Donations sought to finish throwback film

Mark Ross is mostly done with making a retro-influenced short film, “Curse of the Phantom Shadow.” But he’s run short of cash, and has launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise $5,000 so he can finish the movie.

The film’s style is influenced by old-time radio dramas, Dick Tracy comics, movie serials, and pulp novels of the 1930s and ’40s.

Those elements alone might be of some interest to Route 66 aficionados. But one of the film’s main characters probably will cinch it. Ross explains:

We affectionately refer to her as Gas Pump Girl. (She runs a Gas Station on old Route 66.) […] The film features a Republic movie serial style hero, and a pinup girl heroine, Gas Pump Girl. Gas Pump Girl drives a vintage 1940s tow truck. She is an ace mechanic, and is the only pinup girl alive who can drive a tow truck, fix an 8-cylinder, and chew gum at the same time.

Ross sent this photo of Gas Pump girl from the set:

Ross says the film was self-financed, but he ran out of money for upcoming shoots. According to the Kickstarter project:

We need to rent a vintage 1940s tow truck, a green screen stage, and bring our cast and crew to our final shooting location in Pahrump, Nevada.  In addition to this we have post-production costs to consider.

We have 75% of our movie’s footage in the can. The last 25% is unfortunately the most expensive.

Ross has about two more weeks to raise the $5,000. As of Friday evening, he had raised $1,234. If you want to kick in a few bucks, go here.

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