Car Crash Girl
Short Film
Project Type: Short Film
Project Status: Pre-Production
Director, Producer, Screenwriter: Taylor Wells
Producer: Jess DiMento
“ Car Crash Girl explores the jarring collision between adolescence and mortality, as 15-year-old Dill confronts the fragility of life, the fear of autonomy, and the courage it takes to move forward.”
LOGLINE
15 year old Dill is on her normal commute to work one morning when she and her mother come across the aftermath of a tragic car accident.
SYNOPSIS
Dill Reider, at 15 years old, is at the age where she can take a first, cold, hard look at the world and realize it might not be everything she hoped for. She’s got her learner’s permit, she’s touched the wheel. Her first taste of autonomy.
Dill's mom, Sonia, is driving her to work on their normal commute when they're held in traffic as a car accident is cleared. Dill can't look away, the image of the warped wreckage burns in her eyes. She's never seen anything like this and never contemplated the idea that something like this could happen to her.
Dill is forced to continue on with her day and serve pie to customers with a smile, but some new realization is brewing inside of her. When she brings this up to her misfit manager, she's surprised by his nonchalant attitude towards death. Dill begins to see and understand him in a way she never has before. In the end, she pushes herself to confront this fear of driving and is sent into flight.
MORE ABOUT THIS PROJECT
The short film is a proof of concept for my feature film of the same title that centers around teenage loneliness and mental health. In the short film, I plan to focus more on Dill's relationship with her mom. Sonia is a single mom who is trying to do her best, just like mine did. The intense relationship between a teenager and her mom is heightened with the pressure of learning how to drive.
Their car has now become a vehicle (literally) that represents a chasm between mom and daughter. Soon, Dill will be able to drive herself to work and school and she won't need her mother. But there are also dangers and consequences as Dill is reminded on her way to work. There's also the fear of danger, a different thing, that stands to hold Dill back.
I think coming-of-age stories are one of our most important genres and I would like to contribute to the medium and the tradition of helping young people feel seen. There is a levity and sense of humor that surrounds the grave topic of death that I think is incredibly important.
I'm no stranger to tragedy and death - I was in a car accident that changed my life and have lost two father figures. I think many films often shy away from the mundane way we have to live with loss daily.
Meet The Filmmakers
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Sarah Rich
Director
Sarah Rich is an actor, writer, producer, and upcoming director. As an actor, she has starred in television shows such as Chicago PD, Orange is the New Black, Blacklist, Law and Order: SVU; and has played leading roles in feature films such as Netflix’s Purple Hearts; #Like on Amazon Prime; and Julie Pacino’s debut feature film I Live Here Now, which will be distributed by Utopia.
During the Covid Pandemic, Sarah took advantage of the free time and started churning out her own scripts and developing projects with other eager multiple-hat wearing filmmakers. It’s been a great joy for her to have the space to hone in her skills behind the camera, have more autonomy as an artist, and get to enjoy the whole process of filmmaking with like minded wonderful people.
Most recently Produced and Assisted Directed on the short film That Old Black Magic directed by Alan Trinca – a recipient of the AGBO/Russo Brothers Italian American Filmmaker Forum Grant.
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Mackenzie Hamilton
Producer
Mackenzie Hamilton is a Los Angeles-based writer, producer, and director. Earlier this year, she wrote and directed her debut short film, Into the Stand, filmed on location in her hometown on Vancouver Island, Canada.
Mackenzie is also the Managing Editor and a founding member of Cero Collective, a New York-based arts and culture nonprofit dedicated to supporting artists and sustaining creative communities in the city. As a writer, she has contributed to The Last Magazine and The Broadsheet. She regularly writes for Cero Magazine, where she profiles a diverse range of figures, from actors and activists to directors and other cultural influencers.
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Kelly Campbell
Producer
Kelly Campbell is a film producer, writer, and entrepreneur based out of Asheville, NC. She graduated from Interlochen Arts Academy, received her MFA from the Asolo Repertory Conservatory, BA from Kalamazoo College, and extended mentorship during her theater and film career in NYC. Campbell volunteers her time with NICU centers for infants with NAS, and is a widely respected astrologer and poet whose work is shared globally.
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Julie Pacino
Co-Producer
Julie Pacino is a lifelong film aficionado, having served as a filmmaker, producer and professional photographer for the entirety of her career.
Julie has written, directed, and produced several award-winning short films which have been showcased at many festivals, including Tribeca Film Festival, Cannes Film Festival, HollyShorts film festival, and Soho Film festival.
She produced "Hidden Blueprints", a documentary which brought former inmates back to a prison to reenact the circumstances around a 2004 prison riot. "Hidden Blueprints" has won several awards at various festivals around the world, including Santa Barbara International Film Festival and Cleveland International Film Festival.
Julie also worked as a producer on the sold-out Off-Broadway production "Phoenix", starring Julia Stiles at The Cherry Lane Theatre in Manhattan.
Julie is currently in post-production on her feature film directorial debut ‘I Live Here Now’, a co-production with Robert Schwartzman’s Utopia.
In addition to her film endeavors, Julie is a photographer and has led the creative direction for several brand campaigns, most recently for AllSaints and ShoePalace. Her photography was chosen by TIME Magazine as part of the Publication’s famous TIMEPieces “Build a Better Future: Genesis” collection. Most recently Julie had the privilege of showcasing her photographs in an exhibition called "Broad Strokes II" at the Leica gallery in Beverly Hills.
Julie is represented by CAA.
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Luke Pengelly
Cinematographer
Luke Pengelly is a British Cinematographer currently working out of Los Angeles. He began his training as an actor and is a proud graduate of the NYU Tisch Drama program. Luke began working behind the Camera and in the Electric department, having worked on numerous short films, commercials, music videos and TV shows, including DAVE (FX) and the upcoming film OPUS (A24).
He feels his background as an actor uniquely positions him to approach each film through the lens of character, world building, and elevating the nuance of an actor's performance in service of the story
Your Help
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