LOS ANGELES, August 6, 2018 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Things are looking scary-good for the filmmakers behind Maiden, a horror-thriller feature that won Seed&Spark's Communal Nightmares Crowdfunding Rally and will now be executive produced by The Orchard and 3311 Productions. The feature was also awarded $25,000 in investment and a first-look distribution deal.
"Maiden jumped out at us with a concept so strong and a unique world vision that we immediately gravitated towards it. There's a market for what Maiden aspires to be, and we're excited to help get it there," said Paul Davidson, EVP Film & TV at The Orchard.
After raising $10,000 for development and building an audience of more than 1,100 on Seed&Spark, Maiden was among seven finalists who pitched their feature to The Orchard and 3311 Productions in late June.
"We're delighted to enable Terence and Christine's vision, and to help them reach a broader audience. We think Maiden will strike a chord with horror fans and cinephiles alike, in large part due to the uncommon strength of the movie's heroine," said Tony Pachella, creative executive at 3311 Productions.
Maiden, from co-writers Terence Krey and Christine Nyland, is a story of a mysterious traveler whose supernatural abilities are put to the test when she uncovers a generations-old society of dangerous men in small-town America. The pair previously collaborated on the horror-adjacent series Graves, and they aim to use the potential of genre film to further explore the metaphors of gender and power.
"We are grateful to Seed&Spark for creating space in the industry for scrappy filmmakers and empowering stories. After years of working on DIY projects, it's incredible to have the opportunity to work with companies like 3311 Productions and The Orchard — to have support in telling a story that feels resonant and timely," said Nyland and Krey. Audiences can follow the film's journey and explore photos and videos of the progress at https://www.seedandspark.com/fund/maiden.
Since debuting in 2016, Seed&Spark's flagship rallies have helped raise more than $3 million for hundreds of movies and shows from independent filmmakers. Communal Nightmares was specifically focused on empowering diverse takes on feature genre films, with participating films covering deeper themes including racism, technology, mental illness and sexism.
Crowdfunding rallies — large-scale calls for crowdfunding campaigns around a central theme and/or genre and format — are a key and unique offering from Seed&Spark to independent filmmakers. The impetus and goal is to distribute Hollywood opportunities to creators of all kinds while empowering the participants to raise funds, build an audience and take a giant step forward in making their movie or show. Submissions are currently open for episodic work from creators of color in Keep It Colorful with Erika Alexander (Living Single, Get Out) and for hometown-centered features in Hometown Heroes with the Duplass Brothers.
About Seed&Spark
Seed&Spark is an entertainment platform built to increase representation in media and help creators build sustainable careers. We connect some of the most unique new voices making movies and shows to the diverse audiences hungry for diverse stories and storytellers via crowdfunding and subscription streaming. Since our founding in 2012, more than $13M has been raised across more than 1,000 crowdfunding campaigns on Seed&Spark, with the highest campaign success rate of any crowdfunding platform in the world. Our highly curated streaming library is full of award-winning movies and shows by diverse creators from all over the world. For more information, visit http://www.seedandspark.com.
About 3311 Productions
Founders Mark Roberts and Ross Jacobson launched 3311 Productions in 2010 with an eye toward developing and producing original content alongside pedigreed and emerging filmmakers. 3311's goal is to develop and support original voices. Jennifer Dana heads film production for the company which has produced a diverse slate of films including In A World…, Mr. Right, Table 19 and most recently Brigsby Bear. For more information on 3311 please visit http://www.3311productions.com/.
About The Orchard
The Orchard is a pioneering independent film, TV and music distribution company that operates in over 30 global markets. The company, founded as a music distributor in 1997, is an innovative leader in the film and television distribution space, known for its cutting-edge technology that provides filmmakers with up-to-the-minute trending data and analytics on their projects. Recent film releases include BPM (Beats Per Minute), France's submission for The Academy Awards®; Thelma, Norway's submission for The Academy Awards®; Super Dark Times; Sundance Jury Prize winner Dina; The Work; 11/8/16; Trophy; and The Hero. Upcoming releases include Flower, Outside In and Kings. The company's film division has enjoyed such recent successes as the Academy Award®-nominated documentaries Cartel Land and Life, Animated; Taika Waititi's The Hunt for the Wilderpeople; Academy Award-winner Morgan Neville's The Music of Strangers; Alex Lehmann's Blue Jay; Antonio Campos' Christine; Pablo Larrain's critically acclaimed, Golden Globe-nominated Neruda; Oren Moverman's The Dinner; and Jeremiah Tower: The Last Magnificent. For more information on The Orchard, please visit http://www.theorchard.com.
SOURCE Seed&Spark
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