Description:

Director Jacob Schantz is now casting for the independent short film, Little Things, an adaptation of four short stories by author Raymond Carver.

Little Things focuses on the themes of betrayal and unrequited love in short, poignant tales that stand alone, encompassed in the larger work by theme and characterization.

Interested applicants are to read the following casting descriptions for each film and reply to jacob.schantz@gmail.com with a headshot, resume and list of interested role(s).

Auditions will be held at the Art Institute of California, Sacramento, on May 27, 2010 and May 29, 2010.

Shooting begins on June 4, 2010 and completes June 20, 2010.

THE TRAIN

A woman divorces her husband at gunpoint and escapes with the revolver and twenty-grand in her purse.

DENISE DENT: FEMALE, MID-LATE TWENTIES ? Directionless and armed, her life turned frantic when she turns against her lover and flees with a hundred thousand dollars in stolen money. Mrs. Dent takes back control in her life and then runs from the consequences. Confident and cunning, she can only count on her wits and luck for so long.

ADDISON RANDOLPH: MALE, LATE FIFTIES ? EARLY SIXTIES - Wise, reserved, and smart-ass, he shies away from observing aloud, since what he has to say is irrelevant or mean-spirited. His calm, clockwork demeanor formed after years of being with a woman that doesn?t fulfill him emotionally or sexually.

MARIE RANDOLPH: FEMALE, EARLY ? LATE FIFTIES - Lost in apathetic rage, time has weathered her into an opulent piece of filth. She disguises her trashy demeanor through decadence and biting wit, never relenting until she browbeats her unlucky victims into submission.

WHY, HONEY?

A mother lives in fear when her son?s lies compound after she finds a bloody shirt in his trunk.

CAMILLA SWANSON: FEMALE, EARLY ? LATE FORTIES ? Home-bodied divorcee, she gave her all to her duplicitous illegitimate child. All her manic energy turns inward, and her anxiety and fears become real when she finds evidence of bloodshed. Middle-class and prideful in her mediocrity, she looks forward to living in the status quo permanently.

WESLEY SWANSON: MALE ? LATE TEENS - Angst-ridden, reborn in rage, he found his home with the fatherless bastards of his neighborhood. Taken in by local gangsters, he becomes emboldened through his strength in numbers and intimidation. Through controlling others, he?s found himself.

A SERIOUS TALK

A man returns to the home he shared with his ex-wife and forcefully makes her decide his role their broken family.

VERA WENDT: FEMALE, LATE TWENTIES ? EARLY THIRTIES - Drunk, half awake with rage, she lives her life from one low rent home to the next, dragging her children along the way. She stretches out the alimony and welfare and hustles at the expense of others. She means to do better when she finds a moment to care.

BURT PETERSON: MALE, LATE TWENTIES ? EARLY THIRTIES - Never sober, always angry. He slaves over making a living, but rarely sees or enjoys the results of his labor beyond a case of beer and paid escort. He spends his life obsessing over the woman that left him and the kids sucking him dry while at the bottom of the bottle.

LITTLE THINGS

A violent couple quarrels over custody for their infant son.

KIRSTEN STERNES: FEMALE, LATE TWENTIES ? EARLY THIRTIES - Her young life has been a collection of bad mistakes culminating in unwanted pregnancy. She loves men she shouldn?t and chases the frivolous things in life passionately. She sees her child as a component to her winning one last desperate argument.

HAROLD STERNES: MALE, LATE TWENTIES ? EARLY THIRTIES ? An alcoholic two-time felon, he travels to one score to the next, when it accidently leads to a wife and kid. Wanting the child as a means of passage and a cover, he decides to control of his family only so he can tear it apart. Love is an inconvenience, one that set him back too long.