Synopsis 

Hi! My name’s Julia Friedland-Godfrey, and I’m an independent filmmaker, writer & photographer living in Los Angeles, CA. I’ve spent the past two years dreaming up, writing & revising, and assembling a team for my short film, WHOLE HOLE. 

WHOLE HOLE tells the story of siblings Grace & Peter Anta, the desert that surrounds their remote Idaho town, and the hole they discover at its center. This story is also about the hand of God, the miracle of love, and the spinning power of grief. 

This project means so much to me. And in order to make it a reality, I need your help. 

Over the last four years, I’ve made & released six short films, all of which had little to no budget. Because of this, I really understand what a story of this scale requires: it requires a small & brilliant team, the resources to shoot on location in Fairfield, Idaho (as well as Los Angeles, California), and the ability to shoot on 35mm film so that we can truly capture the landscape, light, and magical surrealism of this story. 

My goal is for WHOLE HOLE to be executed at the level required for competition at major film festivals, to be seen by the widest audience possible, and to garner the kind of attention needed for a future feature length project. I know these are big goals, but I believe in this story, and I believe in our ability to fully realize it. 

About the Director

Four years ago, at the start of the pandemic, a friend and I packed up our cars, left our lives in Los Angeles behind, and drove to Oregon in pursuit of making a movie. Neither of us had ever made a film before, nor had we taken any filmmaking classes or used any video equipment or software… What followed was months of self-taught crash courses, countless long nights, and the eventual production, which consisted of a three person crew (the two of us + a friend who filmed our two person scenes). We had an extremely tight budget: our “set” was the house we were living in, and our “camera” was my iPhone with an anamorphic clip-on lens. But a year later, with the help of some incredible friends in post-production, we released “IT’S THE FUTURE BABY!,” our first ever film. It was the best experience of my life. 

In the 3 years since, I’ve worked as a director, cinematographer, editor & colorist. Alongside some amazing collaborators, I’ve released 5 more short films, as well as a handful of music videos. I’ve also developed my work as a photographer, working closely with artists on their portraits, album art, and visuals. Most recently, I was the cinematographer, co-director, & colorist on a short film called “FLATTENED.” We had our first screening of the film in early January, and are currently in the process of submitting it to festivals, with updates to follow on here as they come. 

The Team & Cast

Filmmaking is collaboration, and I couldn’t be more excited about the team & cast we’re assembling for WHOLE HOLE (as we continue to build our team, we’ll update that list here).

Our DIRECTOR OF CINEMATOGRAPHY is Thomas Marchese, an Australian cinematographer who has amassed an incredibly impressive portfolio. You can view it here: https://thomasmarchesedp.com/

PETER ANTA will be played by Jeff Alper, an incredible filmmaker, actor & editor based in New York. Jeff recently starred in his own short film, YARD BIRD, which premiered at the Canal Street Film Festival. You can view more of his work here: https://www.jeffalper.com/

GRACE ANTA will be played by Grace Westlin, an actress I’ve had the pleasure of training & working with for over ten years. Grace graduated from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland with a degree in musical theater. She’s a singer & dancer, as well as an accordionist, all of which are written into the fabric of her character. Most recently, Grace co-wrote, produced, and starred in “FLATTENED,” the short film I worked on as cinematographer & co-director. You can view her work here: https://www.gracewestlin.com/

LANA ANTA will be played by Lea Floden, an actress and one of the most highly regarded acting coaches in the country. Lea spent many years at the historic Circle Repertory Company (home to David Mamet, Sam Shepard, Tennessee Williams and Lanford Wilson, as well as actors Jeff Daniels, Mary Louise Parker, John Malkovich). Lea has worked with Stella Adler, Uta Hagen, and Eartha Kitt (to name a few). Today, she trains actors from all over the country & world. I’ve been lucky enough to study acting under Lea for over 15 years now. Lea has taught me most everything I know about working with actors as a director. 

Funding 

In order to make this project a reality, we need to raise $55,000. Every cent of this will go towards funding for the cast and crew, film & equipment, locations & catering, post production costs, insurance, and festival submissions. This budget will allow us to secure the team we need, to shoot on location in both Idaho and Los Angeles, and to bring this thing to festivals. 

Timeline

February: Lock in remaining cast & crew

March: Pre-production prep, location scouting & booking 

April: Rehearsals & more pre-production prep 

May: Shoot in Idaho & Los Angeles 

June: Edit 

July: Submit to festivals

Risks & Impact

There are always risks when making a film. But, if executed properly, I truly believe this film has the capacity to be seen, felt, and shared by a large audience. As independent artists, we need people like you – people who believe in the value of working & creating art without massive infrastructure, corporate backing, or social media metrics. Now more than ever, your contribution gives us the means to actually focus on the storytelling, directing, and creating of this project. Your support affirms our work. 

Thank you

Thank you for taking the time to read all of this – it means more than I can say. If you want to know more, I’ll be adding updates here as they come. I’ll also post updates on my instagram and website, both of which can be found here: https://www.juliafgodfrey.com/  https://www.instagram.com/juliafgodfrey