Desert Sleep

Desert Sleep is a psychological short film set in the Sonoran desert at the edge of night. Caleb runs impounds for a living — overtime, sealed vehicles, questions he's learned not to ask. When his rig breaks down on a stretch of I-8 near Jacumba, he's stranded with a police-hold car, a stranger who doesn't cast a reflection, and the specific dread of a man who has been disappearing into his job for years without noticing. What he finds when he finally opens that door isn't a mystery. It's a mirror.

Last November I was driving south on I-15, an hour north of Las Vegas, at 3am when I slid off the road. A tow truck driver came out to help and ended up stuck himself, back tire spinning out in the soft dirt, his rig parked two feet from the white line while cars flew past at 95mph without moving over. Standing between that truck and the freeway, I started asking questions. On the drive to Vegas he told me about picking up a car in the dark not knowing there was a body in the driver's seat. About people who go out into the desert and never come back. About what it costs to do that job night after night. I couldn't let those stories go. That's where Desert Sleep began.

The man in this story is also me — the near-miss in Colorado, the father who gave his ears to a warehouse, the job that costs more than the paycheck covers. I'm making this film because I couldn't stop thinking about it. That's usually the right reason.

I’m building Desert Sleep to deliver a festival-level short with cinematic production value and real emotional impact, built lean, executed professionally, and designed to compete. Your support directly funds production and post so we can finish strong and submit to top festivals. 

• Pre-Production: assembling key crew & locking locations
• Production Plan: 2 nights (3 max)
• Festival Goal: Top-tier short film circuit — SXSW, Palm Springs ShortFest, Tribeca, and beyond