Safe in My Skin is writer/director Dylan Rizzo's forthcoming graduate thesis film, shot in New York State during Fall 2024.

 

Logline: Mikey, a Chinese American man, returns home to the small town he grew up in for a childhood friend’s funeral and confronts memories long buried.

 

This is a film about memory – how does our perception of the past change as we get older? When society encourages young men and boys to associate masculinity with power, it often comes at the expense of vulnerability. For Mikey, his friend’s passing forces him to face these harsh realities. As memories of youth flood his mind, he begins to reckon with his identity as the son of Chinese immigrants in the United States.

 

By partnering with Fractured Atlas for our crowdfunding we have ensured that all of your contributions can be tax deductible.

We wrapped principle photography in November and are currently in the preliminary editing stages in preparation for sound editing and color grading. 

The money we raise will help us pay for:

Dylan Rizzo (Writer/Director) is a filmmaker and photographer based in New York City. He is currently pursuing his MFA in directing at Brooklyn College’s Feirstein Graduate School of Cinema. His work draws from his experiences as a native New Yorker and Chinese - Italian American. Last year he completed a 18 min short film titled “One Day I’ll Open My Fist”, shot on location in NYC’s Chinatown on 16mm film. It is currently being submitted to festivals.

Leo Zhang (Cinematographer) is a cinematographer, director and music composer based in NYC. Born in Beijing, Leo has over seventeen years of experience with photography and visual arts, working in both the indie film and commercial worlds. His films have been featured in numerous festivals incl. Palm Springs, Cannes, Mallorca and Slamdance. Leo is currently obtaining his MFA from NYU Tisch

Jason Gotlieb (Producer/1AD) is a producer, AD, and screenwriter based in New York City. He has produced award winning shorts, written features and pilots, and is currently pursuing his MFA in screenwriting from Brooklyn College. Before film school he worked as a computer programmer. Jason loves to cook and finds story inspiration while traveling on his bike and Amtrak.

Elise Raven (Casting Director) is a French-American casting director, scout & casting associate based in NYC.  Some notable clients she's worked with in collaboration with the agency Casting Double include Nike, Samsung, Skims, Savage X Fenty, Ebay, Sephora, as well as numerous film and TV productions for Netflix, Apple TV, HULU, A24, El Deseo, and NEON.

Manuela Romero (Producer/Casting Assistant) is a theater and film maker from Bogotá, Colombia based in New York City. She holds a BFA in Drama and a BA in Political Science from New York University and is currently pursuing an MFA in Film Directing at Feirstein Graduate School of Cinema.

Hannah Schulman (Producer) is an emerging producer, director and writer based in New York City.  She’s produced numerous award winning short films as well as music videos for Maya Hawke, Palehound, MICHELLE and more. When not working on set she practices ceramics at her Brooklyn studio.

Abyn Reabe (Producer) grew up in Falmouth, Maine and is currently pursuing an MFA in cinema arts from Brooklyn College's Feirstein Graduate School of Cinema.

Sam Jang-Milsten (Producer) is a producer based in Brooklyn, New York. He is pursuing a MS in Production of Cinematic Arts from Brooklyn College. Sam doesn't limit his producing to the medium of film, and often finds himself organizing and hosting dinner around New York City.

Leonel Dietsche (Executive Producer) is an award-winning Swedish-German film director who studied at the renowned Film Academy Baden-Württemberg. He produced and directed a number of shorts and two feature films that have been shown at film festivals worldwide. He has also gained success in advertising, developing and directing numerous campaigns for global companies.