Is anybody out there?

SYNOPSIS

Kaya Torres always dreamt of leaving Earth behind, and travelling the stars.

But her mother, comfortable as a planetbound mechanic, did nothing to encourage her, dooming Kaya to follow in her mother’s footsteps whether she liked it or not.

Years later, Kaya makes it to space as a gearhead on a research vessel. When a freak accident destroys the ship, Kaya is thrown to safety in her cramped repair vehicle, the CRAWLER… Only to find herself trapped in the orbit of a nearby black hole.

She's the only survivor.

With little chance of escape, Kaya starts broadcasting for help, and unexpectedly connects with Hammer, a charming, nerdy cartographer who crash-landed on a nearby planet. While Hammer tries to keep her sane, Kaya works to break out of the massive gravity well. As her rations and oxygen run out, she drifts closer and closer to the event horizon, struggling with a fog of memories -- her rebellious childhood, her mother’s death, and the guilt of leaving Earth without saying goodbye.

Kaya wishes, more than anything else, she could talk to her mom one last time.

On the edge of defeat, and terrified of dying alone, Kaya realizes that Hammer's signal isn't coming from nearby... It's reaching her through the black hole! Though Hammer begs her to reconsider, Kaya drops her battered repair vehicle into the mysterious void, following his signal. The journey leads through a twist in space and time; as she enters the singularity, Kaya relives her entire life in seconds. She uses this chance to go back to her mom... Where she finally apologizes for leaving all those years ago.

Kaya continues through the black hole to the other side... Into a whole new universe, crashing onto Hammer’s planet. But when she finds him, Hammer isn’t there -- the few moments it took Kaya to cross through the black hole meant Hammer waited a lifetime for her to arrive. He died before she could save him.

Shattered, scared, and truly by herself, Kaya wipes her tears away. She didn't cross universes just to give up now.

She’s going to escape. One way or the other.

The Proof of Concept…

ALONE, which premiered December 2020 as a DUST Exclusive, was shot for just $6,000, but looks and feels like a studio-quality production, and is proof of what we can do on a low budget.

With a moving story, accomplished performances, incredible visuals, and award-winning sound design, ALONE has screened at prestigious festivals across North America, from 2021’s Hollyshorts and Dances With Films to its original worldwide premiere at Edmonton International in 2020; it’s won multiple accolades, including Best Actor (Steph Barkley) and the Dan O’Bannon Audience Award from 2020’s Other Worlds Film Fest.

Online, the film has garnered over 600,000 views on DUST’s YouTube channel, racking up 20k+ positive reactions in the process, along with over a million views on Facebook.

LOOK BOOK

A visual study of styles and concepts for TETHER

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Concept Art by Austin Hillebrecht

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COMPARABLE FILMS

THE TEAM

  • WILLIAM HELLMUTH - DIRECTOR/PRODUCER

    William Hellmuth, a Los Angeles-based director with a background in cinematography, has shot for brands like NBC, NERF, HONDA, and more. Coupling a strong visual eye with a desire to infuse meaning into every moment of whatever he's filming, William has a deep love for genre filmmaking, from swords and sandals fantasy, to high concept sci-fi. But, most of all, William loves telling stories that have something to say, and hopes to elevate unheard and diverse voices in all his future projects.

  • J. SCOTT WORTHINGTON - WRITER/PRODUCER

    Based out of Los Angeles, J. has accrued years of entertainment industry experience from AMC Networks to History Channel's KNIGHTFALL, and has worked the desks of several industry heavy-hitters; his scripts have placed in notable contests, including Final Draft’s Big Break, Screencraft's Pilot Launch, and UCLA Extension's Television Pilot Competition. He has a passion for telling female-driven, diversity-filled stories across multiple forms of media, particularly in sci-fi/fantasy, and is currently writing his first horror feature for North 40 Productions.

  • LUKE BARNETT - PRODUCER

    Luke Barnett most recently produced YOUR LUCKY DAY, a crime thriller starring the late Angus Cloud that premiered at Fantastic Fest before being released by Netflix, where it quickly hit the Top 5. Barnett previously wrote, produced, and starred in FAITH BASED — a satire of the Christian film industry that co-starred Jason Alexander, Lance Reddick, David Koechner, and Margaret Cho (94% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes). Other writing and producing credits include FEAR INC (Abigail Breslin, Tribeca), LOITERING WITH INTENT (Sam Rockwell, Marisa Tomei, Tribeca), and DARKNESS FALLS (Gary Cole, Shawn Ashmore).

INVESTMENT PLAN

All figures are estimates and subject to change.

  • -Total Budget: $356,884 USD after contingency/bond/E&O (based on a 10 hr, 20-day shoot in CA)

    -Financed via Private Investors

    -Minimum Investment: $10,000 USD

    -Investment Type: Share Ownership

    -Investment Life: 15 years

    -Genre: Sci-Fi / Drama

  • After commissions, SAG residuals, distribution expenses, etc.:

    1st Corridor: 100% for investors, up to 115% recoupment (subject to negotiations with individual investors).

    2nd Corridor: 50% for investors/50% for Filmmakers (the “Net Profits”).

    Investors’ share shall be calculated proportionally based upon percentage of original investment.

Investors will receive the full amount of their investment, a 15% premium, as well as a proportional split of any Net Profit derived from the exploitation of the Film (as defined above in “Path to ROI”).

POTENTIAL CREDITS (based upon level of investment)*

Special Thanks — Below $10k 

Co-Producer — Minimum $10k Investment

Executive Producer (1 credit) — Minimum $25k Investment

Executive Producer (multiple credits) + "In Association With" / Company Title Card in opening credits (if requested)

— $75k-100k or above

*Subject to good faith negotiations with Producers and execution of an Agreement between parties.

Projected Profit/Loss (Low, Medium, High)

Projected Investor Return (ROI)

THE NEXT STEPS

  • $25k committed funds — $17.5k cash on hand; $7.5k grants (disbursed over the course of production, via Screencraft)

  • We have a fantastic, award-winning proof-of-concept short film, a polished, award-winning feature screenplay, and a detailed line-item budget.

  • Operating as Tethered Film LLC (CA-based, established 2024). Investment Agreement on hand and available for review.

  • We’ve already secured vendors (VFX, post-sound) capable of AAA-caliber work at our budget point.

  • With our core crew and shared industry experience, we’re going to make a high-end, studio-level quality film at a fraction of the price of other projects, and we’ll do it all here in California.

  •  Current target shoot date is Late Summer/Fall 2025.

“What good is surviving when you're all by yourself? We need someone to tether us to the ground, otherwise we're adrift.

It's lonely.”

— Kaya