SHORT FILM NEEDS LIZARDS SUITS and more...

WE NEED ADVANCED LIZARD SUITS FROM THE TEAM AT IMMORTAL MASKS!

Help our incredible creative team bring to life a lizard world, lizard suits and a cabin in the woods. Our trio has been selected for the New Zealand Film Commission’s Fresh Shorts Fund. That’s an amazing achievement, but we need your support to elevate this film from beer - to champagne (the nice kind from New World).

About Our Film

A lonely young woman decides to reconnect with her estranged father, a lizard conspiracy theorist, even if it means falling down the rabbit hole herself.Invisible Dragons is a labour of love from our brilliant writer/director Victoria Boult. This project began when co-producer Mikaela Rüegg and Victoria were paired in the Collaboration in Action program back in 2021. With the help of co-producer Madison Henry-Ryan, who has been tirelessly representing Māori filmmakers and founded Māui Studios, Invisible Dragons has undergone significant development and emerged as an incredible story.We are a talented and qualified team with experience in writing, directing, and producing television and feature films. Our work is backed by a decade-long creative agency, strong industry networks, and partnerships in NZ and LA. We are supported by diverse guilds and organisations such as SAF-AFTRA, DEGANZ, WIFT, and NZCS.

Our selection for the New Zealand Film Commission’s Fresh Shorts Fund is a fantastic opportunity, but we need that extra boost to transform this film from beer to champagne!

We Need YOUR Help to Turn Rags to Riches in the Art Department.

We’re going to be straightforward: this is what we need to make our film truly exceptional, and it won’t disappoint. We promise.

Handcrafted Lizard Suits from the team at Immortal Masks (they’re in America and the exchange rate is INSANE right now) Funding for:

• Our art department to create the lizard world
• Building a cabin fit for a lizard conspiracy theorist
• Science equipment
• Fake bugs
• Lizard sleeves
• A choreographer to train our lead actor, Te-Whare-Rangi Mihinui, on how to move like a lizard

Why This Film?

In a time of rampant misinformation, our film Invisible Dragons sits right in the zeitgeist, interrogating the disproportionate impact of conspiracy theories on parents, children, and indigenous communities in Aotearoa. This is a story about indigenous people, told authentically by indigenous storytellers.

At the core of Invisible Dragons is the empowerment of indigenous filmmaking. Our team of young, emerging indigenous professionals is dedicated to creating a film that resonates on the global festival circuit. Led by writer/director Victoria Boult, a descendant of Ngāi Tahu, our mission is to uplift Māori stories and empower Māori creatives both in front of and behind the camera.

The film delves into the spread of misinformation negatively impacting Māori and Pasifika communities in Aotearoa. We aim to humanise those labelled as ‘conspiracy theorists’ by revealing the underlying fears, intergenerational trauma, and systemic challenges faced by isolated Māori communities. We challenge stereotypes by portraying authentic Māori characters and ensuring cultural authenticity through consultation with local Māori leaders.

The Team

Victoria Boult (Ngāi Tahu) - Writer/Director Victoria Boult is a writer, director, and development producer best known for n00b (2024), which she co-created, wrote, and directed. n00b was made with the support of Warner Bros. Discovery ANZ and has international representation with OBLE. Victoria has written for Ahikaroa, storylined on projects such as Spinal Destination (2024), and acted as the development executive on AMC’s One Lane Bridge and Fifth Season’s Friends Like Her. Victoria was selected for the DEGANZ Emerging Female Filmmaker Incubator (2024), SPADA’s Collaboration in Action Program (2022), and Screen Canberra’s POD program (2023).

Madison Henry-Ryan (Ngāti Kamire, Ngāi Tahu) - Co-Producer Madison Henry-Ryan is a multidisciplinary creative from New Zealand specialising in creative direction and management across digital Māori content and technical projects. He co-founded Māui Studios in 2014 to empower Māori and Pasifika communities and creatives. Over the past decade, Mads has led numerous local and international projects as a creative director, designer, and filmmaker, producing stories that reflect art, emotion, and culture. In 2021, he co-founded Māui Virtual Production to facilitate LED productions in the South Island, and in 2022, he completed a Master’s degree in kaupapa Māori filmmaking. Mads is passionate about cultivating meaningful relationships and delivering premium quality projects, working alongside iwi, government, and independent groups.

Mikaela Rüegg - Co-Producer Mikaela Rüegg is a mixed actor, storyteller, political scientist, and restaurateur who has lived half her life in the USA and the other half in New Zealand. Mikaela graduated at nineteen and transitioned from academics to acting, being cast as a supporting lead in the New Zealand/British feature film The Stolen. She has acted professionally in New Zealand and the USA, appearing in feature films, network television, commercials, music videos, and web series. In 2020, Mikaela began utilising her storytelling skills and international experience to write, direct, and produce her own work. She now divides her time between New Zealand and Los Angeles, working both behind the scenes and in front of the camera on commercials and scripted television.