THE TROGLODYTE is a 5 minute short film that follows Marcus and Emily, two young adults who have just had a one-night stand. Emily is really fond of Marcus and wants to get to know him, but Marcus just wants her out. As the two try to figure out how they fit in each others lives, Emily accidentally stumbles upon Marcus' roommate, a disgusting, stoner Troglodyte.

As if things weren't already uncomfortable enough, Marcus' parents arrive for a surprise visit. Suddenly, Marcus needs Emily to stay and help him keep his secret under wraps. The two form an unlikely alliance, but will they be able to keep the creature at bay or will it escape and ruin everything?

The visual style of the film is very reminiscent to independent dramas and comedies such as The Kings of Summer (2013), Safety Not Guaranteed (2012), and While We're Young (2014). While the film is absurd and a little silly, we're putting emphasis on making it feel like the troglodyte can actually exist in the world. This will also help seperate the film from the established horror genre, allowing us to play around with audiences expectations of the film. For a better idea, take a look at the concept art and mood board below!

About Us

Sanjiv Gopal is a writer/director from Melbourne, Australia. Having studied film and television in various ways for the past 4 years, Sanjiv is beginning to use this knowledge to bring interesting and unique stories to the screen. Currently studying the Diploma of Screen and Media at Swinburne University, Sanjiv aims to create projects that may vary in scope and subject, however always feel ‘millennially Australian’. He hopes to be able to translate his experience of living with a troglodyte on to the big screen.

At the beginning of 2016, Nathan Guy moved from the beautiful town of Hobart, Tasmania to the big city of Melbourne to begin his transition from a stills photographer into a cinematographer. In this time, Nathan has been the DOP on a VCA graduate short film, worked in the camera department for several shorts, and been a camera operator for various documentary projects. He hopes to express his own interpretation and bring his creative eye to a film through his cinematography.

Cameron Green was born and raised in Tasmania, and formed a strong affiliation with the ocean from a young age. From here his passion for filmmaking grew, filming and editing a number of different surfing and body-boarding shots for various companies over the past couple years. In 2016, Cameron made the move to Melbourne to study a Diploma of Screen and Media at Swinburne University. With a strong background in the industry, he brings a good set of skills to the team as the films editor, 2nd AC, and on-set photographer.

The Poster

If you choose to pledge $75 or above, you'll get to select one of three delicious poster designs for us to print and send to you. Take a look below!

So we've spent a fair amount of money so far during pre-production, but we need your help in order to get through the shoot. The money you donate will go into the following:

• Make-up & Prosthetics: $350 -  We're using prosthetics to make sure the troglodyte looks as disgusting and filthy as possible. CGI just won't cut it for this one!
• Catering: $800 - We've got a pretty big cast and crew and it ain't cheap to keep them at the top of their game. Help us feed them all with more than two minute noodles.
• Camera hire: $1200 - In order to capture the troglodyte in its full glory, we're shooting on a Red Scarlet. This means that you'll be able to see a weird creature rip a bong at 4K resolution.
• Props and Set decoration: $150 - This'll help us sell the fact that the troglodyte really lives in this world we're creating.

We're facing quite a few challenges in the making of this film (an intense 3 days shoot!) and we've called in enough favors for us to be able to make this film on the budget we've got. That being said, we're confident we'll be able to deliver a funny, charming, and slightly spooky short that you'll all love!

You can follow the production of the film at https://www.facebook.com/TheTroglodyte

Feel free to give us a like or share too!

Illustrations by Angella Liu