
STATUS: Pre-Production
LOGLINE
A young corrections officer must choose between acquiring a condemned inmate’s last meal or preserving his relationship with his estranged son in the form of a birthday present -- a Guppy.
SYNOPSIS
Carson, a corrections officer, races to procure a fish sandwich for a death row inmate's last meal under the guidance of fiery nun Sister Syl. But at the gas station eatery, Carson crumbles beneath the weight of his task: the cook slow-walks making the meal, her grandson torments a sickly bait fish, and his guilt mounts as he misses his estranged son's 5th birthday. In the end, Carson is forced to choose between what can still be saved— a man's final wish, his son’s birthday, and a dying fish.
ARTISTIC STATEMENT
While interviewing death row inmates at Louisiana State Penitentiary, I discovered the emotional struggles of visitors torn between prioritizing incarcerated loved ones or family outside. Filleted explores this expectation-laden terrain between duty and selfishness, sacrifice and choice, and who we choose to fail. Carson struggles with the complexity of right and wrong in the wake of unbreakable systems, redefining integrity, the hidden cost of authority, and how we use sacrifice as a shield.
KEY CREW
Savannah 'Galore' Gisleson - Writer / Director
Savannah is a filmmaker from New Orleans, LA. Her experience during Hurricane Katrina has compelled her to tell stories about destruction, erasure, and transcendence in the wake of collapsed social contracts. But inspired by Screwball comedies, genre films, and the debauchery of her home city, she explores the humor and humanity in how those left behind pick up the pieces.
Savannah’s work has been supported by The Austin Film Festival, The Atlanta Film Festival, The Riverrun International Film Festival, among others. Her first no-budget feature won The Audience Award at the 2021 Portland International Film Festival before securing international distribution.
She is an Alex Sichel Fellow at Columbia University, co-founder of Harum Scarum Pictures, and currently works as a television writer and development associate.
Samantha Lori Glass - Producer
Samantha is a Creative Producer based in New York and has been working in the film industry for five years. A recent graduate of the MFA Film Creative Producing Program at Columbia University, Samantha's love for film stems from the classics, such as “The Umbrellas of Cherbourg” and “Strangers on a Train.” She worked as a producer's assistant on "The Shallow Tale of a Writer Who Decided to Write About a Serial Killer," written & directed by Tolga Karacelik, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. At Columbia, she produced over 15 short films in and out of the program, including her thesis film "The Ballad of Fred Fort," was awarded the Safety for Sarah Film Grant, and premiered at the Montclair Film Festival. Samantha was recently awarded the Michael Hausman/Buffalo Mike Filmhaus Foundation Award for producing at the Columbia University Film Festival. She most recently worked ?on "Song Sung Blue," "Zero Day," and "A Man with the Bag."
Cameron Clay - Editor
Cameron Clay is a filmmaker and editor from Prince George’s County, MD. His work is rooted in the complex dynamics between Black men. Drawing from the long tradition of slow cinema, he examines the subtleties of communication, performed masculinity, and fraternal bonds.
His work has been featured in Filmmaker Magazine, Blackstar Film Festival, Philadelphia Film Festival, and Maryland Film Festival. He is a Lazaroff Screenwriting Award and Motion Picture Award recipient.
Cameron is a Directing MFA candidate and Milos Forman Fellow at Columbia University.
J Alejandro Moreno - Director of Photography
Alejandro is a Cuban/Honduran American cinematographer, based in New Orleans, LA. Coming from a background in documentary and independent features, Alejandro’s lens finds beauty in naturalism and minimalism.
Recent documentary work includes TURNAROUND (dir. Abe Felix, in production), A KING LIKE ME (dir. Matthew O. Henderson, SXSW24), and HOLDING BODIES: AFTER ANGOLA (dir. Milo Daemgen, Independent Lens 2024). He lensed Tank and the Bangas' music video for "Communion in My Cup", and his contributions to "For Us: Katie Darling" earned him a Reed Award in 2023 for "Best Online Video.”
Madeline Henderson - Production Designer
Madeline Henderson is a production designer, set decorator, animation colorist and visual artist based in New York, NY. She is passionate about intentional creation and design that breathes life into the stories we tell and the characters that live in them.
Since moving to New York, they have worked on various shorts, feature films and tv shows as a production designer or as a member of the art/set dec department. In 2024 they worked as an art/set dec PA onboard the first season of Crutch — a live studio audience sitcom — shot at Kaufman Astoria Studios.
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