An Industry Case Study
Narrative | Dramatic Features
Film Name: Polybius
Genre: Sci-Fi
Length of film: in word(s) / number(s)
Date: 2019
Director: Sharon Everitt
Producer: Jessica Rionero
Executive & Creative Producer: name(s)
Writer: Sharon Everitt & Doug Benson
Cinematographer: Dan Adlerstein
Production Company: Backscratcher Films
Budget: NA
Financing: NA
Shooting Format: NA
Screening Format: NA
World Premiere: NA
Awards: NA
Website: NA
The Official Trailer for Polybius
Watch The Trailer for Polybius directed by Sharon Everitt
A Short Biography of Sharon Everitt
3-time Emmy nominee Sharon Everitt has directed over 150 episodes of television, including That’s My Time with David Letterman on Netflix, ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live!“, NBC’s World of Dance, and Comedy Central’s cult favorite The High Court.
Her 2019 award-winning musical comedy Brentwood has played dozens of festivals around the US and won Best Short Film at the Independent Filmmaker Showcase in Los Angeles. Sharon is part of the 2021 DGA Mentorship Program. She was named one of the 2020 Blackmagic Future Women of Television, and was part of the 2018-19 NBC Alternative Directors Program.
The Sharon Everitt Interview
indieactivity: What is your film about?
Sharon Everitt (SE): POLYBIUS is based on the urban legend of the Polybius video game that supposedly surfaced in the early 1980s in Portland Oregon. It was a mysterious game that is said to have shown up in arcades in an unmarked cabinet, installed by secretive people who frequently returned to collect data from the machine.
Players became addicted to the gameplay and some players became possessed by its advanced levels. The cabinet would always disappear from the arcade before its origins could be traced. The urban legend was born out of the internet in the past few years, and I love the idea of a game that destroys your mind – especially set in the 80s. Our film is essentially a stylized fast-paced scene depicting the potential danger of Polybius.
Tell us about the festival run, marketing and sales?
Sharon Everitt (SE): POLYBIUS premiered at Fantastic Fest in 2019 and placed 3rd in the bumper competition. It has since gone on to play Hollyshorts, Berlin Sci-Fi Festival, and Oltre lo Specchio in Rome.
Development & Financing?
Sharon Everitt (SE): We originally created the film as a bumper project with Fantastic Fest in mind. The theme was urban legends, so I worked with my good friend comedian & writer Doug Benson, and our lead actor Alicia Glass, on finding a concept we all liked. We needed something we could show in just one scene, and we all thought the urban legend of the Polybius game was wildly cool and unexplored. I wrote the script with Doug’s help, focusing on action and timing over dialogue.
Production?
Sharon Everitt (SE): Production largely revolved around finding the perfect arcade location. We scouted several spots in Los Angeles, and settled on an arcade sales showroom in Glendale. We had to shoot in the morning due to location constraints, and it was an all-hands-on-deck process to darken the super bright windows in the showroom to create the dark mood I wanted for the scene. Our wonderful DP, Dan Adlerstein, was climbing all over the building covering windows himself.
It was a true team effort to get the shoot finished in the day’s time constraints. Post production fell on the shoulders of Guy Harding, an accomplished editor and good friend. Music was a big part of the scene, and needed to be in place before the edit. I found a new Italian artist, Enea Pascal, who had the perfect track for the scene where Alicia’s character is knocked out. We tracked Enea down and got him on board for the project. Guy then cut the scene to fit Enea’s music perfectly. It’s really the ideal track, and I can’t imagine POLYBIUS with anything else.
Advice from the Filmmaker?
Sharon Everitt (SE): Filmmaking can be an incredible uphill battle, and it’s not for the faint of heart. The key is to have a clear vision of what you are trying to create, and an understanding of why you want to make it. Why does your project need to exist? The answers will help you shape your story and find your audience. Financing projects can be difficult, so starting small can help you get things out to the world while finding your voice. Try to not have lofty expectations. Find joy in the process, and trust that you will end up at the right destination at the right time.
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