About
Our stories are designed to resonate with audiences today, and we secure distribution before production ever begins. Our plan is to create the new generation of classic Midwestern comedy films along the lines of Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Home Alone, High Fidelity, Tommy Boy, Uncle Buck, The Blues Brothers, and others.
There was a brand of Midwestern comedy that died with the early passing of John Hughes, John Candy, and Chris Farley. It centers around a good-natured type of Midwestern humor that is no longer found in theaters, replaced by the irreverent outlandishness of Judd Apatow, Will Ferrell, Ben Stiller, and others. We’re betting audiences miss it, and will come back once they see it.
We also utilize the Illinois Film Tax Credit to guarantee 30% – 45% return as a starting point. Our writers, cinematographers, actors, and directors are all selected based on their track records of success, so risk to investors is minimized with venture-level upside potential. Both accredited and non-accredited investors are welcome to join.
Team
Max Brudvig
Producer
Max has produced films along with TV advertisements for Fortune 100 companies. He's also the founder and director of the Chicago Film Scene, Chicago's largest filmmaker community. The Chicago Film Scene website attracts over 200,000 visitors every year and has hosted over 250 filmmaker networking events. The Chicago Film Scene directory is the largest database of film professionals in Chicago, with over 700 members ranging from cinematographers to production assistants.
Michael Glover Smith
Advisor & Director
Michael Glover Smith is an independent filmmaker whose debut feature, Cool Apocalypse (2015), won awards at festivals across the U.S. and screened at Chicago's Gene Siskel Film Center and Movies in the Parks' Onscreen Local Film Showcase. His second feature, Mercury in Retrograde, won the top prizes at the 2018 Tallahassee Film Festival and the 2017 Full Bloom Film Festival and was the subject of a rave review by the Chicago Sun-Times' Richard Roeper. His third feature, the anthology film Rendezvous in Chicago, premiered at the 2018 Adirondack Film Festival and won the Best Film Comedy award at the 2019 George Lindsey Film Festival. Relative, his fourth feature, won Best Narrative Feature awards at the Buffalo International Film Festival and Full Bloom Film Festival and awards for acting at the Gasparilla International Film Festival, Festival of Cinema NYC and Midwest Film Festival. It also received the widest theatrical release of any of Smith's movies to date: despite its "micro budget," it was the 23rd highest grossing film in the United States during its first week of release. Smith was a recipient of the Gene Siskel Film Center's Star Filmmaker award in 2017 and made Newcity Chicago's "Film 50" list in 2018 and 2020 for being one of 50 individual's who "shape Chicago's film scene." He also co-authored the book Flickering Empire: How Chicago Invented the U.S. Film Industry. He teaches film history and aesthetics at several Chicago-area colleges and is the founder and sole author of the film blog White City Cinema.
Rob Tovar
Advisor & Soundstage Director
Rob is the Co-Founder of 'The Hangar' film stage, and also serves as Director of Operations at 2112 creative and tech incubator within Fort Knox Studios Chicago, and has been instrumental in it's continued growth. Rob is also one of 3 partners who have launched a brand new media platform Noteworthy Media Network which is currently available on Apple or Google play stores. In the last decade Rob has been involved with multi-media sales, operations and productions. Some of Rob's recent projects have included: Location's stage manager for the acclaimed TV series CBS Redline, NBC's Chicago Fire TV show, Film 'Come as you are', Film 'Chasing the Blues', Film 'Signature move', New pilot series Showtime network 'Work in Progress', Made for TV Film Disney Free Form 'The Thing about Harry' . Production show runs for various artist's and bands which most recently have included; Chance the Rapper, Smashing Pumpkins, Spite, Non-point, Night Ranger, Chevelle, and Louis the Child. Rob also has a diverse background and relationship within the Sporting community (NBA, NFL, NHL, and MLB) his most recent accomplishment, as a marketing partner with 'Elite Amateur Fight League' a Mixed Martial Arts competition which is the minor's to MMA sports, which airs on NBC Sports and Marquee Sports Network.
Josh da Silva
Advisor & Distributor
Josh da Silva is the Vice President of Acquisitions and Distribution at Questar Inc. and Cow Lamp Films. Their film catalog includes Blacksmith, Driftless, A House is Not a Home: Wright or Wrong, Community Theater Christmas, Chicago Heights, Ginger, Banana Season, Quarter Life Crisis, Thieves Quartet, Rendezvous in Chicago, Close Quarters, Open Tables, Conviction: The True Story of Clarence Elkins, Olympia, Animator, Little Red, Back at the Staircase, The Law of Moises, Skippers, The View from Tall, Empty Space, Agents Unknown, Dear Coward on the Moon, Something Out of Nothing, and more.