ABOUT THE PROJECT

LOGLINE
Generations after a global environmental collapse, a young boy raised on the sea discovers a map and begins a voyage to a mythical place once known as “land.”

SYNOPSIS
AHOY! is a nautical, salty, sour, sometimes sweet, dirty bare feet, finger licking, bone picking, sunburnt, top of your lungs, lump in your throat, freckles on your cheek, windswept, whirlwind fairy tale. Our story is told through the eyes of a young boy named Ahoy who dreams of one day visiting a mythical place once known as “land”. On a planet consumed by the sea, a colony of survivors live out their days on a big, resilient old longshore fishing boat converted to meet their post-apocalyptic needs. They use solar power, eat from the sea and from their on-deck gardens, collect rainwater and distill it in the sun. They float slowly through the endless sea underneath an open sail.

This short film is the proof of concept and proposed opening sequence for our feature film in development. The short is narrated entirely by a song that sails between a sea shanty and a lullaby, made up from a rag tag collection of slightly off tuned instruments, the creaks, bangs, groans of the ship and the chorus of the crew. It tells the origins of the ship, the folklore of Ahoy’s infant discovery, and the action of our onscreen adventure.

On the eve of a massive storm, Ahoy seizes an opportunity and diverts the ship toward land for the first time in decades. After getting caught up in a terrifying swell, Ahoy awakens to see his plan worked. But the sight of land is a harrowing reminder of a lost world: a pathetic strip of a barrier island being swallowed by the sea. The film ends with Ahoy’s realization that the old world is not for him. He is comforted by his family, he lets his cherished old map be taken by the wind, and he looks on toward the horizon.

PROJECT TYPE Narrative Short

DIRECTOR Julian Alvarez
SCREENWRITER Julian Alvarez
PRODUCER Emmi Shockley, Rebecca Mendoza Mejia, Jess Gabor

WEBSITE Instagram Page