Mission 8
About
A first date can be filled with wonder and romance. For Ridley, it will be a night to remember when his date invites him to a meeting hosted by a sinister cult.
Starring Angelo Bua, Leslie Stratton and Becca Leigh Gellman. The supporting cast includes Robert Occhipinti, Paula Drake, Eugenia Arbol and Earl Reginhard, reprising the role of Ajay.
Written and directed by Richard Tur, Mission 8 is his second short film.
Cast
Angelo Bua as Ridley
Ridley is new to Los Angeles with dreams of becoming a screenwriter. He is smitten with Katherine who introduces him to Mission 8.
Angelo Bua studied acting at Joanne Barron and D.W. Brown Studio and the Beverly Hills Playhouse. He is also a writer and producer with two projects in production, ‘EarthBound’ and ‘When Angels Fall’.
Leslie Stratton as Katherine
Katherine is a beautiful young actress who charms Ridley on their first date.
Leslie Stratton is an Ohio-born actress who performed in plays and musicals throughout high school and college. She now resides in Los Angeles and has appeared in commercials, short films and feature films.
Becca Leigh Gellman as Lisette
Lisette will do whatever it takes to recruit new members to Mission 8.
Becca Leigh Gellman is a graduate of the USC School of Theatre. Originally from Austin, she has appeared on ‘The Secret Life of the American Teenager’ on ABC Family and co-starred on ‘Law and Order: LA’.
Robert Occhipinti as David
David welcomes new people to the group with open arms.
Originally from New York City, Robert starred in the independent feature film, ‘Drop Dead Rock’.
Paula Drake as Priscilla
Priscilla will challenge anyone who questions Mission 8.
Paula Drake lives in Los Angeles and co-starred in the Cinerama short film, ‘In the Picture’ and the companion documentary, ‘The Last Days of Cinerama’. As a practicing attorney, she appeared in the documentary, ‘The Actor’s Journey’ on the rights of child actors.
Eugenia Arbol as Ingrid
Ingrid is a devout follower.
Eugenia Arbol is an Argentinean actress born in Buenos Aires. She has appeared on stage, television, commercials and the feature film, ‘Last Images of the Shipwreck’.
Earl Reginhard as Ajay
Ajay is a recent immigrant and newly recruited into Mission 8.
Earl Reginhard reprises the titular character from the Cinefina short film, ‘Ajay’. He is a commercial pilot turned actor and filmmaker. He has produced and acted in the short films, ‘Friend’ and ‘American Dream’.
Filmmaker
Richard Tur
Richard Tur wrote, produced, directed and edited Mission 8. It is his second short film, following ‘Ajay’.
He taught himself filmmaking by observing how film and television shows were made while working as a background actor in Hollywood. He later worked crew on student films that he could learn how to make his own films on a budget.
Story
Mission 8 is about an organization that uses coercive social tactics to manipulate its members. Ridley is attracted by Katherine’s innocence and beauty, but Mission 8 plays on her naivety and charm to recruit others.
Ridley is faced with a moral dilemma: he can stay with the group for the sake of Katherine, try to save her or leave, knowing she will be exploited.
Aspiring actors and creatives come out to Hollywood with dreams of making it and oftentimes it is a difficult and lonely struggle.
People are vulnerable to joining a cult when they are in a state of transition in their lives. Young people are especially vulnerable because cults play on their sense of ambition, idealism and need for acceptance.
Common tactics to manipulate members within a cult is called ‘love bombing’ – lavish demonstrations of attention and affection, and ‘groupthink’ – where members search for unity by suppressing dissenting viewpoints and isolating themselves from non-believers.
Without the close support from their family and friends, converts are indoctrinated within a social circle that seemingly cares about them but in fact are using them.
Production
The movie was shot at 24fps / 1080p using a Canon EOS Rebel T3i / 600D. The camera was upgraded with the Magic Lantern firmware and Technicolor CineStyle. A Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II prime lens was used with a Fotga DP500 2 follow focus system.
The sound was recorded using a Tascam DR-05 digital audio recorder with an Audio-Technica ATR-55 line cardioid condenser microphone. The sound was recorded as uncompressed 96k, 24-bit audio.
Final Cut Pro X was used for editing along with additional tools for color grading and image noise reduction. Adobe After Effects was used for compositing and correcting specific shots. Adobe Audition was used to create a clean dialog track. All sound effects and foley were recorded separately and mixed in.
ProRes 422 was used as an intermediate codec. The release version is MPEG-4.
Gallery
Credits
Angelo Bua … Ridley
Leslie Stratton … Katherine
Becca Leigh Gellman … Lisette
Robert Occhipinti … David
Paula Drake … Priscilla
Eugenia Arbol … Ingrid
Earl Reginhard … Ajay
Written and Directed by Richard Tur
Produced by Arline L. Bronzaft
Assistant Director … Earl Reginhard
Sound … Amas Orighoye
Script Supervisor … Shelli St. George
Production Manager … Cynthia Anne Russell
Editing and Post Production … Richard Tur
Location Services … Greg Kotler
Casting Services … CAZT Studios
“Lie Down In Darkness”
Written and Performed by Moby
Used with permission. All rights reserved.
Gianni Schicchi – “O Mio Babbino Caro”
Written by Giacomo Puccini
Performed by Frances Alda
Victor Talking Machine Company
A Cinefina Production
Made in Hollywood, U.S.A.
Copyright © MMXIII Cinefina. All rights reserved.
Running Time: 13:16 | Aspect Ratio: 16:9 | Stereo | 2013 | Color | Drama | USA | English | Short Film
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