About The Film
MERIT BADGES is a narrative short film about a motley group of girl scouts who need to sell enough cookies and lemonade to attend the big Polliwog Jamboree. It’s a story for anyone who’s ever felt small in a hostile, scary world and finding it within yourself to create your own opportunities.
The story was born out of Writer/Director N.C. Jones’ desire to do a short, engaging and funny story after working on several challenging and dramatic feature film scripts. Jones set out to apply her storytelling craft and experience as a female filmmaker to make a film for her 8 year-old self, to encourage her boldness and to temper her patience. It is a message that Jones hopes to share with every misfit girl out there.
Produced by Negative Split Films and the Limerance Bureau and a team of dedicated volunteers and showcasing a fantastic cast and exceptional crew that the Raleigh-Durham filmmaking community should be well-known for, Merit Badges was filmed in Raleigh, NC in the Spring of 2018. The project is currently in post-production.
About the Filmmakers
N.C. Jones
Writer & Director
Screenwriter and Director N.C. Jones studied Theater, Computer Science and English at East Carolina University, but her preoccupation with creative prevarication began long before she received any formal training. With over ten years experience in screenwriting and production, she is a Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting Semifinalist and Quarterfinalist. In 2010, she wrote and produced the comedic horror short UNSPEAKABLE and in 2011 she wrote and directed action comedy SAN SOUCI SHOWDOWN. She met producer Kieran Moreira and Director of Photography Paul Frateschi in 2013 working as grip and sound assistant on their award-winning 2014 film HARBINGER.
Kieran Moreira
Producer & Editor
A graduate of North Carolina State University’s Film Studies program, Kieran started making films as a child in his backyard with his younger brother. In 2012, his debut short film, The Weaver, which he directed and edited, screened at the prestigious Cucalorus Film Festival in Wilmington, NC and won “Best Editing” at the Carrboro Film Festival 2012.
Kieran’s film, HARBINGER (2014), started as a passion project during his time at Drawbridge Media. It won “Best Narrative Short Drama” at the 2015 Longleaf Film Festival and the “Excellence in Filmmaking” award at the 2014 Carrboro Film Festival. In February 2018, he launched Negative Split Films, LLC as a platform for himself and other filmmakers to continue to produce indie films. Negative Split Films will release Merit Badges and Moreira’s sci-fi short film, Gill, as its first two projects by the end of 2018.
Paul Frateschi
Director of Photography
Before graduating from North Carolina State University with a degree in Communication Media, Paul started Silo 12 Productions, a company that produced 2 feature length films and several award-winning short films, including THE REVOLUTIONARY which won “Best Editing” at the CMF International Grand Finale in Los Angeles in 2011. He works as Director of Photography for Drawbridge Media and has his own production company, LuxPictura Films.
CAST
| Eowyn Blum | Audra |
| Lilyanna Paige | Miranda |
| Thai Toben | Callie |
| Kayla Scott | Jessica |
| Estes Tarver | The Wheelman |
| Germain Choffart | The Lanky Man |
| Paul Kilpatrick | Hostage/Loanshark |
| Paul Paliyenko | Priest |
| Ruth Gutierrez | Shopping Lady Extra |
| Gillian C. Pruteanu | Jamboree Extra |
| Alicia Cyrus | Jamboree Extra |
| Ashley Jones | Jamboree Extra |
| Rene Cyr | Jamboree Extra |
CREW
| Paul Frateschi | Dir. Photography |
| Monique Velasquez | AD |
| Jonathan Serxner | Key Grip |
| Aravind Ragupathi | Gaffer |
| Piper Kessler | Sound |
| Lance Johnson | Grip/Camera Assistant |
| Ryan Hamlin | AC |
| Patrick Dunnigan | AC/Grip |
| John Bosco | AC |
| Bart Jones | Grip |
| Jim McQuaid | Grip |
| Gerry Gutierrez | Grip |
| Ruth Gutierrez | Grip |
| Jeremiah David | Production Assistant |
| Evelyn Putnam | Hair & Makeup |
| Pierce Rogers | Art Department |
| Paige Myers | Art Department |
| Vanita Kalra | Script Supervisor |
| Carlene Cearley | Location Scout |
| John Boschini | Legal / Attorney |
| Casey Hembrick | Graphic Designer / Prop Design |
| Peggy C. Jones | Seamstress |
| Ladonna Jones | Craft Services |
| Marta Salman | Craft Services |
| David & Nicky Bronson | Car Providers |
Filming Locations
Gateway Plaza Shopping Center
Raleigh, NC
Merry Oaks, NC