An Industry Case Study
Narrative | Dramatic Features
Film Name: Proxy
Genre: Sci-fi, Thriller
Length of film: in word(s) / number(s)
Date: March 1st 2020
Director: Sophia Banks
Producer: Jessica (JP) Bradham & David O’Donnell
Writer: Dominick Joseph Luna
Cinematographer: Joshua Reis
Production Company: Banks Films
Budget: $30,000.00
Financing: Self Funded (through Banks Films)
Shooting Format: Digital
Screening Format: DCP/Pro Res 422 (since all online)
World Premiere: NA
Awards: Best Film, Los Angeles Lift Off
Website: www.sophiabanks.com
The Official Trailer for Proxy
Watch The Trailer for Proxy directed by Sophia Banks
A Short Biography of Sophia Banks
Sophia Banks is an award-winning director with a debut feature, Black Site. An action thriller starring Jason Clarke, Michelle Monaghan and Jai Courtney in Australia’s Gold Coast, in February 2021.
Banks’ debut sci-fi short, Unregistered, stars Dylan Penn and Trevor Jackson. It premiered at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival and went on to screen at over twenty film festivals worldwide. She directed her second short, Proxy, during the pandemic in 2020. Banks established herself as a director with her 2017 short, Making it on Time for Christian Siriano.
Banks has directed numerous award-winning commercials for brands. Such as Pepsi, Chobani, BMW, Target and Ford. As well as fashion films for Pam & Gela, Ralph and Russo, Kylie and Kendall Jenner, Annie Bing and Tome.
The Sophia Banks Interview
indieactivity: What is your film about?
Sophia Banks (SB): Proxy centers around the concept of disconnection with humanity and the lengths we go to in order to reconnect. A ‘Proxy’ is a stand in, an “actor” hired to portray the role of anyone that you desire whether it be an ex-lover, a relative who has passed on or anyone else that you want to connect with, without having to face the reality of a real connection. It allows you to play out any scenario without fear of the real consequence. Our short film centers on Victoria who is a hired ‘Proxy’ (Emma Booth) . Victoria tries to navigate the life of being one of the highest in demand proxies in the city while at the same time struggling with her own demons.
Tell us about the festival run, marketing and sales?
Sophia Banks (SB): Since completion of post production at the end of May, Proxy has been accepted to over 10 festivals worldwide and we recently took home the Best Film award for the Los Angeles Lift Off Festival. We are also now developing Proxy into a series which we will have more to share about in 2021.
Give the full Official Synopsis for your film?
Sophia Banks (SB): Proxy is a sci-fi drama short set in the not too distant future. In a world where people hire ‘Proxys’- humans trained in the fine art of ’standing in’ for a lost loved one, a family member that has passed, a husband or wife that left, or an estranged daughter or son- Victoria (Emma Booth) tries to navigate the life of being one of the highest in demand proxies in the city while at the same time struggling with her own demons. This short explores the delicate state that is the human condition and the attempt to find success in a time where ‘rent-a-humans’ abound.
Development & Financing?
Sophia Banks (SB): Director Sophia Banks and Screenplay Writer Dominick Joseph Luna came together to develop a short film to shoot as a proof of concept. The idea for proxy came from an article about how Japan currently has “boutique” proxy services, a new trend among the elite. Together they created the story and the screenplay was written.
We decided to then finance the project from a portion of funds from Banks Films commercial work that year and found cast and crew that were just as excited and passionate about the project as we were. With David O’Donnell producing alongside Jessica (JP) Bradham, the team was able to attach incredible talent and crew including Emma Booth (The Gloaming, Hounds of Love), Erika Christensen (Traffic, Swimfan) and Marcus Coloma (General Hospital, Beverly Hills Chihuahua).
Production?
Sophia Banks (SB): The most important part of the Production process for Proxy was finding the right team to work with. We really lucked out and as one does in the short film process, you call upon your friends and those you trust to bring the vision to life. We were able to work yet again with the talented DP, Joshua Reis, who has an extensive background in visually stunning work, having shot for international brands in the commercial space as well as top musical performing artists in the Music Video world.
We also had the honor of working with top Hair and Makeup Designer, Nana Fischer (World War Z, Prometheus) who brought her extensive background in transforming talent to the table. Costume Designer Angels Hadnagy,—who was also the costume designer for Banks first Short Narrative Unregistered—lended her eye to land the look and Rene Navarrette topped it off with Production Design.
Once we knew we had the right people in place to make this film happen, we scheduled out two shoot days, shooting this all in one location which also was the Directors residence, making set up and breakdown an absolute breeze.
Right after the shoot, we went into full lockdown. Luckily all of our post production team were able to work safely from home and so all of the work that we did was remote. It was a new way of handling the post production, since a lot of the projects we do allow us to be apart of the process in a post house but we were able to again work with some incredibly experienced professionals in their field including editor Billy Rich (Ghost in the Shell) VFX Supervisor Christoph Roth (The Lion King, Guardians of the Galaxy) as well as Colorist Tyler Roth at Company 3.
Festival Preparation & Strategy?
SB: With Proxy now our second short narrative film, we decided to follow the path we went with on our first short narrative, Unregistered, which made headlines in the festival circuit in 2019 having made its world premiere at the Tribeca film festival.
WIth Proxy, we decided to get it to as many eyes as possible, knowing festivals would be online this year, which made us excited at the potential that now more people could have access to see it.
We use platforms such as FilmFreeway to carefully select festivals that we feel could best showcase our work, HollyShorts is of course always at the top of our list, having been accepted for the second year in a row. Additionally, we like to get our cast and crew involved, having them share content from the film through social media platforms and share festivals that we are showing in so that we can reach more people who may like to see it.
The Release?
SB: We released this movie through the film festival circuit, which is the preferred way for us. We like the grassroots approach where we can reach real audiences and those who are aspiring filmmakers as well to hopefully show what you can do with a little bit of ingenuity.
Advice from the Filmmaker?
SB: If you have an idea that you want to create on, go for it and make it happen no matter the barriers. There will always be potential stops to your production but if your vision is something you know you need to get on film and get seen do it! Also remember that there are people out there who want to help you succeed and who started from the bottom, don’t be afraid to ask for help from someone else in the industry
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