By NICK SLOAN, nick@kansascitykansan.com
As a kid, local filmmaker David Matheny was a big fan of science-fiction films from the 1980's, including The Terminator and Ghostbusters. Years later, Matheny wants to play a part in the sci-fi film scene - but he needs your help.
Matheny is working on an independent project entitled "The Runaway Sun," a short 15-minute film set in the distant future where the human race is an endangered specie.
Matheny gained his passion for the films early on in life.
Matheny has won awards as a writer and a director. He started filming "fight scenes" with his friends after school.
After attending Avila University, he produced a short film called "The Scientist" and has worked in Los Angeles, Calif., as an editor for the series "Bite Me."
His newest project takes movie viewers to a future that includes aliens and robots. Because of the special effects involved in it, Matheny and Kansas City area producer Jenny Brinkman need $30,000 by mid-June to make it happen.
"This is a short film and it's a lot different than a movie," Matheny said. "We want this to be an emotional journey in 15 minutes."
While technically a donation, those who make donations will receive something in return.
For example, a $7 donation will allow someone to receive a free digital download of the film; someone who makes a $20 donation will receive a free download of the film's score and a $35 donation is good enough to receive a DVD of the film that includes hours of special features.
Donation levels reach all the way to $5,000. All donations that are made go directly to expenses associated with the film. Matheny and his crew are not paying themselves to make the film.
"Nobody is actually getting paid," he said. "It's all going towards actual movie expenses."
Early on in the process, Matheny and his team have received just over $2,100 in donations. There are 25 days left to donate.
If the team receives $15,000 in donations, the group will proceed with pre-production, which includes building the set, making robots and building props associated with the film.
Over $7,000 is required to move forward with production. Other expenses include a $4,000 camera required to film the movie in high quality HD production.
Matheny believes the future of sci-fi movies is bright, particularly due to the technology advancements made every day. He hopes to play a big future in it.
"Sci-Fi is huge right now," he said. "As technology gets better, Sci-Fi is just going to grow even more. People have the technology to make it happen.
The goal is to release the movie by May 2014.
If you're interested in donating, you can check out the site here. The Runaway Sun can also be found on Facebook.
Below is a short behind-the-scenes video about the project.
