Experiencing Interruptions?

Sleepwalkers

Ben is a Sleepwalker - a secret alternate personality that takes over once his 'waking' self goes to sleep. Ben lives every night free of responsibility or consequence until he meets Allison - the 'waking' waitress at an all night diner - and is forced to reevaluate what is most important to him.

  • Jason Merrin
    Director
  • Jason Merrin
    Writer
  • Rachel Liu
    Producer
  • Jeff Ronan
    Key Cast
    AstroCons, Dead Souls
  • Jessica DiGiovanni
    Key Cast
    Wilt, Laurence
  • Ryan Nicolls
    Key Cast
    Seven Lovers
  • Marco Torriani
    Key Cast
    Margarita, with a Straw
  • Ron Barba
    Key Cast
    The Musicbox and the Imperfect Conflagration, Suing the Devil
  • Project Type:
    Feature
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 30 minutes 44 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    September 22, 2014
  • Production Budget:
    30,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital (Canon 5D)
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Jason Merrin

Jason Merrin started making movies when he was thirteen years old. His past work includes over 70 short films (most of which are available for viewing on his YouTube channel) and a handful of scripts and TV show pitches - many of which received awards or honors from major festivals and contests. He recently directed the music video for AJR's "Infinity," which will be released in late October. Sleepwalkers is his first feature film.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

The idea for the world first came to me the way most of my ideas do - in a moment of irrational, abstract paranoia. I woke up one morning with a scratch that I didn't have the night before. My first thought was - for whatever reason - that when I went to sleep another, secret version of myself woke up and somehow got himself that scratch. And from that idea the world of Sleepwalkers started to grow.

When I started sharing this loosely defined concept with others - that of a world of alternate personalities living in secret - the conversation kept veering into action thriller territory. The questions I was asked were not the same ones that interested me. I didn't really care if "sleepwalkers" were caused by nuclear testing (they weren't) or if they're evil twins (they're not), or what would happen if the sleepwalkers were to declare war on the waking world (maybe in the sequel). I was more curious about what it meant for these two personalities to share the same life. If they have the same body, the same memories, the same desires, but think and act differently - are they two different people? Or are they the same? From there I built out the idea - if the Sleepwalker is the person we wish we could be, what happens when he encounters that divide between what we want and what we think we want? And then, because I couldn't help myself, the whole thing just fell into a love story.

So that's about it. Sleepwalkers, to me, is a paranoid meditation on identity and happiness. Hopefully it means something else to you! And most of all, I hope you enjoy it.

Best,

Jason