Weird Films and its team members Chase Markoff, Alessia Gatti and Antonio Padovan, with
IdeaBlizzard Productions writer/producer Paula Landry, MBA with writer/director Rick Mowat,
are developing Area 51 Love Raid, an original concept inspired by true events and a social media
frenzy – to be produced as an original feature film.
Logline: When Riley, a romantic high school senior, attempts to impress his longtime crush,
rebellious Lulu, he launches a Facebook page with the mission to “Storm Area 51” that goes
viral, spurring millions to the Nevada desert, launching Riley on the adventure of a lifetime.
Format: Live-Action, Feature Film in English, in Color
Length: 90 minutes
Genre: Coming-of-age, romantic comedy
Budget: $2,200,000
Investment Opportunity: - Equity: 44 Equity Units at $50,000 each
- Projected investor returns of 125-600%
Anticipated MPAA Rating: PG-13
PROOF OF CONCEPT VIDEO:
https://vimeo.com/936427453password: aliencheek
Background: Motivated by a worldwide fascination in aliens and inspired by a viral social media
post missive to ‘storm Area 51’, long the focus of UFO sitings and alien-related conspiracy
theories, the central narrative features a coming-of-age storyline that tackles universal feelings of
belonging, love and acceptance when a young teen falls for his best friend’s sister, and the comedy
that ensues when everything that can go wrong does.
Story: The story revolves around geeky teenager Riley, a true romantic, who’s scrolling through
meme pages and his crush’s Instagram, rebellious Lulu, where he learns of her love for adventure
and aliens. He creates a Facebook event to Raid Area 51 as a joke to impress her. After creating
the social media event, he falls asleep, discovering in the morning that his event is urging hordes
of people to go raid Area 51, with a corresponding media frenzy throughout the world. He has no
idea what he’s triggered. A road-trip follows, filled with an unruly cast of characters.
Team: Current attachments include award-winning Writer/Actor Chase Markoff who’s recently
starred in a film with Shirley MacLaine, the Apple TV+ series Little Voice; with Golden Globe
nominated film Director and Producer Antonio Padovan. Broadway, Television and Film Actress
Oona Laurence; Multiple Emmy-Nominated Comedian, Musician and Actor Brian Posehn;
Commercial and Film Producer Alessia Gatti; as well as up-and-coming Actor Dylan Douglas, son
of Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta Jones, and Executive Producers, IdeaBlizzard Production
award-winning filmmaking team Paula Landry, MBA and Rick Mowat, experienced writer,
director and producer.
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Positioned for success: Due to the topic, budget, genre, and locations, as well as the skill, experience
and reputation of the people involved, and the current film distribution climate and audience
appetite for these themes, we believe that Area 51 Love Raid can be a profitable, commercial and
artistic film. We will be attaching known talent for key roles for wider recognition.
Financing Model: In the current model, funds will come from a mix of private equity investors,
and industry sources, if possible, with loans where necessary. This approach spreads risk. Profits will
come from licensing the film to a distributor who will then license rights to some or all of various
entities.
Financial Returns: The Company will strive to make a film that delivers a healthy return on
investment, projecting returns 125%-600% over the lifetime of the film’s release. Net proceeds, if
any, derived from the sales of the Film’s worldwide distribution rights, will be allocated to
investors and filmmakers, detailed
The Company encourages its members to be involved in the filmmaking process. In addition to an
ownership stake, all members receive VIP benefits, detailed herein.
The financial projections in the Financing Strategy section, are based on the climate for
independent films in similar genre with this level of personnel released in the past 5 years, as well
as rising North American box office, and performance of the top 10 independent films in 2022 of
$1.26 billion. (Gower Media).
Also, there is the possibility, although slim, that a movie hits that perfect timing, capturing
audience’s attention and is a runaway hit. While the success of films like Moonlight (Budget
$3.5m, Box Office $65m), Everything, Everywhere, All at Once (Budget $14.5m, Box Office
$141m); Parasite (Budget $15m, Box Office $262m); are unusual, they hold the promise of the
possibility for when timing and the Film line up. (Screen Daily, The-Numbers, IndyFilm Library)
Risk Factors: It is impossible to guarantee the economic success of any motion picture, whether
financed independently or by a studio. The business of producing and distributing low-cost
theatrical films is highly speculative, with many risks uncommon to other businesses. The revenue
derived from the production and distribution of a film depends primarily upon its acceptance by
the public, which cannot be predicted. This, and other factors, makes any investment in a motion
picture subject to substantial risk. In the event that an investor is interested in an investment in the
Company, he or she will be provided with a summary offering memorandum, which will include
a detailed list of risk factors in connection with the investment.
Film Sales Agents and Distributors look for the following elements in a marketable film:
Cast name power in attracting audiences. The Film has attached Broadway and Film Actress
Oona Laurence in a leading role alongside twice Emmy-nominated actor, comedian Brian Posehn
who has appeared in The Sarah Silverman Show, Big Bang Theory, The Mandalorian, Mr. Show,
New Girl, Just Shoot Me. The team is in the process of attaching other name cast.
Presence at film festivals, for example Best Actors Film Fest, Chelsea International Film Festival,
SmodCastle, Raindance NYC, Sundance, Cannes, Palm Springs, Tribeca and Berlin, Toronto,
New York, Woodstock, Hamptons and others where the filmmakers have relationships.
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Marketable genre and storyline. Audiences are drawn to romantic comedies and coming of age
films, while stories with science-fiction and alien adjacent storylines are attractive to audiences of
all ages. This, combined with the oversize characters, lore of Area 51, and true story of the
historical raid that went viral online, will draw those interested in Comic-Cons, comic books,
young love, an awkward and touching teen romance, and a warm best-friend sub-plot.
Social media and marketing approach and activity of cast and filmmakers, using data that could
be predictive of audience adoption, including a focused approach to our audience. The team has a
clear and targeted approach to connect with our audiences through storyline and content, using
metrics to target audiences online and in real life. The team at this time has an overall social
following of 1.3 million in the aggregate, and plans to employ a vigorous online social media
strategy to promote the project online throughout all phases of production.
An organic and fresh marketing hook. The Company plans to utilize a combination of the weird
and funny elements from the true viral event to Raid Area 51 in 2019, with the twists, turns and
colorful events that will draw GEN Z viewers as well as those who enjoy films such as Once, The
Kissing Booth, Paul, Napoleon Dynamite and Superbad.
Shooting location: due to financial, aesthetic, economic and strategic advantages, we will produce
Area 51 Love Raid in a state or combination of states in the United States with the most favorable
production incentive in order to achieve the highest production values for the least cost. Our
producing team estimates savings of approximately 30% costs from our intended locations.
The team behind Area 51 Love Raid has many decades of experience in the film production
industries. We feel that with our experience and dedication, and the right addition of recognizable
cast and influencers), we can create an entertaining and commercially viable film that hits the pulse
of today’s viewers and trends in technology as well as world-events.
Underlying topic: The mysterious Area 51 is the focus of conspiracy theories, many people think
it’s where the US government stores secrets about aliens and UFOs. The 2019 Facebook Page -
Raid Area 51 achieved 2.7 million RSVPs, and serves as a fictional background for the story,
which in real life spurred news headlines such as “Thousands of people have taken a pledge to
storm Area 51 to ‘see them aliens’” while the corresponding global media frenzy of 800,000+
followers of the original event page resulted in arrests, a music festival and has become the stuff
of legend and folklore.
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Goals for the Project
Create an entertaining, dramatic and timely film: for the purpose of:
• Generating revenue and ultimately profits by licensing the distribution rights of the
film into as many media in as many territories as possible for the longest possible
amount of time, or sell the film outright if the opportunity presents itself.
• Reward investors with substantial return on investment, and secure tax advantages
where possible.
• Attracting attention of buyers, distributors and sales agents to license the film rights;
build an audience for the film, characters and storyline effectively in order to attract
the interest of distributors and sales agents, and media outlets.
• Build the profile of the film to possibly adapt it for other media, including episodic,
music, novelizations, merchandise, and games.