Danger Word: a wrap and support from director Julie Dash. Can you help us reach our goal?

Julie Dash

UPDATED 6/5:  We just wrapped our two-day shoot with Frankie Faison and Saoirse Scott on our terrific set in Delancey, New York. We got great footage, and we’ll have a trailer ready soon. Then, last week, a surprise: groundbreaking filmmaker Julie Dash, who wrote, directed and produced the modern classic Daughters of the Dust, joined our list of donors. Imagine our excitement!  Dash is a pioneer in film—Daughters of the Dust was the first full-length film by a black woman with general theatrical release in the United States.

It’s a real boost of confidence that she believes in what we’re trying to do with Danger Word: we want to make an entertaining horror film that also makes a difference.

And we still need your help, too.

As you can see from the thermometer, we’re still a bit shy of our $15,000 goal to finish paying our crew for the shoot.  Not only was this crew of professionals willing to work on our indie, but they braved the cold and rainy weather without complaint during the shoot. Everyone involved, from cast to crew, was forced to be a warrior over Memorial Day weekend.

They had our backs when it mattered—and now we want to have theirs.

Saoirse Scott co-stars as Kendra

Can you help us with even a small donation today?  If so, please DONATE HERE.  Even if you can’t, please share this post with your friends.

To see the behind-the-scenes photo album from the Danger Word shoot, CLICK HERE to go to our Facebook page. (You don’t need a Facebook account to see the pictures!)

Frankie Faison (Grandpa Joe) and Kendra (Saoirse Scott)

Target practice in the woods

Danger Word short film: shooting this weekend! (Can you donate today?)

“Why don’t we stop complaining about Hollywood and make our own film?”

Frankie Faison stars

Weeks ago, it was just a notion.  Now, thanks to you, the dream is real.   Our cast and crew are in rural Delancey, New York to shoot Danger Word over Memorial Day weekend.  Why would a veteran actor like Frankie Faison (“The Wire”) agree to drive himself to our rustic location on his break from shooting Cinemax’s “Banshee” to work on a 15-minute film?  (Hint: It’s not for the pay.)   

To tell a story no one else would tell.

His 12-year-old co-star, Saoirse Scott, has an Irish name that means Freedom. Freedom from stereotypes.  Freedom from limitations.  Freedom from invisibility.

Introducing
Saoirse Scott

Freedom begins with you.  (If you’re ready to help, please click here to learn about our donor gifts and to DONATE NOW.) 

On the surface, Danger Word is a zombie film.  

Based on the YA horror novel Devil’s Wake, it’s about a 13-year-old girl and her grandfather who have survived the zombie plague in his wooded cabin–and how her birthday goes badly awry.  (Learn more about Danger Word on our ABOUT page.)

But it’s mostly about a grandfather’s love for his grandchild, a changing world, the fear that we cannot keep our children and grandchildren safe from the hazards beyond our doors, and the shock of being forced to grow up too soon. Real-world issues many of us know all too well.

Through our donor family of more than 100 friends, readers, horror lovers and independent film lovers, we have raised nearly $10,000 of our shooting day goal of $15,000. 

But we don’t have enough funds to pay our crew what they were promised—and do everything we can to make this film is the best it can be.  (And that’s not counting our post-production costs.)      

Our donors have given as little as $5 and as much as $1,000.  Two of our associate producers are serving in Afghanistan (Muncko Kruize and Timika M. Wilson). One donor is an Oscar nominee (Josh Olson). A Tony Award nominee (Stephanie D’Abruzzo). Program director for the Charlotte Black Film Festival (Tré McGriff). An artist who auctioned her artwork (Candace Hunter).  All of them believe in the same dream.

Can you help us today?

 PLEASE DONATE NOW. 

Our creepy barn interior for Danger Word

Danger Word & “The Black Horror Revolution”: one week to go!

Frankie Faison stars

UPDATED 5/17: Last week, the cinema blog Shadow and Act called Danger Word a part of “The Black Horror Revolution.”  Our donors are diverse friends, family, fans, horror lovers and indie film supporters who believe in the same dream of telling our own stories.  

But the cast and crew will meet on the location A WEEK FROM TODAY, on Friday, May 24th–and we can’t make this film without you.  (Click here to DONATE.)

We’re not wasting  a dime.  Scenes have been trimmed and altered to fit the budget.  Our stars will drive themselves to the wooded upstate New York location.  The crew will stay in communal housing.  All of us are committed to creating the best work we can within our financial reality.  But we still need your  help to reach our goal.  

Danger Word is a short horror film in pre-production, directed by Luchina Fisher (Death in the Family), adapted for the screen by award-winning writers Steven Barnes (“The Outer Limits,” “The New Twilight Zone,” “Andromeda“) and Tananarive Due (My Soul to Keep). This film is about a 13-year-old girl and her grandfather who have survived the zombie plague in his wooded cabin–and how her birthday goes badly awry.    

Danger Word stars veteran film and television actor Frankie Faison (“The Wire,” “Banshee,” The Silence of the Lambs) as Grandpa Joe.  His granddaughter will be played by 12-year-old Saoirse Scott, who was shortlisted to play Rue in The Hunger Games and spent four years on ABC’s “One Life to Live.” She’s a terrific actress and a great addition to o ur cast–and she’ll make our coming-of-age story spring to life.

Introducing
Saoirse Scott

You have the chance to be a part of the black horror revolution as we raise funds for DANGER WORD.   To learn about incentives packages for donors, click on “DONATE”

Here’s Saoirse Scott in a Danger Word promo as she tries to reach Grandpa Joe via Skype.  Although this footage is from an actual Skype call and isn’t a part of the movie, it’s where our story begins.  Help Grandpa Joe rescue Kendra by donating today! 

When is a horror movie more than a horror movie? (Danger Word: 19 days to go!)

When is a horror movie more than a horror movie?

When it’s funded by a community.

When it gives black actors a chance to be heroes and heroines.

When it’s about teaching our children to be strong.

Danger Word began as a dream, but that dream is more and more real every day.  With only 19 days before the shoot, it’s time to buy plane tickets, put down deposits and meet contractual obligations.  And we’re not even halfway to our shooting day goal!  But we have faith.

In Harlem, when tenants were short on the month’s rent, they used to hold Rent Parties with food and entertainment to help make ends meet.  The Danger Word family of supporters is holding its own rent party—with donors giving as little as a dollar just be to be a part of our project…and some unexpected surprises.

Chlee Collage (Artist: Candace Hunter)

Artist Candace Hunter, currently on exhibition at the famed DuSable Museum of African-American History in Chicago, has offered this original artwork for auction to raise money for Danger Word. (Click this link to eBay to learn more.) 

Yes, it’s like that.

Because Danger Word isn’t just a horror movie—it’s about taking control of our images on the screen, taking control of our art, and creating a road map to help our children follow their own dreams.

If this is the first you’ve heard about Danger Word, please check out the About page, our Cast and Crew, and learn more about this unique project.

If you’ve been waiting for the right moment to donate, this is it.  Please visit our DONATE page and learn about packages for donors—including a chance to be a zombie.

Will Danger Word be scary?  You bet!  If you watched the above promo video with talented young actress Saoirse Scott (Kendra) recorded from Skype, you got just a taste of the peril our young protagonist is facing.

But sometimes a horror movie is about so much more.

Articles about Danger Word:

From Shadow & Act (Indiewire): “Authors Tananarive Due and Steven Barnes Team up for Horror Short ‘Danger Word’ (fundraising)”

From ComicMix: “Eulogy for the Sacrificial Negro“

Danger Word: a short film (22 days to go!)

Meet Kendra (12-year-old actress Saoirse Scott)

Kendra is having a bad day.  A very bad day.  (Watch the video to see why.)

But remember: this is not actual footage from Danger Word, which will be shot over Memorial Day weekend in rural New York.  This is a simulated Skype call between Kendra and her Grandpa Joe, so you won’t see the hand of the top-notch production crew that will be on the set.  But it’s a prequel/promo that sets up our story and gives you a quick glimpse of our dynamic young actress.  Saoirse Scott, formerly of “One Life to Live,” will co-star in our film opposite veteran Frankie Faison (The Silence of the Lambs, “The Wire,” “Banshee”).

Frankie Faison (Grandpa Joe)

We have raised more than $6,000 toward our production costs, but we need you to reach our goal of $15,000.  As you’ll see from our Donor page, we have come a mighty long way, but we still have a mighty long way to go.  (After we shoot, we’ll have a separate campaign for post-production–but that won’t cost as much.)

This website has a lot to offer, so spend some time here and get to know our project.  Check out our Cast & Crew and our About pages to learn more.  We’re industry professionals who want to make movies, and we decided to make this one ourselves.  It’s just the first step, we hope, toward a feature.

And we’re giving a talented young actress her chance to shine.

Click here to DONATE.

Articles about Danger Word:

From Shadow & Act (Indiewire): “Authors Tananarive Due and Steven Barnes Team up for Horror Short ‘Danger Word’ (fundraising)”

From ComicMix: “Eulogy for the Sacrificial Negro“