The Waltz June Update

I’m exhausted. We’ve not even started in earnest in building out this campaign.

Today marks the end of Out on Film’s Queer Filmmaker’s Fund, and the transition to focusing only on The Waltz. I’m apologizing in advance for the flurry of activity you’re about to see, but … if you’ve seen The Duchess and you know that moment at the top of the movie where I hike up my skirt to get in the car after trying to get in the car all pretty? It’s a hiking of the skirt kinda moment (remind me to make that a gif).

After the last year of taking the concept to production companies, trying to get sales agents, etc. It’s come down to this. And our team tried in earnest, they really did. It’s … a number of factors working against us that if you’re not industry it may bore you with the way the sausage is made but it comes down to numbers and sales. We have a very little wiggle room budget of $350K for just prepro- and production. We’d still need to raise another $150K for post, but there are ways we can get there once we have the raw footage. It’s getting the footage. It’s … a lot.

And, look, over the last three weeks we’ve been building out a team. This part does excite me a bit, but we’re … well we’re treating this as a quasi-political campaign. Trans issues and queer issues are insanely poltiical for some reason. And this is a feature film about a trans woman who wants to learn how to dance. Innocuous enough, but most trans lives are incredibly mundane. And yet, somehow it’s politicized. So, we’re leaning into it. Heavily.

We’ve brought on a political strategist, fundraiser, and consultant to help advise us on this campaing. He brought out “the rolodex” where we go through and put in the emails of anyone we’ve ever met. EVER. I also joked to him that film people and politicians are constantly needing to raise money, so him leaving the political world for the film world isn’t really that much of a shift.

We’ve brought on a social media manager. They’re fantastic. Excited to work with them.

We are bringing on volunteers, and campaign surrogates who can advocate for the film (and also trans issues) on our behalf. We’re seeking volunteers from all over the country (volunteer.thewaltzfilm.com) We are doing our best to build out community support, and if we pull this off? If we’re able to crowdsource this movie ourselves? It will be a huge feat. It will be my doctorate in filmmaking.

It means getting to make the movie how we want to, truly independent. Without caveats or strings attached. Or, even more terrifying, loans that need to be paid back.

I’m terrified, because as we started getting the writing on the wall (about the same time the strike occurred) we were waiting to hear back from possible sales agents in Cannes. And we started exploring the possibility of crowdfunding. It’s terrifying to me. I’ve done enough crowdfunding campaigns to know they are life consuming. There’s a constant feeling of being underwater. Of … will this campaign be successful. And it’s a tall order we’re asking from our community, as so many of us are tightening our belts and so unsure of the future. Which is why this story feels important. As serious as these times are, trans joy truly is resistance. Thriving in spite of circumstances. And more importantly, showcasing to those following in our footsteps, our youth, that though it may seem incredibly dark and scary right now, hope and joy are still possible. And to focus on those as the light out of the tunnel.

When we first started discussing the reality of needing to turn to our community, I told the team I wanted to bring on someone to run this campaign. There is a shit ton on my plate, including three major family issues, a dog who may or may not be dying, bankruptcy, and being an auditioning and working actor in addition to juggling different gigs to pay the bills. But we were up against a time crunch. And, there are certain things I’m just going to have to hike up my skirt and get done if we want to get this movie made. And we will. We are going to film come September. We are going to film, and we are going to get this film edited and released next year in time to coincide with the thick of the 2024 presidential campaign, to provide a narrative around the trans issues that seem to already be creeping into debates amongst politicians (remember kids, rights are never up for debate. )

We’re planning an invasion, really. An invasion of trans joy. And it begins with a commercial campaign, with some cans we’ve ordered asking people to “grab a can of trans joy.” I’m excited about this part of the campaign. We’re inviting members of our trans, queer, and non-binary community to grab a can, and tape a testimonial or two about any and everything related to being trans. But definitely a moment of trans joy! We’re planning on some commercials shot in homage to famous soft drink commercials.

Then, the pivot to an editorial and sartorial campaign. A magazine, with two incredible Atlanta photographers in the works and a dazzling array of clothes on their way now to do photo spreads. As well as,again, inviting the community. I've sent out requests to others for 250-500 word essays to put together in the next magazine issue of Court Circular.

And the last pivot, into politics. I’m running to be your next Duchess, and leading lady. A series of campaign style videos to coincide with the start of the political campaigning that so many of us are already sick of.

This is all in addition to a slew of in person events and appearances we’re planning, so that we can meet as much of our potential audience in person as we can.

You see why I’m scared and nervous? It’s a massive undertaking. It feels like a tightrope. I'm scared, but I’m also cautiously optimistic, because I think in this conversation we’re all having about the strike and the future of entertainment - the future of movies and shows are in our hands. We have the means to make professional and quality movies. In fact, our team is composed of a Sundance fellow and an Emmy award winning cinematographer. Our creative team and crew are more than capable (no matter how many times we’ve been told our team is “too green”, there’s a real bias against Atlanta artists but that’s for another diatribe).

If we can rally you, our community, in supporting us in a number of ways (Telling a friend, following our campaign, subscribing to our newsletter)then we may have a chance of pulling this off!