ABOUT THE PROJECT
LOGLINE
A planeload of Air Force wives must avert World War III while balancing infidelities, spies, martinis and fondue.
SYNOPSIS
A Cold War thriller/comedy set in 1973, ATOMIC FONDUE is an upcoming American independent fiction feature film with a cast that includes Oscar, Emmy, Tony, Golden Globe, Gotham and Spirit nominees.
Award-winning producer Dan Mirvish, director Kai Swanson, and their team of experienced collaborators completed principal photography in August 2026 in Los Angeles. The film is currently in post-production and is continuing to raise completion funding. Backers get regular updates on who”s in the cast, secret footage, and other perks.
The cinematography is beautiful, performances are transformative, production and costume design are groovy and the film is already cutting together seamlessly in the edit room. Cinematographer Kate Ketcham filmed part of the movie on real Kodak Super16mm film and also used the same vintage Soviet-era anamorphic lens Sean Baker used to shoot Oscar-winner Anora! But post-production and completion will definitely require more money.
The plan had been that Dan would direct ATOMIC FONDUE, which he’d been developing for several years based on an original idea set in his native Omaha. But in a Hollywood-style plot twist, just a week before filming, Dan had emergency diverticulitis surgery. He handed the directing chair over to producer Kai Swanson. The cast and crew rallied around the sudden change and the production didn’t skip a beat: The film started shooting on August 10th as planned and finished three weeks later on schedule. Editor Aliza Brugger is cutting the film and composer Luis Guerra has started working on the music.
The time is perfect for a high stakes, but funny, take on nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation, feminism, Russian relations, defense gender policy, and of course, fondue. Once complete, ATOMIC FONDUE will continue to have long-tail resonance as these kinds of issues will stay relevant in both the US, and around the world.
PROJECT TYPE Narrative Feature
DIRECTOR Kai Swanson
SCREENWRITER Christine Vartoughian
PRODUCER Dan Mirvish, Kai Swanson, James A. Heim, Randy Greenberg, Christoph G. Gross
WEBSITE
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