Cinema Therapy Studios (Patreon)

Hey Cinemizers and Therapizers,

Alan here to talk to you all about a project we've been working on, that we're really excited to share with you all in 2024 (with your help!)

We're going to go into a lot more detail in this post, but here's a quick overview:

1. We're going to make a short film every year (scaling up to more shorts and/or a feature, if we get enough patrons to fund it!)

2. You (our CT Heroes) are the Studio Executives!

3. This will create a lot of deep dive material, both filmmaking, and psychology/therapy!

4. We're going to launch a new tier (The SuperVillain!) for the die-hard supporters who want even more access to us, the cast/crew, and even more input on the projects we're going to make.

1. We had so much fun making Moonstruck (Alan's short from 2022) that we've figured out a way to keep the good times rolling!

And hopefully help a lot of people in the process. We're not just going to make shorts that are artistic (though they will be) or entertaining (though they will be) but they're going to deal with real psychological and relationship issues, with input from YOU, the Patrons who are funding the movies.  
With the big influx of Patrons over the last month, we're in a good position to bring you bigger and better things! Obviously, the more Patrons we get, the bigger the yearly short can be. Or we can make 2 short films a year. Or... we can make a feature! But let's not get ahead of ourselves.

2. What is a Studio Executive, and what do they do?

You're going to help us decide what we make a movie about and who we cast in the movie.  You're going to know what our budget and schedule look like, who we're working with on Post-production (editing, sound, music, vfx) All the million mundane details that go into the giant mobile circus that is film production!

But the biggest deal is, you get to green light the project. We're still working out exactly what the process will look like, but Patrons will get to submit story ideas, what (generally) issue we're focused on, and when you're satisfied with our story pitch, you get to tell us "Greenlight. Make that movie!" It's gonna be pretty cool.

Also, since you're running the studio (I mean, kinda) you get all the updates a normal studio would after you greenlight our movie: During prep you get to look at art and storyboards. During production, you get to see the production reports. During post-production, you get to see updates that might includ things like rough cuts, early VFX shots, livestreams from editing, scoring, and mix sessions, all kinds of cool stuff!

3. Deep Dives Galore!

We're obviously going to make loads of Filmmaking Deep Dive content with the cast and crew of the shorts, much of it determined by you, the Patrons! Tell us what you want to learn about, and we'll dive deep! You'll also get to know our cast & crew and love them just like Alan does!

But you'll also get lots of Therapy Deep Dives with Jonathan! He's going to be analyzing the characters, doing research on their individual diagnoses throughout the filmmaking process, working with the writers, actors and director to make sure that (while we're going to have compelling drama) we're also going to accurately portray symptoms, causes, and potential treatments for these characters who are, let's face it, going to be going through some tough spots.

4. New Tier! - The SuperVillain

This will get you the highest levels of access to the entire process. Some things we've thought of are:

• Livestreams from the set, from the edit bay, from the writer's room, from the casting sessions, from the mix stage. Be a metaphorical fly-on-the-wall as we make these films.
• Greater decision-making power about the story points and themes of the films.
• A monthly progress report meeting with the production team? Basically, a check-in with us.
• An exclusive Discord channel (that I swear I'll be more active in!)

We're still figuring out the details for this tier, but we plan to launch it next month, so watch for those details coming soon. We're also open to any & all ideas from our Patrons, so if you've got something you'd like to see or do from a very-high-end tier, please let us know below.

Also, the character logo will probably be a cell phone. Because what is more villainous in a movie theater than a mobile phone?

Premieres, or how to watch the films and when will they be available?

Most of the content will remain Patron-Exclusive. But the shorts themselves, and select behind the scenes content, will get published on YouTube for the world to see, after an exclusivity period on Patreon (at least 6 months). We're also considering submitting to film festivals (though of course our Patrons won't have to wait for that process, you'll be able to watch the finished films right here on Patreon from the day they're finished.)

If you have questions about Cinema Therapy Studios, please leave a comment below. We're still in the planning stages of this, and we want to make sure that whatever we're going to do, we're going to do it with the full backing of YOU, the people who make this work. We will be posting regularly over the next few weeks as we figure out the details of the new tier, and what exactly our schedule is going to be for this year's short.

We're extremely excited to LAUNCH A MOVIE STUDIO with all of you. We really love making all the extra stuff that you get here on Patreon, and as we continue to grow, we wanted to make sure that we were giving more back.