Mel and Austin are like rotten fruit. They were once a couple of dirtbag explorers glowing with wanderlust, but their dream of packing everything into a van and setting out for a life that promises boundless freedom isn’t exactly panning out. Two years in they’re broke, down on their luck, and don’t have a leg to stand on. 

She has an insatiable lust for life and a humming sexual appetite; he’s fearful and insecure. She’s powerful and convicted; he’s meek. She’s everything he’s ever wanted, but he’s starting to feel like he doesn’t measure up. She dreams; he worries. She’s looking to break free; he’s looking for ways to overcompensate for his shrinking sense of his own masculinity.

HURT PEOPLE HURT PEOPLE.

WHY

Men are angry. We’re fragile; we’re insecure; we lie; we cheat; we steal; we posture… we’ll do anything to avoid feeling less like men.

Oh the lengths we’ll go to keep from compromising our precious masculinity.

Look at our culture around sex. Look at how predicated it is on men dominating women. What more than sex poses big questions about a man’s battle with his own masculinity? Look at the ways men talk to men about sex versus the ways men talk to women about sex. Look at how obsessed we are with male dominance. It’s oozing with angry male insecurity. When we feel less like men is when we’re at our most ridiculous, our most laughable, our most embarrassing, our most dangerous, our most hateful… you get the picture.

CUCK. traverses the dying moments of an explosive relationship. It's a love letter to vagabonds, the wild, and the free.

WHAT

We are campaigning to support this non-profit short film to be shot in New Mexico in February 2025. The production team has experience producing films that have gotten into SXSW and music videos for top artists like Clairo, SZA, Isaiah Rashad, Mk.gee and Tinashe. They have a great deal of experience working with tight budgets and years of history working together.

We are setting our goal at $41,083. This amount covers locations, director and producer fees, camera rentals and film, travel, lodging, crew expenses, marketing budget, and a $3500 contingency.

WHO

Robert Palmer - "Austin"
Co-Writer/Executive Producer
After Graduating from Syracuse University in 2017, Robert moved to Jackson, Wyoming and helped produce the Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival while acting in local theater productions. His first stage appearance was in Larry Kramer’s The Normal Heart and was followed by leading roles in local play festivals. He then studied with highly renowned acting coach Terry Knickerbocker in Brooklyn, NY and completed the two-year professional conservatory at The Terry Knickerbocker Studio in 2021. He now focuses on producing and acting in his own films, primarily centered around breaking down modern masculinity. The first short film he wrote, Last Man Up, was directed by Hazel McKibbin (Doublespeak Sundance ‘21, She Always Wins TIFF ‘22) and is now in post-production.