Sk8er Boy

WELCOME TO THE WORLD OF SK8ER BOY:
Thank you for viewing our project. We’ll try to give you a much information as we can about our independent short film: Sk8er Boy! We’ll tell you more about the story, the cast and crew and about how you can help us to get this special story on screen.

THE FILM:
Sk8er Boy is a family drama about a teenage boy who lives in the South Wales Valleys.

Geraint turns sixteen today, but the event is not as sweet as he imagined. All he wants in the world is a skateboard, but his mother can’t afford it. Her infrequent domestic odd jobs barely help her to make ends meet. With a pound in his pocket, he stomps off to the town centre where he attempts to buy a lottery ticket. His debut into the world of gambling pays off. He wins just enough to buy the skateboard he drools over every day in the window of the neighbourhood jumble shop. He eagerly hands his money over to the opportunistic shop owner, Mr Evans, who treats Geraint with scant courtesy. It prompts Geraint to do something that would give him far more satisfaction than a skateboard ever could…

THE TEAM
Producer:
Fenna Kooijmans comes to the world of film with a background in communications. The Dutch producer has worked as a marketing manager at an online video production company. In Cardiff, Fenna has been involved within several short film productions. She was the Production Manager on Daddy's Garden and is now producing her first short with Sk8er Boy.

Director:
This is Miguela Gonzalez’s third short film this year. Her first film, a pithy 16mm horror called Hangman, is due to be entered into film festivals in the coming year. Daddy's Garden, her first venture on a RedOne camera, is currently in postproduction. She has a background in theatre, journalism and as a film reviewer and has been involved in productions on three continents.

More than fifty people worked on Daddy’s Garden with Miguela and Fenna. They’re hoping that, with your help, they’ll be able to make Sk8er Boy an equally elaborate and worthy project.

The main actors:
Gareth Clark is a veteran stage actor with Hijinx Theatre. He started acting nearly a decade ago with Odyssey Theatre, a community theatre group run by Hijinx. He made his debut professional performance in 2008 in Full Circle. His most recent production, Old Hands, has just finished touring. He’s looking forward to working on Sk8ter Boy, which will be his second short film.

Gaynor Lougher co-founded Hijinx Theatre and created Odyssey Theatre. As the Artistic Director, her boundless talent , drive and committment has facilitated the careers of and inspired several performers with learning disabilities. With the creation of the Unity Festival, held every summer at the Wales Millennium Centre, Gaynor has created a world stage for all-inclusive performances and audiences.

HOW CAN YOU HELP?
By financially supporting the project you will become a partner with Sk8er Boy!

You can support Sk8er Boy by following a few simple steps. Start by creating your own free Sponsume account. It’s easy, we promise!

Once you are a member of the crowdfunding group, check out our great reward levels which you can find on the right of this page. You can support Sk8er Boy with as little as a tenner (£10), but more is always welcome. :-) Every little bit counts!

After making your donation you will officially become a partner on the Sk8er Boy project! Along the way you will receive updates about the film, right through to its completion.

WHY DO WE NEED YOUR HELP?
There are lots of costs involved in making a film. We already covered quite a bit of the costs with our own personal funds.

We’ve secured a cracking Director of Photography with a Red One camera who has several successful films on his record. The Red One camera creates fantastic Hollywood-level films. In fact, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides was filmed on a RED!

We’d like to get the best lenses for this camera and the best grip equipment we can, in order to do justice to the script. We’d also like to ensure our art department doesn’t have to cut corners in creating the story world that we desire. Our target covers the costs of the film shoot itself and the costs for postproduction.

LAST BUT NOT LEAST:
Spread the word! The truth is, the most important outcome of this campaign will be to create awareness of the skills and talents of people with the Down syndrome. Sk8er Boy aims to show the multifaceted nature of the lives of people with Down syndrome, and to dispel misconceptions that many people still hold about them.

Thanks for your support! We are looking forward to taking you on our exciting ride!