Private Project

Word Is Bond

In the twilight of rap’s golden era, an upcoming LA emcee named Tracey finds freedom and escape dancing alone to an inner soundtrack on headphones, masking the secret in loud boom bap from his stereo speakers. Malik, his overbearing older brother ruptures this world as he enters the room, suspiciously lagging as if waiting for the unknown to be revealed.

Finding a clue in a provocative Blackstreet cover, another unexpected arrival from Lew and Obi who round out their crew delays the inevitable. Bursting into freestyle over the music of their mind, their mutual love of Hip Hop and the prospect of fame cools the flame - at least for the moment.

The four reach a party where Malik asserts himself to let his brother shine, ejecting a tape from the deck and inviting his brother to flow acapella on a makeshift palette stage. When he notices a blossoming connection between his brother and a man in the mesmerized crowd, even talent isn’t excuse enough for Malik, who is the first to leave Tracey alone once again; this time, there is nowhere for him to hide.

  • Alex Mastoon
    Director
  • Alex Mastoon
    Writer
  • Zachary Mastoon
    Writer
  • Alex Mastoon
    Producer
  • Zachary Mastoon
    Producer
  • Robert Lewis
    Producer
  • G. Lane Hillman
    Key Cast
    "Tracey"
  • Ace Anderson
    Key Cast
    "Malik"
  • Dominique Willingham
    Key Cast
    "Obi"
  • Amir J. Miller
    Key Cast
    "Lew"
  • Harlan Doolittle
    Editor
  • Julio Garcia Escames
    Director of Photography
  • Zachary Mastoon (aka Caural)
    Original Score
  • Sam Casas
    Re-Recording Mixer
  • George Tataje
    Sound Recordist
  • Jaan Kristjan Utno
    Gaffer
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Runtime:
    12 minutes 47 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    August 1, 2018
  • Production Budget:
    11,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    RED
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
  • WINNER//Bowery Film Festival
    NYC
    United States
    April 14, 2019
    Best Short Film
  • WINNER//Golden Sneakers International Hip-Hop Film Festival
    Hamburg
    Germany
    June 22, 2019
    Germany Premiere
    Best Short Film
  • WINNER//Around International Film Festival
    Barcelona
    Spain
    October 30, 2018
    European Premiere
    ARFF Audience Award
  • WINNER//Tampa Bay Underground Film Festival
    Tampa Bay
    United States
    December 8, 2019
    Best Musical Score/Supervision
  • NOMINATED" Best Short Film"//Madrid International Film Festival
    Madrid
    Spain
    August 10, 2019
    Madrid Premiere
    Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Editing
  • NOMINATED "Best Short Film"//Woodstock Film Festival
    Woodstock
    United States
    October 4, 2019
    Best Narrative Short
  • Outfest Fusion
    Los Angeles
    United States
    March 3, 2019
    World Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Pasadena International Film Festival
    Pasadena,CA
    United States
    March 19, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Los Angeles Women's International Film Festival
    Los Angeles
    United States
    March 23, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Bellingham Music & Film Festival
    Bellingham
    United States
    April 6, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Kansas City International Film Festival
    Kansas City
    United States
    April 12, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Philadelphia Independent Film Festival
    Philadelphia
    United States
    May 10, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Black Alphabet Film Festival
    Cincinnati
    United States
    June 20, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Hip Hop Film Festival
    New York
    United States
    August 3, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Atlanta Black Pride Film Festival
    Atlanta
    United States
    August 31, 2019
    Official Selection
  • BENT Sacramento LGBTQ Film Festival
    Sacramento
    United States
    October 11, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Eve Film Festival
    Ottawa
    Canada
    October 26, 2019
    Canadian Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Blow-Up International Arthouse Film Festival
    Chicago
    United States
    November 8, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Shinjuku World Film Festival
    Tokyo
    Japan
    December 14, 2019
    Japanese Premiere
    Official Selection
  • SEMI FINALIST // Dumbo Film Festival
  • Lift-Off First-Time Filmmaker Festival
Director Biography - Alex Mastoon

From her childhood in South Florida creating worlds in spiral notebooks - inspired by the glow of early MTV - Alex Mastoon began shooting skate videos in Brooklyn with her brother, precariously wielding a clunky Dell laptop as her camera. Graduating to Set Decoration and Art Direction on indie features and shorts in Chicago, her talents got her hired in art departments for various commercials, and Ryan Murphy’s American Horror Story; experimentations with video art led to blockbuster and commercial Production Management for companies like Nike, and directors such as Zack Snyder & Michael Bay.

Once in Los Angeles, she collaborated with burgeoning artists to produce live streaming content for Red Bull Music Academy that broke the internet. And with downtime at a popular post house in Hollywood, she soon fused her unique inspirations to write and direct her debut short, Word Is Bond: a day in the life of a closeted rapper in 90s LA. Through close collaboration with LGBT rappers of color who lent the necessary authenticity to the struggle her film highlights, this sonic & visual poem about homophobia in Hip Hop debuted at Outfest Fusion at the Chinese Theater in Los Angeles. It has since received awards and nominations at screenings throughout Europe, North America, and Japan.

Gaining her first Production Designer credit on an upcoming feature film with Chris Noth & Tyra Ferrell, Alex now resides in the Hudson River Valley, working alongside innovative artists, dancers and musicians throughout New York. She has finally found a home for her ever-evolving aesthetic: multi-disciplinary, raw storytelling to hear with your eyes.

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Director Statement

Alex's debut “Word Is Bond” was inspired through close collaboration with LGBTQ rappers of color who lent the necessary authenticity to the struggle her film highlights.
While your word is your bond, it is your secrets that can threaten everything. This film is about the struggle shared by so many in the LGBTQ community afraid to be themselves, a reality largely ignored - especially in the rap world. "Word Is Bond" is loosely based off a few individuals who prefer not to be named who still deal with homophobia in the hip-hop community and wanted me to bring their stories to light in a poetic way.

With my ongoing advocacy in the non-profit world, I’ve defended and educated youth in front line communities, and it is through those I’ve helped that I’ve gained true inspiration. Bringing together voices from the black and LGBTQ communities in our cast and crew added a critical dimension to this film, creating a safe place on set and endowing its screenplay with an authentic perspective obviously foreign to a white female. Together, we transformed a once hidden life experience into a rich story to share on screen - too universal to ignore.

While punctuated with comedic moments, at its core this dramatic narrative explores how the masks we wear for protection are ultimately our undoing - and the most dangerous fracture to our most important relationships. Not only do we want to start a conversation with this film, we want to raise our voices for everyone to whom this common predicament speaks, whatever their reasons may be.