Independent Feature Film · Writer / Director / Producer
Be Not Afraid! is a SAG Ultra Low Budget independent feature exploring faith, inadequacy, and identity. I filled six department-head roles across 17 days of principal photography, delivered the film for roughly half its original budget, and was awarded the 2015 Houston Filmmakers Grant, a $30,000 matching funds grant for a Houston filmmaker whose work shows excellence and promise in long-form narrative storytelling.
“Humans don’t have a hard time believing there’s a God… you have a hard time believing there’s a God who’d actually love you.”Harry — Be Not Afraid!
a feature film by Taylor Gahm
2015 Houston Filmmakers Grant · 95 Min · 4K Cinemascope
Clips
Opening Scene
Film Stills — 2.39:1 Cinemascope
Featured Sponsorship
“Well made and well crafted,” this bundle proved invaluable during Taylor’s run’n’gun strategy, and became a huge piece of the film’s puzzle.— Zacuto
Sponsors & Partners
Be Not Afraid! was made possible with the generous support of the Houston Arts Alliance, the City of Houston, and the Houston Film Commission through the 2015 Houston Filmmakers Grant program, along with in-kind sponsorships from KIND Snacks, Zacuto, Atomos, Red Giant, and others.
$188,000 Budget. $96,505 Delivered.
The original budget came in at $188,000, classified by the Screen Actors Guild as an Ultra Low Budget motion picture. The final accounting came in at $96,505. Nearly half.
At that budget, there is no second unit, no post house, no department heads. There is one person filling six roles that would normally be six separate crews. Writer, director, cinematographer, editor, colorist, sound designer. Seventeen days of principal photography, every location free or donated, every problem solved in real time.
The Houston Filmmakers Grant that funded a third of this project? I wrote it by dictating into my phone on a walk around the neighborhood while production was already underway.
Synopsis
When a prominent CEO’s life begins to unravel, a misfit gang of irreverent angels serve only to make things worse—by doing nothing at all.
What’s the first thing an angel says when it shows up? And what happens anyway? Yeah. People get afraid. But what if angels are frightening not because of their ghostly appearance, but because they’re obliviously inappropriate and socially awkward with a terrible sense of timing?
This compelling, post-modern take on angels welcomes audiences into a world where the Heavenly Elite are just as flawed and confused as the humans they’re sent to serve. This movie embodies a fresh, subversive spirituality that bucks against rigid religiosity in exchange for a fantastical world where: inadequacy serves inadequacy, God is more thrilled with people discovering their true selves than just trying to behave, and the line between the sacred and profane is drawn with a surprisingly generous brushstroke.
Be Not Afraid! is no more a “faith-based film” than Bruce Almighty, It’s a Wonderful Life, or Dogma. Being careful not to take itself too seriously, this fish-out-of-water dramedy thoughtfully turns dogmatic religion on its head, distilling age-old questions of existentialism, philosophy and theology into a 90 minute fart joke.
Meet the Angels
“Humans don’t have a hard time believing there’s a God… you have a hard time believing there’s a God who’d actually love you.”
“What’s the weirdest thing about humans to me? Pubes. I’m not 100% sure what they’re for, but if they’re supposed to make something small also look disgusting, then mine are doing a fantastic job.”
“You know we’re not that different humans and angels. You’ve only ever seen this side of the other side, so things don’t make much sense to you. But I’ve seen the other side and you know what? Things don’t make much sense to me either.”
“Taylor is a proven leader in the Houston film/entertainment community and I have no doubt his future endeavors will meet with much success.”Rick Ferguson — Executive Director, Houston Film Commission
Credits
Technical Specifications
Cast
Crew & Production
Behind the Scenes
CreativeMornings Houston · Locally Produced
I pitched Be Not Afraid! live at CreativeMornings Houston — the local chapter of the national artist network — to a room of over 100 people, and the response was incredible. That stage is where I met one of the producers, the family that gave us a house to shoot in, and people who donated resources, food, and sponsorships. All our locations were free or donated, and casting pulled from over 600 audition submissions sourced through independent postings, talent agents, and casting calls. This was a locally-produced feature in every sense.
CreativeMornings Houston — the live pitch.
