Senior film and electronic arts major and student filmmaker Seth Craven and his team of 30 are fundraising for his biggest masterpiece yet, “A Dog’s Life,” which will be the one of the longest student films ever produced in the Cal State Long Beach film department.
“A Dog’s Life” is based on Craven’s experiences after his father’s death when he was 19, when he dropped out of school and moved back home to “Blue Collar” Martinez in Northern California.
Representing Craven in the film is Blake, the protagonist, who thought that he would be able to bond with his mother over the loss of his father, but his mom’s new canine companion intercepted the emotional exchange.
Craven considers the film to be of the “coming of age” variety. While coming of age films generally tell the tale of pubescent youths searching for their niche, this dark, dramatic comedy tells the tale of a struggling 22 year-old artist that must reestablish himself as a member of his family and society.
The film raises questions about success and failure, education and family, and how all these pieces fit together. While the basis of the film is a melancholic, comedy is laced throughout, which is a trend seen in Craven’s past works.
Craven is heightening the authenticity of this true story by setting it in the same environment in which it took place, intending to dramatize his memory in a crowd-pleasing manner. Filming will take place from March 28 to April 5.
Local business owners are allowing Craven and his team to film in their businesses after hours, and old friends are letting the team strip rooms of furniture and even repaint, helping to bring his script to life inside their own homes.
Craven says his film is going to be about a half hour long.
“Usually films are under 10 to 15 minutes on campus, [so this one is] logistically a huge undertaking,” he said. “This is kinda the biggest thing in my life, I eat, drink and sleep it.”
Craven said that he has a great team. Half of the 30-person team are from his Northern Californian roots, while he accumulated the other 15 Southern Californians during his time as a student at CSULB.
Craven has been writing the 28-page script for “A Dog’s Life” for four years, and the team has been working together since last semester. The film is expected to premier on Independence Day this year.
While his past films have been mostly sketch comedy with little dialogue, his new film will be a narrative piece with more dialogue and deeper meaning.
Craven has produced action films, comedies and even dialogue-less dramas.
“Every film I’ve made, I’ve tried to figure out a different aspect of filming, he said. “I try to keep everything the same style, then add a variable.”
The team plans to apply to as many film festivals as possible before the premiere of “A Dog’s Life,” as well as show the film at CSULB’s fall 2013 showcase.
Craven said he feels that “A Dog’s Life” will be a culmination of the all he has learned throughout his past filmmaking.
“More than anything, this is the one story that hits the heart,” Craven said. “Everything is a building block from the first movie until now … building towards something bigger, better and more refined.”
This bigger and better project is also much more expensive. Transportation, equipment, food and lodging are amongst the costs.
“We’ve had a lot of time to plan, and now we’re a month away,” Craven said. “That’s where the money comes in. We need a lot of money.”
The projected budget is $19,000. He and his team have raised $5,000 from a Kickstarter campaign, to which he is adding to $8,000 of his own savings, a $1,000 grant from the Roger Herald Film Scholarship, and some award money from the CSU Media Arts Fest last year, where his most recent short film, “Unarmed Robbery,” stole laughs and $2,500 in awards.
The team hopes to raise the rest of the funds at a fundraiser at Dogz Bar and Grill tomorrow, which will be their last fundraiser before the shoot. Dogz is offering 20 percent off food and drinks from 7 to 11 p.m., with wristbands for $5 apiece. Dogz is allowing Craven’s team to keep the profits from the wristbands, as well as hold a raffle for three chances to win packages of three park-hopper passes to Disneyland and California Adventure.