Experiencing Interruptions?

Why Do People Go To The Woods?

In fear of what life will be like post-college, graduate Jason Costa decides to move to the woods for a year to live a life without responsibility. Instead of the dream like reality he imagined, Jason learns very quickly that living alone in the woods is not so easy. He is left alone to process his thoughts about adult life, death, and his failed relationship with his high school sweetheart.

  • Ben Prentiss
    Director
    Vous Aussi
  • Ben Prentiss
    Writer
    Vous Aussi
  • Ben Prentiss
    Producer
    Vous Aussi
  • Ben Prentiss
    Key Cast
    "Jason Costa"
    Vous Aussi
  • Project Type:
    Feature
  • Genres:
    Drama, Experimental
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 22 minutes 39 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    May 26, 2022
  • Production Budget:
    200 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital, 35mm, Canon
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Ben Prentiss

Ben was born in Kansas City, Missouri where he attended Bishop Miege High School. During his senior year of High School, Ben was the editor in chief of his high school newspaper where he began his passion for creative writing and he was also part of the weekly video production team which introduced filmmaking to his skillset. After making a deal with his high school drama teacher that if he didn't make the basketball team he would try out for the play, Ben got cast as the lead in a production of "Popularity" birthing his love for performance (and a new found understanding of his lack of athleticism).

Ben continued his pursuit for the arts at the University of Missouri where he quickly made a degree change from Journalism to Digital Storytelling, later picking up Theatre as a second major. Through this he learned many production skills for video and stage. Ben was even "Head of Properties" for the Unviersity of Missouri's production of "Rent". Around his junior year he found his desire to write for the screen and in 2020 he completed his first draft of his spec feature screenplay "Sweethearts Don't Stay Sweet". His best achievement in film thus far is a short film that he wrote, shot, directed, and acted in alone, named "Vous Aussi". Ben was nominated for Best Performance and won a Jury Award at Campus Movie Fest 2021. The film also won Audience Choice Award at the inaugural Wayside Film Festival.

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Director Statement

"Why Do People Go to the Woods?" was made mostly out of frustration from a failed project. I was in production for a short proof of concept film for a feature length rom-com that I wrote in hopes that someone would care enough to give me a budget for it. Pre-production was going on for about a month but on the first day of shooting one of my lead actors backed out and the whole project quickly fell apart. I then thought to myself "I need to make something that will challenge me, show off my potential, and only relies on myself." So in about 4 days I wrote this script. I realized pretty quickly that it was just the same story as a failed stage play I was trying to write 2 years ago that never got past ACT I. As a newly unemployed graduate who's moving away from everyone I know, across the country to one of the most expensive cities in the world to try and work in one of the most unstable job industries, this project is very close to my heart.