Heart Matter is a story of cannibalism as a metaphor for love, grief, and intimacy told through three vignettes. A devoted pastor takes communion, a hopeful mother starts a new fertility routine, and a woman says goodbye to her lover.

I'm embarking on my fourth narrative short film, and I wanted to challenge myself in ways that I haven't before.  Horror is a genre that I haven't touched yet, and I wanted to find a way to tap into the themes of the genre while also putting my own spin on it.  I've always been interested in how the seemingly "ugly" or "horrific" things can inform the beautiful, and that's what this project is about.  I'm also interested in playing with form, so the idea of multiple stories tying into one theme is exciting.  

Many novels and films use cannibalism and vampirism as metaphors for desire, love, obsession, disease, etc.  Love is at the forefront of everything for me, so I wanted to examine this metaphor through the eyes of different types of love.  Each vignette tells the story of the lengths one will go to for the one that they love; the priest's story is told through agape (selfless), the mother's through storge (familial), and the lovers through eros (romantic).  

With this film, I hope to tap into another kind of creativity using practical effects and different storytelling devices.  This story is definitely catered towards fans of the genre, but I also believe that there is something grounded in reality here (love, shame, grief, etc.) for all audiences to be able to connect to.  At the end of the day, I want my work to make people feel and think about things that they haven't before. 

Making films takes a lot of time, money, and people.  The funds raised for this project will go to: 

- Paying and feeding my cast and crew

- Renting equipment

- Securing locations

- Obtaining insurance and permits 

- Paying festival submission fees 

I'm offering rewards to supporters as a thanks for your contribution to my artistic endeavors!  This includes: 

- A personalized thank you message from the writer/director 

- A mention in the credits 

- An exclusive Heart Matter sticker 

- An exclusive download of the film before official release 

- An official executive producer credit 

- Access to BTS photos and the director's prep (playlists, moodboards, etc.) 

- A signed copy of the final shooting script 

- The opportunity to be an extra in the film 

And maybe even props and costumes used in the film! 

Your contributions are going directly to supporting a young Black filmmaker at a time where obstacles like generative AI and government budget cuts threaten artists being able to make quality work.  Every dollar is important, and we thank you for your support!  We literally couldn't do this without you.