Director's Vision

This pentalogy is only made possible today because of the trailblazers who came before me, laying the very foundation of this industry right here in New Jersey. Specifically, I must honor Alice Guy-Blaché—the visionary French writer, director, and producer who founded Solax Studios, becoming the first woman to ever own and direct her own studio. In 1912, she wrote, produced, and directed A Fool and His Money, creating the first-ever film with an all-Black cast.

Her early trailblazing, alongside the work of filmmakers like Ava DuVernay, Ryan Coogler, Spike Lee, Steve McQueen, John Singleton, Gina Prince-Bythewood, Bong Joon-ho, Park Chan-wook, Martin Scorsese, Priscilla Shirer, and others, has not only inspired me but has shown time and time again that audiences enjoy Black stories, the dissection of social issues, and genre-blending narratives. They crave complex, layered, character-driven works and are hungry for stories that organically weave spiritual truth with complex human struggles. Their success and artistry is the proof of a reality where this pentalogy can be made and impact cinema.

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(The completed lookbook below is exclusively for official collaborators.)

Long before the industry moved West, the original motion picture studio system thrived in New Jersey through hyper-efficient, centralized filmmaking. To successfully pull off a six-month, five-feature shoot, we are reviving their most effective methods: combining the rapid, efficient pacing of classic Hollywood B-movies with the raw, artistic freedom of the modern indie spirit. By ensuring our pre-production phase is meticulous, the actual physical filming of these five features can run as smoothly and expertly as possible.

To best support the stamina and creative energy of our team across this ambitious timeline, we will streamline our footprint by anchoring our productions around a primary studio hub and a select few historic estates, utilizing our art department to redress and transform these standing locations for each film. Furthermore, we are returning to the concept of a true repertory company. Marrying this hyper-efficient model with the caliber of professional, generational talent we envision gives our cast the rare opportunity to collaborate and play with their favorite artists across multiple projects in a highly condensed timeframe.

In the hands of the right production company and creative partners, this return to the old Hollywood system will create the most artistically free and focused set imaginable. Spearheaded by a director who places the needs, safety, and comfort of the cast and crew above all else, the emotional heavy lifting of these characters will be deeply supported. To further safeguard the mental and creative well-being of our ensemble—especially those taking on multiple complex roles across the slate—both a dedicated Intimacy Director and a licensed on-set therapist will be available to help everyone remain grounded, centered, and safe throughout the process. Ultimately, this will be an absolute delight of a production to work on—a set where the work is rigorous, but the environment is genuinely a lot of fun. (For a deeper dive into the logistics and financial structure of this exact model, please see The Production Architecture & Ensemble Equity below).

To honor the time, energy, and caliber of the artists involved, this pentalogy is designed with a highly efficient, centralized production model based in New Jersey. Rather than enduring the fatigue of constant company moves, we will utilize a hub-and-spoke approach. The productions will be anchored around a select few practical, historic estates alongside a primary studio hub. By building modular, standing sets that our art department will meticulously redesign and transform between each feature, we eliminate logistical chaos. This provides our cast with a stable, highly controlled environment, allowing everyone to focus entirely on the emotional heavy lifting of the performances—a modern return to the efficiency and focus of the classic Hollywood studio system.

Equally important to the physical production is the financial philosophy of this ensemble. To ensure that our resources remain squarely on the screen—funding the environments, the vintage glass, and the agile crew needed for our vérité approach—this slate operates on a standard independent framework: upfront union scale paired with deferred compensation and a transparent, shared-equity model.

Every principal actor across the five films will operate under a strictly enforced Favored Nations agreement regarding back-end profit participation, ensuring a completely level playing field. I am structuring the pentalogy this way out of absolute confidence in what we are building. The unprecedented combination of this powerhouse ensemble and the visceral, timely nature of these interconnected stories is designed to command a premium in the theatrical and acquisition markets. The ultimate goal of this model is to ensure that the immense commercial value generated by these performances is placed directly back into the hands of the artists who brought them to life.

To execute this ambitious six-month timeline, our agile location strategy will put the hub-and-spoke model into direct practice. A major part of this strategy involves treating a historic New Jersey property—Kip's Castle—like our own private backlot, redressing it to serve the distinct visual needs of multiple films in the pentalogy.

For Disco Fries, our 1979 period cult thriller, Kip's Castle offers built-in authenticity. Because we are leaning directly into the estate's real history—in the 1980s, the castle was actually occupied by the Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh cult—it provides the exact energy and layout needed to capture the psychological descent of the script.

We will then seamlessly redress the grounds and interiors to serve as the private estate in Palliative.

Additionally, whatever luxury property we secure to serve as the home of Marquis, the famous actor in Unspoken & Unsighted, will be redressed to double as the estate of Marcus, the affluent director in I'm Tired of Feeling.

By centralizing our core locations and redressing these primary sets across the slate, we drastically eliminate the time and money usually lost to constant company moves.

Long before the cameras roll, I want to foster a true repertory company environment. During early pre-production, any actor offered a part in one script will be invited to read the others in the pentalogy to see the fully interconnected world they are joining. Furthermore, if an actor wishes to step in and play a smaller or supporting role in a different film on the slate that hasn't been cast yet, it would be welcomed with the utmost delight.

Then, right before production officially begins and the full ensemble is on board, we will host a three-day world-building table read. This gathering will be a dedicated moment for everyone to come together, meet the Intimacy Director and production therapist available to them, and simply love on each other as they step into these deeply complex roles.

Because The Quietest Room is based on my true story and serves as the foundational start of this pentalogy, Day One will feature a solo reading of this script—allowing me to lead with my own vulnerability after watching this incredible talent do so many times on screen. Day Two will mimic our planned double-feature theatrical release with readings of Palliative and Unspoken & Unsighted, separated by a comfortable intermission to rest and recalibrate. Day Three will conclude with Disco Fries and I'm Tired of Feeling, following that same double-feature and intermission structure.

Aside from hearing the scripts read aloud and sharing love and making introductions with other collaborators, these readings give everyone a chance to open the floor for honest dialogue, questions, and exploration of the themes within the pentalogy. There is no question that is off topic regarding these works; any and all are welcome.

By this point in the process, the heavy lifting of character motives and emotional mapping will have already been firmly established through our prior one-on-one conversations. So, following the table read, for any actor who wants to run a complex scene or establish physical boundaries, we can shift into micro-rehearsals for each script before the cameras roll. My sole purpose during this phase is to be of service to the actors' performances—providing a safe, highly adaptable environment that ensures their emotional truth is preserved entirely for the screen.

As emotionally demanding as the scripts I write are, I want the actors to know that they are never navigating these emotional journeys alone. I, along with our dedicated on-set therapist, Intimacy Director, and everyone involved in this production, am here to create an environment of absolute safety and ease for you to play and emote freely in these character-driven pieces. Actors can rest in knowing they have a director fully committed to executing this endeavor with absolute precision and love. I will wholeheartedly protect a peaceful and collaborative set, ensuring we capture every nuance and thought their character exudes on screen. To prove this commitment, we will start production with my true story, The Quietest Room. By stepping into this emotionally demanding role first, my hope is that you will see my dedication firsthand. I want to show you that you are in good hands. I would never ask anything of you that I haven't first asked of myself, and my ultimate goal is to become a director you truly enjoy working with throughout this entire process.

I am a lover of cinema, in every genre and language. As much as I love actors and seeing their talent on screen, I also love watching how and where the camera is placed to get a shot, and how the lighting brings out the emotional undercurrent of a scene and film. Crew members can rest in knowing that while my creative vision is clear, I am humbled to work with experts in the field who have technical knowledge built from years of experience and commitment.

To avoid placing too heavy a labor burden on the crew throughout this pentalogy, we will be working with two to three amazing Directors of Photography. One will focus on the bold visual contrast of Disco Fries and Palliative, while another will lens the raw intimacy of The Quietest Room, I'm Tired of Feeling, and Unspoken & Unsighted. I look forward to working with amazing artists who specialize in the technicality of beautifully lighting Black people, mastering visual contrast with shadows, and who have the heart to truly care for the emotional intent of the scenes. Logistically, this also allows us to be highly efficient—while we are shooting one production, another DP can be actively preparing for the next. Any and all suggestions are welcomed on set. I look forward to working with every department that brings life and depth to a story.

Because of the intense emotional nature of the pentalogy and my commitment to the psychological safety of everyone involved, establishing a "Standby Therapist" standard for the duration of the shoot is a top priority. These scripts deal with real-world problems and can include triggers for some—that is why everyone's emotional well-being is my absolute top priority. I want to shoot the films as best as possible in chronological order so that the actors can naturally track their emotional performances throughout the story. To ensure our cast and crew are fully supported whenever heavy emotions arise during these sensitive scenes, I am implementing this standard to provide on-demand support without ever interfering with an actor's performance or creative process.

Led by both a female and male therapist whose expertise lies in traditional clinical therapy, this standard will operate under the following structure on set:

1. The "Open Door" Sanctuary

These therapists will not be stationed near the cameras or watching the monitors. Instead, they will be based in a private, comfortable room or trailer tucked away from the active set. This ensures not only that the creative space remains entirely focused and uninterrupted, but also that everyone feels comfortable if they need a beat to step away and decompress their emotions.

2. Autonomous, On-Demand Support

While the amazing actors I am envisioning and inviting into this ensemble are highly skilled at managing their craft and decompressing, heavy, chronological shoots can still take a toll. Should any cast or crew member feel they need a moment to breathe or talk, the support is entirely autonomous. Anyone can step away to the therapy trailer at any time—just as they would for a standard restroom break—as long as it is communicated and their post is not left unchecked. They can quietly step away on their own terms for a mini-session, completely out of view of the rest of the production.

3. End-of-Day Decompression

This is the core of my on-set standard. If an actor's scenes have wrapped for the day and they didn't have a chance to slip away to talk because of their process, they have the choice to shed their wardrobe and character and stop by the therapy trailer before going home. It acts as a safe transitional space where they can have a traditional conversation, shed the heavy material of the day, and ground themselves. It is a purely voluntary offering—if an actor wishes to simply head straight home, they are entirely free to do so. My goal is simply to ensure that the door is always open and that no one has to carry the weight of these stories home alone.

To protect the emotional integrity of these performances, we are going to shoot the pentalogy sequentially, one film at a time, rather than blending or cross-boarding the schedules. We will film the slate in this strategically staggered order: The Quietest Room, Disco Fries, I'm Tired of Feeling, Palliative, and finally, Unspoken & Unsighted. By structuring the shoots this way, ensemble members carrying major roles across multiple scripts will naturally have built-in buffer films, giving them the vital time needed to decompress, shed one character, and safely step into the next.

Since we are targeting a production window of 2027, 2028, or later, the cast will receive all their scripts well in advance. This gives everyone plenty of time to sit with the material and familiarize themselves with their characters' complete arcs before we ever step into a rehearsal room. Because we will be moving with such focused momentum once cameras roll, all the deep, exploratory character work needs to happen during this extended pre-production phase. By day one on set, the ensemble will already be deeply anchored in their roles, allowing us to focus entirely on emotional truth and execution.

To make sure our cast and crew can safely decompress from one heavy narrative and mentally transition into the next, we will implement a one-to-two-week reset into the schedule between the wrap of one film and the start of the next. This dedicated break gives everyone the necessary time to breathe, rest, and recalibrate.

It is because of this carefully protected, sequential structure that I am asking my ensemble to dedicate six months of their time to join this repertory company...

Excuse me while I go full poet for one moment.

It takes about six months for the roots of a tree to mature and anchor into the earth. With enough sun and water, they grow deep and wide, eventually creating a vast canopy that ensures privacy and comfort for those who planted it.

I know six months is quite a lot of time to ask someone to put aside. But I ask you: for these six months, for those that can, will you join me in what I pray will be the most creatively enriching process across these five feature films?

In six months, you can go from portraying a lead in one project, to a supporting character in another, to an extra giving your best performance in the background. And guess what? Audiences will love it. But more than that, I will. And I think you will, too, because it's fun.

This pentalogy is an actor's playhouse, and our DPs and I are merely here to capture you at play. In these six months, the creative roots for this pentalogy will be so rich that the performances sprung from them—like branches with multi-colored leaves—will ensure audiences the most enjoyment, and provide you a centralized hub of artistic freedom.

And this is just the beginning of a creative partnership.

To achieve a level of digital intimacy and that voyeuristic vibe, our approach to lighting and blocking must be highly fluid. By utilizing natural light, negative fill, and a 360-degree approach to our locations whenever possible, the goal is to give actors the complete physical freedom to move organically through a scene. And because they aren't confined to marks, the camera will react to and chase the emotion as it unfolds in real-time. This freedom allows actors to stay and linger in their emotions, empowering the character to set the actual pace of the scene. Capturing this true study of recognizable human behavior is the very heartbeat of these films, and our entire production is here to support you entirely in that pursuit.

The visual ambition for this 5-feature slate is to bridge the raw, unvarnished soul of 1970s independent cinema with the precision of modern filmmaking. The entire pentalogy will be shot on high-end digital sensors (such as the Arri Alexa or RED), but the image will be heavily tailored in-camera to reflect the specific psychological state of each story.

Across the slate, the overarching visual texture will evoke the closed-grain reversal film stock that John Cassavetes utilized so beautifully. However, each film will adopt a distinct, tailored aesthetic to mirror the internal reality of its characters:

The Quietest Room

To strip back all visual contrasting distractions, The Quietest Room will be shot in high-contrast Black and White, utilizing the raw texture of a 4-X negative emulation. By shooting with the lens aperture wide open, the shallow depth of field will force audiences directly into the claustrophobic headspace of mania and psychosis. Without the comfort of color, the focus becomes purely about texture, tone, and raw emotion—from the quiet heartache of the family to the stark sterility of the hospital. The lighting will intentionally cast long, looming shadows that carry the impending threat of the racing whispers, using subtle VFX and high contrast to make the internal noise feel physically present in the room.

Disco Fries

To capture a grounded, 1970s aesthetic, the aim is to pair our modern digital sensors with vintage glass. By combining the natural flaws and flares of older lenses with a live color reversal emulation on our monitors, the film will feature a warm, sun-drenched, high-contrast look. The result is a richly grained aesthetic that feels viscerally tactile, perfectly placing the audience inside the heat, sweat, and rhythm of a 1979 disco club—which will stand in stark, chilling contrast to the peaceful, medieval atmosphere of the Kip estate castle where the cult resides.

Palliative

Serving as a sharp visual contrast to the rest of the slate, Palliative will lean into an "animated," hyper-real landscape that mirrors the kinetic energy of its cosplay world. This will be achieved using crisp, modern wide-angle lenses placed intimately close to the actors. Paired with bold, kinetic camera movements and stylized RGB lighting, the visual experience will be aggressive, precise, and deeply emotional. By pushing the camera intimately close to the performers within this hyper-real environment, it forces an unavoidable empathy from the audience, perfectly mirroring the intense emotional transitions the characters are enduring.

I’m Tired of Feeling and Unspoken & Unsighted

Because these final two films navigate intense, meta-layered realities, their visual language will serve as a stabilizing anchor, allowing those character arcs to truly come through. They will serve as the visually grounded halves to their partnering double features. Rather than utilizing heavy filters or stylized lenses, these stories will rely purely on the classic "closed-grain reversal" aesthetic established across the slate. The cinematography will be visually grounded, elegant, and beautiful—capturing a timeless, raw "opening night" energy. By keeping the camera objective, the intricate layers of the narratives are allowed to unfold naturally, trusting the strength of the ensemble to carry the weight of the shifting realities.

Because the production schedule is engineered for maximum efficiency, the editing process begins on set. By integrating a dedicated on-set editor or Digital Imaging Technician, we will assemble rough cuts of scenes immediately as they are shot. This real-time feedback loop ensures we capture exactly what we need without relying on costly over-coverage. By the time we wrap principal photography on each feature, a full rough assembly will already be complete. During the brief period between productions, while the ensemble decompresses and steps away from the emotional weight of the set, the producing team and I will screen this rough cut before the formal editing process begins. Once the final cuts are locked, these films will bypass the wonderful festival circuit and industry holding patterns entirely, going straight into theaters. This highly efficient workflow seamlessly feeds into our rapid-fire, month-long theatrical release strategy.

Theater Partnerships & The Event Catalyst

Once the cast is set, we will partner directly with theaters to establish the release infrastructure for the pentalogy. The official announcement of a month-long, double-feature movie event will serve as the primary stepping stone of our press for this project. It is entirely off this unprecedented release format and the resulting intrigue that we will build our core audience anticipation.

On-Set Editing & "Less is More" Teasers

Because our production hub integrates real-time, on-set editing, we will rapidly generate and deploy a drip-feed of cryptic, atmospheric teasers. This strict "less is more" strategy is designed to keep the audience in the dark regarding the overarching story. We are protecting the psychological integrity of the films so that viewers can experience true narrative surprise when they enter the theaters.

The marketing for this pentalogy will be driven entirely by the work itself. The caliber of the cast, the anticipation surrounding the project's announcement, and the deliberate drip-feed of teasers will command attention and speak for themselves. The momentum for these films will be built on the sheer excitement surrounding the unprecedented scale and high level of execution of this endeavor. If you have read the scripts, you will instantly understand why the marketing is designed in such a specific, guarded way.

Safeguarding the Ensemble & Press Run Protocol: Given the deeply sensitive nature of these works, our actors will be completely shielded from the intrusive grind of an extensive press run, especially since the films will go straight into theaters shortly after wrapping and editing are finished. Actors are given total autonomy over their promotional footprint. Once the films are released, they have the absolute freedom to collaborate with their personal publicists and teams to do as much or as little press as they wish. Furthermore, to maintain our safe, repertory company environment, we will provide a platform for them to exclusively interview their fellow castmates, or opt for a single, unified ensemble interview after we wrap. By giving the cast complete control over their narratives—including whether they desire to do interviews at all—my goal is for them to experience the movie rollout without feeling drained by the heavy subject matter of their roles. I want them to simply enjoy the audiences' reaction to the profound work they put into these characters, and to the stories that hold a mirror up to our shared humanity.

Curated Access & The Documentary Special: Pre-release visibility will bypass normal press junkets in favor of strictly curated access, potentially featuring a single, high-level ensemble interview. To satisfy the demand for behind-the-scenes insight while preserving the films' mystique, a comprehensive documentary detailing how everything came together will drop as a standalone TV special.

Pre-Production Digital Partnerships: Because these films tackle sensitive subjects, we will partner with The Bible App and leading Christian influencers to create themed devotionals and deep-dive content. These partnerships will be established early in pre-production, giving these leaders the time and space to read the scripts and craft truly comprehensive work in their analysis of the themes. By engaging in open dialogue early on, we ensure audiences are provided with genuine scriptural comfort and guidance upon release.

Experiential Empathy & Authenticity (The Quietest Room): To foster genuine empathy for those navigating mental illness in a stigmatized world, we will launch a companion website featuring a carefully designed psychosis simulator. Furthermore, we will partner with psychiatric group homes to engage with residents, utilizing the film and my own journey to create a space of shared understanding for youth navigating mental illness, showing them that they are not walking this path alone. This digital and community outreach will heighten the true-story aspect of the film, providing extra comfort to those who struggle to feel seen in their dark places.

Poetry Release & Spiritual Transparency: My ultimate goal with the release of this pentalogy is to introduce a generation to the God that comforted me in all my seasons of depression and darkness. Upon the films' release, I will draw renewed attention to my published book, Sullen Nights—which I was writing during the time of my episode in The Quietest Room—alongside the release of a new chapbook featuring the poems written directly during my hospital stay.

Awards Season Philosophy: This commitment to my team extends directly into campaign season. While I will robustly support and champion awards campaigns for our cast and the brilliant artisans behind the camera to ensure they receive the highest industry recognition they deserve, I will not be submitting myself for directorial, writing, or acting consideration for The Quietest Room. My sole focus during campaign season will be redirecting the spotlight entirely onto the actors and the incredible crew who will pour their souls into bringing these stories to life, deliberately stepping aside to leave room for my dedicated ensemble and other deserving contenders that year.

After all the anticipation and hard work from everyone attached, we enter into our pentalogy's release and a collective exhale. The safe, focused environment we built during production—supported by intimate micro-rehearsals and an agile, highly efficient set—will culminate in a groundbreaking theatrical event spanning a single month. Utilizing a rapid-fire release strategy to build compounding audience momentum as each film expands upon the interconnected world and themes, the films will hit theaters back-to-back before arriving on streaming platforms at a later date:

Week One: Double Feature (Palliative & Unspoken and Unsighted)

Week Three: Double Feature (Disco Fries & I'm Tired of Feeling)

Week Five: Single Feature Finale (The Quietest Room)

This ambitious release strategy is designed to leave a lasting impact on the hearts of audiences around the world. For both actors and audiences alike, the goal of these films is never to upheave trauma, but rather to bring closure to areas of pain. Through this cinema of truth and fly-on-the-wall approach, audiences will get to experience their beloved stars in profoundly human and honest roles.

These interconnected films are crafted to bring universal empathy, garnered through our shared humanity. This will all be made possible by the amazing cast, crew, producers, and studios who take a chance investing in an unknown multi-hyphenate artist—someone whose greatest desire is to witness the study of recognizable human behavior in elevated circumstances, brought to life by the very artists who have inspired me from the first moment I looked at a movie screen.

Given the subject of the films, through these cinematic, heightened circumstances, I aim to illuminate the beauty of the message of Christ. (Once you read the scripts, you'll see exactly what I mean. It's not a forced message, but an honest one.) Jesus stands between the threshold of our trauma and the threshold of pain. As He stands firm, when invited, He enters those dark places with us—bringing us to a place of peace and comfort through the illumination of Light and the fulfillment of Love that He is. That is my experience, and I want to share that with audiences.

If you have not yet requested a script, I invite you to do so. Once you dive into them, you will see that this entire vision and production plan is built on the foundation of truly strong material. Thank you for your time.