ABOUT THE FILM

“Orchards of a Futile Heaven” is a short film set in a bleak future, where two thieves with a bounty on their heads risk everything to reunite their family in a mysterious wasteland rumored to have supernatural powers.

This film was shot on location in and around the town of St. Marie, Montana, an abandoned Cold War-era military town on the state’s northeastern highline. “Orchards” is the first narrative film to showcase this haunting and beautiful place, weaving it into a cautionary tale about what happens when we build machines that grant our every wish.

We present this standalone short as the proof-of-concept for a feature-length version of “Orchards.”

THE STORY

The war was started decades ago, when Dreamcatcher — DARPA’s Defense AI, designed to keep us happy, healthy, and safe — carried out its protocol in ways its designers never anticipated. But no one alive remembers this. There’s only the toll that endless war has taken on the world and everyone in it. Survivors live among the ruins, scavenging and hunting.

Warhead awaits the return of her son, Nike, with her daughter-in-law Skittle. To survive, they steal tracking units from dead and wounded soldiers and sell them on the black market — a crime that’s put a bounty on their heads.

But when Red Bull, a friend of her son’s, returns from the front alone, Warhead demands answers. Red Bull tells them of a sacred monument that can grant them their wishes and promises to lead them there.

With bounty hunters on their trail, the three make their way to the monument. But nothing can quite prepare any of them for what they find when they arrive.

“Orchards of a Futile Heaven” explores how our desires, which make us most human, can also plant the seeds of our destruction. A timeless story that speaks to the present, as we consider the risks of artificial intelligence and the consequences of creating machines that can grant our every wish.

About Us

We like to say that this film is more than 30 years in the making. The first seeds were planted in September of 1991, when writer Matthew Derby met director Edan Cohen as undergraduates at RIT.

Their shared love of film and music started a decades-long friendship, as they each grew their respective careers, families, and creative practices.

Now, the kids are grown. Edan runs his own production company, and regularly directs narrative and commercial films for global clients. Matt’s writing credits include the feature film Gone in the Night, audio dramas Sandra and Harley Quinn and the Joker: Sound Mind, The Silent History — the first novel written exclusively for iOS — and the short story collection Super Flat Times.

They’ve joined forces Writer/Artist Mary-Kim Arnold (Litany for the Long Moment, The Fish and the Dove), who rounds out the production crew as the team’s media supervisor and head chef!

Cast

Caroline Guivarch as Warhead

Piper Verbrick as Skittle

Michael Defilippis as Red Bull

Derek Poole as Nike

David Hopson as Chupa

Dave Ahlstedt as the wounded soldier

Crew

Director: Edan Cohen

Screenplay: Matthew Derby

Director of Photography: Dave Huntley

AD: Lukas Stone

2nd AD: Dayva Weiss

1st AC: Spencer Whitaker / Zane L’Erario

2nd AC: Julien Dousset

Sound: Jared Benge / Brian Belzer

Gaffer: Ethan Confer / Ryan Michaels / Will DeJessa

BEST BOY: Andrew Spencer

Grip: Tom Carson

Production Design: Alexis Thompson

Makeup: Lily Beren / Isabelle Isel

Wardrobe & Costume Design: Steven Kimura

Craft Services: Mary-Kim Arnold

Set Dressers: Megan Pederson & John TETER

ART Department: Chazz Padilla

VFX Supervisor: David Kessler

Locations: Sean R. Heavey / Scott Currie

Transport: Carlos Valle

PHOTOGRAPHY: Sean R. Heavey

PA: Tali Peterson

Producers

Robert Singh & Zane L’erario

Alex Rigopulos

Sean R. Heavey

Associate Producer

Sarovar Banka

Co-Producers

Heather Levenson

Paula Krebs

Casey Malone