

Logline:
After a timid slouch breaks up with his mentally abusive girlfriend, he must choose what kind of man he wants to be when she finds him flirting with another woman and decides to pull him back into her life by any means necessary.
Synopsis:
Andy is working the dunk tank at his local youth group's annual benefit, reeling from a breakup with his toxic ex, Zoey. Vicky, a persistent and competitive woman, decides this is her chance to pull Andy out of his shell. However, when Zoey shows up trying to coax Andy back into her arms, Vicky decides to try and embarrass her to win Andy's heart by dunking her in the tank. The problem is, Vicky isn't a great shot. On top of that, Andy is worried that the longer Zoey sticks around, the greater hold she'll have over his emotions, and the more likely he will be to let her cycle of mental abuse continue. At this point, all he can hope for is a bit of rain.
Director's Statement:
Given that most of my filmmaking experience thus far has been in the horror and dark comedy genres, I took this thesis film as a chance to try something new - to prove to myself that I wasn't a one-trick pony. I wanted this film to have the zaniness of an Andy Samberg comedy with a bit of heart and drama from other romantic comedies like Adventureland. Most of all, I wanted the fun my cast and crew had on set to come through in the final product and to maintain a balanced tone from script to screen. While it's not a one-to-one match given a plethora of production obstacles you'll read about below, I'm very happy with how the film turned out. I also take it as a great compliment that my cast and crew were able to have so much fun on set even while we were navigating last-minute pivots and adapting to the elements. My hope is that you'll have as much fun watching the film as we did making it.
Credits
Writer/Director
Producer/UPM
UPM
Cast
Andy
Jesse
Vicky
Zoey
Camera Dept.
DP/Cam Op
Key Grip/Gaffer
1st AC
2nd AC
Grip
Robert Fox
Brandon J. Larry
Daniel Montenegro
Sean Ebanks
Jason Turchin
Kendall Rose
Lily McKenna
Keyon Smith
Elijah Morris
Kyle "Koach" Johnson
Clea Jin
Raquel Parra
Daniel Montenegro
Kyle "Koach" Johnson
Lilly Whitmire
Production Designer
1st AD
Editor
Script Supervisor
Sound Dept.
Sound Mixer
Boom Op
Re-recording Mixer
Foley Artist
Sound Utility
Production Assistants
Raquel Parra
Jordan Altdorfer
Robert Fox
Torin Collins
Alex Nguyen
Kakia Amarh
Anna Graves
Felix Nolasco
Alex Nguyen
Robert Fox
Jordan Altdorfer
Lilly Whitmire
Anna Graves
Felix Nolasco
Daniel Montenegro
Lilly Whitmire

Zoey and Vicky make a deal to compete for Andy's heart. Andy is not excited about it.

Technical Specs
Country: United States of America
Runtime: 7 minutes
Aspect Ratio: 16:9
Type: Film
Color: Color
Sound: 2.0 Stereo
Language: English
Editing Software: Avid Media Composer
Camera: Sony FX3
Codex and Format: MPEG - 4; AAC, H.264, Apple ProRes 422 HQ
Zoey wants forgiveness. Andy isn't budging.

Andy and Vicky take shelter from the rain.

Key Grip Kyle "Koach" Johnson hollywoods a flag over Lily to help expose the shot correctly.
Meet the Cast and Crew
Production Notes
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After going through multiple location agreements, phone calls, and more, the final location permit for the filming location did not come in until two days before production began.
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Three weeks were spent in contact with local fire departments and city officials, but nobody was able to fill the dunk tank with water for the production.
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One of the original key cast had to fly home on short notice, giving the production just 24 hours before the next shoot day to recast the part.
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Due to unpredictable and turbulent weather conditions, three versions of the script were written to account for any and all changes that might need to be made to the story last minute.
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Because the weather did in fact necessitate a pivot in location, a new version of the shots list for those scenes was written on looseleaf on the day of shooting.
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The day production was forced to move to the backup inside location was the same day the air conditioning unit stopped working - the temperature in Orlando that day was over 90 degrees Fahrenheit.
Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
814.897.6148 | RFOX1940@GMAIL.COM
When the Dunk Tank is Empty, Just Wait For Rain: New Production "The Dunk Tank" Debuts Against the Odds
Orlando, FL - Sept. 25, 2024 - Perhaps it was fate that a production of a zany rom-com in which nothing comes easy for the protagonist would itself be rife with obstacles and hinderances. None of that, however, was going to stop Robert Fox of Erie, PA from finishing his thesis film in time for its premiere.
"We get the shot no matter what," says the film's cam op and second director of photography, Elijah Morris. Writer and director Robert Fox comments on the atmosphere on set: "I take it as a great compliment that my cast and crew were able to have so much fun on set even while we were navigating last-minute pivots and adapting to the elements." From being unable to fill the dunk tank, to dealing with a recast mid-production, to the AC going out the same day the weather forces production to move inside, Fox and his team had to push through a myriad of roadblocks - and "still managed to obtain more shots than were on the original shots list," says producer and UPM Brandon J. Larry.
The film will premiere along with other thesis films from Fox's class at the Enzian Theater at 1300 S Orlando Ave in Maitland, FL on October 3rd in preparation for Fox's graduation from Full Sail University's Film Production MFA Program. The event begins at 2:30 PM.
For more information on Robert Fox and The Dunk Tank, visit https://rfox1940.wixsite.com/robert-fox-creative.
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