Private Project

Moonshot

In the near future, a homeless woman named Nova has grown tired of her brutal life on the street. Answering an ad from a company sending supply missions to a lunar colony, she volunteers for a unique travel opportunity: a one-way ticket to the Moon.

But Alan, the wise-cracking engineer who placed the ad, has been working on his own risky plan. After several failed missions, his last hope for success may lie with Nova.

  • Luvia Petersen
    Key Cast
    Continuum (SyFy Network), Falling Skies (Dreamworks), The 100 (CW)
  • Matthew Lucas
    Director
    Díra (2015 TIVA Peer Award Winner)
  • Sonya Dunn
    Producer
    The Bedroom (Cannes 2013)
  • Matthew Lucas
    Writer
  • Project Type:
    Short, Student
  • Genres:
    Sci-Fi, Action, Comedy
  • Runtime:
    21 minutes 38 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    May 31, 2016
  • Production Budget:
    18,047 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    2K RAW (Sony F55)
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2.35:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    Yes
  • Rhode Island International Film Festival
    Providence, RI
    October 22, 2016
    World Premiere
  • Canada Shorts
    Saint John, New Brunswick
    Canada
    December 10, 2016
    Best Sci-Fi Film
  • Rosebud Film Festival
    Arlington, VA
    January 28, 2017
    Rosebud Award ($1k Prize); Audience Choice Award
  • Vancouver Short Film Festival
    Vancouver, BC
    Canada
    Best Visual Effects; Best Student Film
  • Artemis Women in Action Film Festival
    Los Angeles, CA
    United States
  • Boston Sci-Fi Film Festival
    Boston, MA
    United States
    February 16, 2017
    Best Original Screenplay
  • Philadelphia Independent Film Festival
    Philadelphia, PA
    United States
  • NOVA International Film Festival
    Fairfax, VA
    United States
  • GeekFest Film Fests
    Multiple
    United States
  • CINE Golden Eagle, 2016
    LA/NY/DC
    Finalist
  • American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) Vilmos Zsigmond Student Heritage Award
    Los Angeles, CA
    Finalist
  • TIVA Peer Awards
    Washington, DC
    Gold Peer Award - Director of Photography
  • TIVA Peer Awards
    Washington, DC
    Gold Peer Award - Production Design
  • TIVA Peer Awards
    Washington, DC
    Gold Peer Award - Student Narrative
  • Los Angeles CineFest
    Los Angeles, CA
    Best Film, August
  • LA Shorts Awards
    Los Angeles, CA
    Best Editing (Bronze)
  • American Visions Awards
    Washington, DC
    Best Thesis Film, Best Cinematography
  • The Festival at Little Washington
    Washington, VA
    United States
    April 9, 2017
Director Biography - Matthew Lucas

Matthew Lucas is an award-winning independent filmmaker and playwright in Washington, DC.

Energized in equal measure by the theatrical character comedies of Christopher Durang and the immodest action movies of the 80s and 90s, his own work aims somewhere in between. His blithe genre short films have screened in festivals in the US and overseas, and he has won awards for his work as a director, screenwriter, and editor. He was a 2016 CINE Golden Eagle finalist, and a two-time Television, Internet and Video Association (TIVA) Peer Award winner.

He is co-author and composer of Sasquatch: The Musical, which appeared Off-Broadway in 2014 at the West Village Musical Theatre Festival and will debut regionally in 2016 with Landless Theatre Company.

He holds a BA in Theatre Arts from Marymount Manhattan College and an MFA in Film from American University. He lives in the DC area where he works as a cinematographer and writer of interactive media.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

The goal of this film was to examine the nature of risk from two sides of a risky event. Nova is willing to take a chance on a dangerous trip to the Moon as a last-ditch effort to rid herself of her violent life. Alan wants to prove that he's capable of achieving something meaningful in the middle of a job that alienates him from humanity. In the balance hangs Nova's life, and seeing these two lonely characters bond over such a high risk is what I hope will cause the audience to not only emotionally connect with Alan and Nova, but also to look inward and examine the effect their own risky decisions might have on another person.

Of course, this makes it all sound very heady, but the icing on the cake for me is the fun we have along the way. By placing this human story in a retro-futuristic world and giving the characters (both human and robotic!) cheeky personalities, the vehicle for this important, emotional theme becomes an entertaining joy ride, something we can all get behind. It reflects my worldview as a person and as a creator, and promotes a message I hope we can all agree on: have some fun, but for the love of god, look after each other!