Short Film

The Backwoods Tapes

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Details

Union:

Non union

Area of media:

Short Film

Network:

Paid?:

Yes

Rates:

Non-Union. Pay will be an honorarium from $50 - $500 depending on days needed.

Deadline:

June 16, 2023

Auditions:

Audition will be a self-tape

Shooting starts:

July 13, 2023

Shooting finishes:

July 19, 2023

Shooting locations:

Langley

Cities for response:

Vancouver

Storyline

A series of tapes that details several disappearances and deaths in the Canadian interior during the late 90s. We follow three journalists as they attempt to piece together what transpired. Their friendship is tested as the behavior of their project lead becomes increasingly volatile. The investigation culminates in a deadly encounter with an unknown creature deep in the woods.

Roles

Role type	Role	Gender & Age range
Lead	Ashley	Female 18 - 25 Years old
Description A journalism student. Director of the documentary. She is incredibly headstrong, driven, and often manipulative in order to get what she wants. She comes from a broken family and has made a conscious effort to maintain a tough front, pushing her vulnerability down which often leads to lashing out.
Role type	Role	Gender & Age range
Lead	Michelle	Female 18 - 25 Years old
Description A film student handling the camera work for the project. She is of French Canadian descent and a metal head. Often acts as the mediator between the more passionate outbursts of Ashley's driven nature and Spencer's apprehension.
Role type	Role	Gender & Age range
Lead	Spencer	Male 18 - 25 Years old
Description A journalism student. Boom operator and additional camera operator with the crew. Has been friends with Ashley and Michelle for years. Has severe anxiety managed by daily medication. Possibly bipolar. Tends to worry and think the worst about situations, and occasionally says the wrong thing in the heat of the moment.
Role type	Role	Gender & Age range
Lead	Anna's Mother	Female 45 - 55 Years old
Description Mother of Anna McDonough. A widower. Wracked with grief at the disappearance of her daughter. Is immediately welcoming to Ashley, their families having been apart for almost a decade. She is protective over what family she has left and tries to ward Ashley off from her search.
Role type	Role	Gender & Age range
Supporting	K9 Officer	Male 35 - 45 Years old
Description An officer who berates Ashley for her headstrong conduct towards the investigation, despite being on somewhat of a power trip. He would eventually be the initial investigating officer when the journalists go missing. He has a great rapport with his canine partner.
Role type	Role	Gender & Age range
Supporting	Front Desk Officer (Voice Actor)	Female 25 - 35 Years old
Description A desk officer who denies the journalists any help from the police regarding the missing people. (This role will be done in ADR)
Role type	Role	Gender & Age range
Supporting	Crown Vic Officer	Male 30 - 40 Years old
Description Secondary officer during the initial search of the missing journalists.
Role type	Role	Gender & Age range
Supporting	Woman / Keenan's Mother	Female 40 - 55 Years old
Description DUAL ROLE: Woman - One of the first people the journalists interview upon entering the town. Is quite aloof and has no real insight into the disappearances. Keenan's Mother (ADR Role) - The mother of missing person Keenan Thomson. Is wary of the press and cameras. Responds with hostility towards the journalists.
Role type	Role	Gender & Age range
Supporting	Man / Reporter	Male 50 - 65 Years old
Description DUAL ROLE: Man - A former miner met upon the streets of the town. Seems completely uninterested in the missing people, only searching for a new outlet to vent his frustrations about his line of work being shuttered. Reporter (ADR Role) - A reporter interviewing Ashley in the hospital. Inquires about the events that led up to her admission and the loss of her friends.

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