Hotel is a 20-minute noir/thriller, based on an award winning screenplay, that follows a down on his luck night manager named John who’s been pressured into taking his co-workers shift after working a full day himself. If dealing with irate guests and degenerates wasn’t enough, John’s luck takes a turn for the worse when a pair of armed jewel thieves show up to find a partner who double crossed them in a heist. Now John must save himself and the guests of the hotel, all before he has to be back at the front desk for his AM shift.
Hotel is an edge-of-your-seat thrill ride that is inspired by a love of classic noir thrillers from the 90’s, as well as the writer/director’s own experience working at the same hotel the film takes place in. Thematically, it’s a story about having big dreams, but getting stuck in the doldrums of life, and how we must overcome fear and keep pushing forward.
The Film
Hotel is set to be filmed entirely on location at the Historic Cary House Hotel, a boutique property built in 1857 in Placerville, CA. The film is set in 1995, so the Cary House is the perfect backdrop and not much needs to be changed in terms of production design. These images of the property highlight its unique charm, including a draw gate Pacific Elevator and hand-made stained glass windows..
The Location
The Characters
John - A burnt out night manger working his third shift in a row. He’s tired, frustrated, and just wants to get a drink on and maybe a few winks before his morning shift. He dreams of one day becoming a comic book artist, but that dream seems too far out of sight. For now, he’s stuck making minimum wage and dealing with the worst of people.
Ally - A sex worker who’s trying to get out of this life. She knows how to handle people and has found a niche at the hotel. Once she saves up enough money, she’s packing up and leaving this world behind. Her latest customer just might be her ticket out of here…
Terry and Clark - Two jewel thieves on the hunt for their partner who double crossed them in a robbery. Terry is the strong, silent type, and Clark is impulsive, with a bad cocaine habit. Things have gone from bad to f*cked up and they’ll do anything, including murder, to get their stolen diamonds back.
Fred - A safecracker and former associate of Terry & Clark’s. Thinking he was smarter than his partners, he ripped off the diamonds from their latest heist and split. His penchant for hookers, cocaine, and liqueur clouds his judgment and it makes for a deadly combination.
Carol - An irate and impossible-to-please guest of the hotel. She paid good money to stay here and the service is awful. Her toilet is flooding and no one’s answering the phone downstairs! If this continues, she’s gonna have a word with the manager in the morning and someone is getting fired!
Screenplay Awards
The Influences
Budget
Hotel is an ambitious short film, and includes a fight scene, two stunts involving a staircase and the roof, and a few gun shots (basically all the cool stuff). We need a minimum of $10K to achieve this vision. Fortunately, the Cary House Hotel has been gracious enough to let us shoot on location for free (just the cost to rent rooms for the cast and crew), and we’ve also received post production services from Barnstorm Fest as a prize for placing Finalist in their 2022 competition.
These funds will go directly toward stunts and effects, as well as paying, housing, and feeding our cast and crew for the 4-day shoot.
If you love these types of film and/or can relate to the themes of the story, you can contribute directly to the project by donating via Venmo. Every dollar received will go directly into making this the best film possible.
The Team
Alexander Misiti - Writer, Producer, Director
Alexander Misiti is a Los Angeles based filmmaker and voice actor. His love for storytelling began at the age of three when he was introduced to Star Wars and Star Trek. When he was seven years old, he was was inspired by his third grade teacher that it was possible to make movies as career and it’s been his dream ever since..
After graduating from Emerson College in 2015 with a Bachelor of Arts in Film Production, he moved back home and got a job at the Cary House Hotel. It was his time working there that became the inspiration for Hotel. In 2018, he moved to Los Angeles to pursue his dream of writing and directing.
Some of his favorite filmmakers include Michael Mann, Martin Scorsese, Christopher Nolan, and Paul Schrader, and he’s attracted to stories with realistic and exciting stakes, grounded in realism, and ultimately having themes that we can all relate to as human beings.
Jason Redlitz - Executive Producer
Jason Redlitz is a Los Angeles based actor and comedian. He first met Alex in 2018 when they worked at a movie theater together. He prides himself in his obsession with authenticity in performances.
Regularly hosting and performing in live shows in Los Angeles, Jason’s main goal in each of his acts is to convince the audience that, even for a minute or two, that they are in the presence of someone other than himself. His skill set lends itself well to finding talent that will match the respective roles of ‘Hotel’ and bringing this story to life — one of feeling stuck with your place in life and not knowing what to do, which is something we can all relate to.
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