Through the Fire

SHORT STORY SUMMARY 

“Through the Fire,” Chaka Khan’s 1985 hit, was playing on repeat when Alan Nettles attempted to take his own life by ingesting 400 sleeping pills. He later turned his pain into a story of survival as he began to craft the script for this film. 

In a market dominated by snow-white films depicting glistening wonderlands and predictable “happy ever after” plotlines, Through the Fire is a rare gem. It is a diversity-focused holiday family film, in which people of all cultures will see themselves reflected on screen. 

Studies have shown that films with a 41% - 50% minority cast had the highest global box office revenue, while films, where minorities made up 11% or less of the cast, were the poorest performers. In Through the Fire, a Black American family is portrayed in a positive, powerful, way - this may not seem revolutionary at first glance, but a quick analysis of today’s market will reveal that representation of this kind is still a rarity! In order to change existing stereotypes and subconscious narratives embedded in our own worldviews, new stories must be told.

This film also honors the “forgotten” generation known as Generation X. Millennials have continually been at the center of branding and marketing conversations over the last few years, while Forbes reports that Generation X (ages 38-53) has essentially fallen off the radar among marketers. Per Forbes, Gen X is often referred to as the "slacker generation" or the "forgotten middle child." Through the Fire is a film centered around a Generation X lead, which pays homage to the music and cultural touchstones of Gen X while connecting them with the current cultural zeitgeist. 

And, last but by no means least, women are central to both the narrative and the production of Through the Fire. While women account for 50% of moviegoers, 66% of speaking or named characters in films of 2019 were male and 34% were female. This is a gender ratio of 1.9 males to every 1 female. Furthermore, women and girls of color represented just 17% of leading/co-leading roles.

Given all this, the M4P team is excited to present a narrative that upends the stereotypes of subservient, disempowered women and father absence in African American families, in favor of telling authentic stories of family and friendship expressed by a multicultural cast and production team. 

As an Emmy and Grammy Award Winning Opera Star, Educator, and Actress, Denyce Graves is a woman of many talents and gifts. The role of “Elise” in Through the Fire was written for her. Never has an opera star successfully transitioned into mainstream film, and Ms. Graves has elected to be the one to make the transition. She will be surrounded by a multitude of talents, including Ryan Jamaal Swain and Dyllon Burnside of FX’s Pose, Broadway’s Norm Lewis, and David Schwimmer from the iconic television show Friends. In addition, a prestigious team of musicians including Lee Musiker, Wynton Marsalis, and Chaka Khan - not to mention a host of celebrated independent actors including Veletta Marshall, Olivia Griffith, and the United Kingdom’s own Elicia Davies - will be involved with taking the project from script to screen.

EXECUTIVE TEAM
The executive team has been assembled for Through the Fire. Moving4ward Productions has assisted the film production staff with development startup costs and resources to begin the process of packaging the film. Currently, a team of six producers is engaging investors for the film. A target August 31, 2021 deadline has been scheduled for the producing team to retrieve at least 75% of the overall budget and 100% of the production budget. The principals possess well-respected relationships with product suppliers and distribution outlets on a needed basis.

PRODUCTION PLAN  

Through the Fire is set during the winter season in the outskirts of Boston, Massachusetts, but we’ve decided to shoot in January in upstate New York. The New York location makes sense for the following reasons: 

In the event that we have the Minimum Required Financing (MRF) in place by September 1st, 2021, we will begin principal photography on, or as close as possible to January 10th, 2022. 

The executive team has been assembled for Through the Fire. Moving4ward Productions has assisted the film production staff with development startup costs and resources to begin packaging the film. Our team set August 31, 2021, as a target deadline for the producing team to retrieve 100% of the production budget and 25% of the post-production budget. Production, also known as principal photography, is scheduled to begin on January 10, 2022, with a 25-day shoot. A nine-month post-production period will follow production with an expected release in November of 2022. 

In the year 2021: Full financing (greenlighting for production) to be secured by September 1, 2021 

In the year 2022:  Production will take place in January 2022. Filming will be followed by a 2 month post-production period, as well as a full marketing/release campaign leading to the film’s release in November 2022. 

In the year 2023: Through the Fire confirmed as a box office “sleeper” hit, with major financial revenue to follow. The film will campaign for all the major award shows including the Oscars, Screen Actors Guild, NAACP Image, etc. 

FINANCING PLAN 

The financing for Through the Fire will come from a variety of sources, as indicated in the following table: 

U.S. Private Equity  | $4,000,000.00
Crowd-Funding Campaign  | $1,500,000.00
NY State Tax Credit - Production  | $2,100,000.00
NY State Tax Credit - Postproduction   | $110,000.00 
In-Kind Contributions  | $500,000.00
TOTAL  | $7,210,000.00

The State of New York offers up to a 25% state film tax credit for production. The state also provides an additional 10% credit on qualified NY-based labor for production along with a 25% state film tax credit for postproduction and a 5% addition for costs incurred in upstate New York. Dreams Have No End LLC, will satisfy all of the terms and conditions for obtaining this tax credit while making the film. All principal photography will happen within the state and the entire post-production budget will be spent in New York. Although key cast and crew (writer/director and producer) will come from outside the state, the majority of the below-the-line cast and crew will be from New York. 

The transferable tax credit means that whatever tax credits cannot be spent by Dreams Have No End LLC. within New York, can be sold to other companies who can make use of these credits. Usually, this transfer is done at a rate slightly lower than the dollar value of each credit. 

Another benefit of filming in New York is that the majority of the shoot will be held at a private estate minimizing the usage of excess locations or the need for a set to be built on a soundstage at a local in-state studio. This will dramatically reduce our location costs. The New York State Film Office will also assist with the negotiation of discounted fees for other locations and may help us source in-kind contributions in lieu of payment for office and warehouse space, lodging, transportation rentals, etc. 

With successful distribution, the film will earn a portion of the annual box office receipts in the country and worldwide. Other revenue opportunities include home video / DVD sales, television contracts, and Video on Demand markets. 

While we are aware that the film industry is always speculative, it is estimated that the project could gross $50 million among different venues and products.

Dreams Have No End, LLC. requires an equity investment of $4M in order to successfully produce and distribute Through the Fire. This budget, for the purpose of investment, will be broken down into an agreed-upon share. Equity Investors will receive a return of funds in a priority and preferred position (i.e. Investors will divide 100% of funds that come to the production company, after customary third-party expenses and fees, based on their level of participation until investors earn 120% of their original investment). Investors will then share in the investor half of the income, as dictated by the waterfall (see attached Business Plan for details).

RECOUPMENT 

After payment of all management expenses, funds received by the LLC from the distribution of the film will be allocated as follows: 10% will be retained by the LLC to pay its management expenses, including the annual accounting and tax filing fees, and 90% will be distributed to the investors on a pro-rata/pari passu basis until the investors have recouped 100% of their initial capital contribution. 

Thereafter, the LLC will distribute another 20% to the investors in the form of an “equity kicker”, until they have recouped 120% of their initial capital contribution.

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