Details
Union:
Non union
Area of media:
Short Film
Network:
Paid?:
Yes
Rates:
Non-Union, rates on par with ACTRA low budget guidelines, under Tier 3
Deadline:
Apr 1, 2025
Callbacks:
Callback dates TBA
Shooting starts:
Exact dates TBD, late June/early or mid July
Shooting finishes:
Exact dates TBD, late June/early or mid July
Shooting locations:
Toronto
Cities for response:
Toronto
Comments
DIRECTOR'S BIOGRAPHY
https://mollyshears.com/
Molly Shears is a filmmaker based in Toronto, Canada. Her work centres around coming-of-age stories and social critique. She received her BFA in fine arts from OCAD University (CA) in 2016 and her MFA in filmmaking from The London Film School (UK) in 2020. Her work has been featured in many international film festivals including FNC (festival du nouveau cinema Montreal) and LA Shorts, among others. Molly is a member of the Faculty of Art at OCAD University.
PRODUCER'S BIOGRAPHY
https://candicenapoleone.com/
Candice Napoleone is a Toronto-based producer. Her short and feature film work has been screened at film festivals internationally, including Slamdance, Berlinale, TIFF, Venice, Jeonju IFF, Festival du nouveau cinéma and Viennale. She served as Associate Producer on the debut feature of Director Graham Foy, The Maiden, (premiere at the 2022 Venice International Film Festival, Giornate degli Autori) and collaborated with Medium Density Fibreboard Films (MDFF) to produce Director Kazik Radwanski's 4th feature film Matt and Mara, which premiered at the 2024 Berlin International Film Festival in the Encounters competitive section. She has also worked with MDFF to develop their film distribution arm since 2023 and recently started her independent production label, Cecilia Films.
**Please note: Actors submitting must be Canadian citizens or Permanent Residents.
https://mollyshears.com/
Molly Shears is a filmmaker based in Toronto, Canada. Her work centres around coming-of-age stories and social critique. She received her BFA in fine arts from OCAD University (CA) in 2016 and her MFA in filmmaking from The London Film School (UK) in 2020. Her work has been featured in many international film festivals including FNC (festival du nouveau cinema Montreal) and LA Shorts, among others. Molly is a member of the Faculty of Art at OCAD University.
PRODUCER'S BIOGRAPHY
https://candicenapoleone.com/
Candice Napoleone is a Toronto-based producer. Her short and feature film work has been screened at film festivals internationally, including Slamdance, Berlinale, TIFF, Venice, Jeonju IFF, Festival du nouveau cinéma and Viennale. She served as Associate Producer on the debut feature of Director Graham Foy, The Maiden, (premiere at the 2022 Venice International Film Festival, Giornate degli Autori) and collaborated with Medium Density Fibreboard Films (MDFF) to produce Director Kazik Radwanski's 4th feature film Matt and Mara, which premiered at the 2024 Berlin International Film Festival in the Encounters competitive section. She has also worked with MDFF to develop their film distribution arm since 2023 and recently started her independent production label, Cecilia Films.
**Please note: Actors submitting must be Canadian citizens or Permanent Residents.
Storyline
‘Buddy System’ is a short film that centres on ANGEL, who observes fear take over her city after a tragic murder.
The film begins with Angel and her best friend Elli playing in the alley behind their houses. They are untroubled and playful - totally immersed in the make-believe world they’ve built in the alley, until the news and their mom's fear change everything.
Angel is reluctant to believe she is in danger, because the culprit has already been arrested. At school, all the girls in her class are led through a self-defense workshop while the boys play capture-the-flag outside. One day after school, Elli goes to visit her dad, so Angel is free to play outside on her own before her mom gets home from work. But it’s in this moment that she realizes that something has changed; that she is scared. She goes home and locks herself inside.
The film concludes with Angel sitting alone in her room, as she processes the events of the film within her own inner world.
The film begins with Angel and her best friend Elli playing in the alley behind their houses. They are untroubled and playful - totally immersed in the make-believe world they’ve built in the alley, until the news and their mom's fear change everything.
Angel is reluctant to believe she is in danger, because the culprit has already been arrested. At school, all the girls in her class are led through a self-defense workshop while the boys play capture-the-flag outside. One day after school, Elli goes to visit her dad, so Angel is free to play outside on her own before her mom gets home from work. But it’s in this moment that she realizes that something has changed; that she is scared. She goes home and locks herself inside.
The film concludes with Angel sitting alone in her room, as she processes the events of the film within her own inner world.
Roles
| Role type | Role | Gender & Age range |
| Principal | Angel | Female 9 - 13 Years old |
Description (Any ethnicity) Angel is in Grade 5 and is the only child of a single mom. She likes very few things, but she likes them a lot: she likes bugs, she likes books about girls in historical settings, she likes Elli and playing in the alley behind her house. She’s rooted in facts - she doesn’t have a good grasp on imaginary worlds in the ways that Elli does. At school, she is shy and soft-spoken, but has an ever-present curiosity about her. | ||
| Role type | Role | Gender & Age range |
| Principal | Elli | Female 9 - 13 Years old |
Description (Any ethnicity) Elli is Angel’s best friend and classmate. Elli has a big imagination and is a natural-born leader. She loves movies. She loves stories. She loves roller coasters, haunted houses, and big feelings. She’ll talk to anyone to meet someone new and learn something about the world. Elli controls Angel and Angel is okay with that because she always seems to know exactly what she's doing. They live under her guidelines. (Note: It would be a bonus if the actor has experience in theatre/musical theatre. The character has theatrical and loquacious tendencies while still playing ‘real’ on camera.) | ||
| Role type | Role | Gender & Age range |
| Principal | Pam | Female 30 - 50 Years old |
Description (Any ethnicity) Pam is the mother of Angel and a coordinator at a publishing company. She’s painfully honest but she’s the kind of person you can’t stay mad at because she’s the life of the party. She likes her job but lives for the weekend - she has a great network of friends who babysit Angel so she can still go dancing if she wants to. She loves to sit on her back porch with a glass of red wine and a book. The TV is always on in their house and she’ll watch back-to-back episodes of Law & Order on the weekends. Pam is chatty, inquisitive, and often burnt out and tired. | ||
| Role type | Role | Gender & Age range |
| Principal | Sherri | Female 30 - 50 Years old |
Description (Any ethnicity) Sherri is Elli’s mom and Pam’s best friend. She’s a nurse at the nearby hospital. She’s more conservative than Pam, and is always shocked at how open Pam is with her child. She’s very cautious in the way that she approaches the outside world, but loves a good gossip session. | ||
| Role type | Role | Gender & Age range |
| Principal | Coach | Male 40 - 60 Years old |
Description (Any ethnicity) Coach is a for-hire motivational speaker and trainer in the public school system. He’s very firm, but cares deeply. He trained in Jiu-Jitsu and Muay Tai for over two decades and competed internationally before he married his wife and had kids, and settled down in the suburbs. When his daughter was born, everything inside him changed. His life’s meaning became to protect her at any cost, and he started training her in martial arts at just two years old. He’s made a career out of teaching young girls to fight and how to look out for danger. Note: People with martial arts training are encouraged to apply | ||