logline
Trevor's guitar and music define him. When he meets Claire, there is certainly tension. Their journey is often rocky, but profoundly inspirational. Dreams unrealized, personal struggles, and the challenges of romance rock their world.
SYNOPSIS
Blessed with inherited musical talent from his father, TREVOR YORK always had a deep-seated passion for songwriting. Through a series of unfortunate events, Trevor's passion has been outweighed by necessity and tainted by financial struggles.
Now, Trevor is a starving artist trying to make ends meet by busking and taking on odd jobs. One day, while performing on a street corner, he is approached by CLAIRE, who reveals herself as his next "odd job." Over the next few days, Trevor works as a "Taskrabbit" for Claire, driving her to work, accompanying her to the grocery store, and assisting with various personal errands. When Trevor gets evicted from his apartment, Claire offers him a gig at the café where she works and a place to stay.
Gradually, Trevor's passion for music is reignited upon discovering Claire's own hidden musical abilities -- as well as the reason for which she hired his help in the first place. Soon, Trevor comes to learn that Claire bears a secret that resonates from his own past.
As Trevor and Claire explore their shared passion for music, a deeper romantic connection begins to evolve. Their collaboration attracts attention from music producer DEXTER MANNING, who offers Trevor an opportunity to perform at a major music festival. As time goes on, Claire begins to fear she is holding Trevor back, sparking arguments and disagreements between the two, until they eventually break up. Weeks go by and, feeling regretful, Claire decides to drive herself to the music festival to make amends with Trevor. Tragedy strikes, and Claire's car careens off the road. At the very moment of the crash, Trevor ends his performance to roaring applause. However, his elation is extinguished when he learns of the accident. He rushes off the stage and to the hospital, hoping he won't be too late.
CINEMATIC REFERENCE
Comparable films include ONCE, MUSIC AND LYRICS, A STAR IS BORN, BEGIN AGAIN, and BEYOND THE LIGHTS.
These films explore the shared themes of love, passion, fame, and the struggles of the creative process. Against the backdrop of musical expression, characters use their art to navigate the labyrinth of emotions, communicating their innermost thoughts and feelings through song.
The journey of creative expression is never without its trials. Characters face the relentless struggle of artistic creation, battling against writer's block, industry pressures, and personal demons in their quest for self-expression and fulfillment.
Alongside this pursuit lies the tantalizing allure of fame and stardom, beckoning with promises of recognition and success, but also casting shadows of doubt and disillusionment.
In the midst of their endeavors, characters grapple with questions of authenticity versus commercialism, torn between the desire to stay true to their artistic vision and the demands of an unforgiving industry. They seek redemption and second chances, confronting past mistakes and missed opportunities as they strive to carve out their place in the world.
Throughout their journeys, collaboration and connection emerge as guiding forces, shaping the characters' paths and fostering growth and self-discovery. Through partnerships, mentorships, and romantic pursuits, they find solace, support, and inspiration, ultimately coming to terms with their true selves and the futures they desire.
Despite the different settings and plotlines, these shared themes resonate with audiences by tapping into universal experiences and emotions, making these films both relatable and compelling.
BECAUSE OF YOU explores these same themes, focusing on two young artists trying to carve their way in the world through their musical abilities, with the added dimension of how personal struggles can shape one's fate and the willpower required to overcome their limitations.
CAST & CHARACTER BREAKDOWN
Billy Reekie as TREVOR YORK, the male lead. Trevor is a talented musician who always dreamed of performing on the main stage, but now finds himself busking on street corners and working small jobs to make ends meet. His musical talent comes from his dad, who was his mentor, but whom he lost all too early in life.
Now, as a young man, Trevor's songwriting spirit has been tainted, but he can't quite escape his larger-than-life aspirations. He must contend with the part of himself that strives for something more, even though that very thing has caused him to grow cynical over time.
With the help of CLAIRE, we see Trevor's character open up gradually throughout the film -- even if the fate of those he loves comes devastatingly full-circle.
BILLY REEKIE is a solo Scottish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and musician who has experienced chart success with his first two singles “Don’t Come Around” and “Old Fashioned Way." He has also appeared on BBC TV's Little Mix: The Search to great acclaim.
Music runs deep in Reekie's family and courses through his veins. While living in Kirkcaldy, he joined a theatre group, which he credits as a major building block in his creative development.
Reekie's style is reminiscent of the kind of pop music that showcases real instruments and natural vocal performance.
His latest singles, "All I Can Do" and "I Met an Angel" have established him as the next generation's singer-songwriter extraordinaire.
CLAIRE JAMES is Trevor's love interest. An aspiring musician herself, Claire undergoes personal struggles, but keeps them a well-hidden secret. She settles on waitressing at a local café that hosts live music but, like Trevor, can never fully tamp down her aspirations. Her unabashed openness eventually brings Trevor out of his shell.
KIERNAN SHIPKA
KERRIS DORSEY
MAE WHITMAN
NOEL WELLS
JENNY CHOW owns and operates Jenny's Café, the café where Claire works. Her blunt attitude often shrouds her good intentions, but she plays the role of the tough yet lovable curmudgeon well.
AMY HILL
MARGARET CHO
ALI WONG
DEXTER MANNING is an eccentric yet successful music mogul who is always on the lookout for his next big discovery.
TERRY CREWS
KEVIN HART
MARSHAWN LYNCH
MS. PAVLOV is Trevor's strict and ornery landlady.
EMMA THOMPSON
KATE MULGREW
TALIA SHIRE
TEAM
MICHAEL POLLACK | PRODUCER
Michael Pollack has held leadership positions for more than 35 years in the legal, financial, and entertainment industries. Michael is the founder and former President of a litigation support firm that is today part of an international group of companies. He has held directorship positions for more than a dozen financial institutions that are both private and publicly held. Specializing for decades in M&A and Turnaround Management, he has spearheaded tens of billions of dollars of financing in commercial real estate, business, and entertainment-related transactions. Stage and screen projects in which Michael has played an integral role in financing and/or producing have grossed more than $2 billion at the box office.
JEAN-FRANÇOIS CAVELIER | PRODUCER
Jean-François Cavelier, originally from Paris, France, has over 33 years of experience in the combination of international Film and TV Sales/Distribution and Production. He was the Domestic and International Distribution Consultant for Comerica Bank (Los Angeles), Liberty International (Los Angeles), Pueblo (Geneva, Switzerland), and Syrena (Warsaw, Poland) on the financing side and held various Executive positions for worldwide film and television distribution companies in Hollywood before consulting with several clients both in the US, Latin America, France, and China. Cavelier has handled world sales of countless titles, active in the acquisition and distribution of media content in Mainland China and Latin America as well as in the distribution of Hollywood content to the global markets.
Cavelier turned his full attention to production in 2017, co-producing Jean-Michel Cousteau's "Wonders of the Sea", a feature documentary narrated by Arnold Schwarzenegger. He also acted as a Producer for "Air Strike," the biggest budget feature film ever produced in China, negotiating the hiring of Bruce Willis and Mel Gibson. In 2020, Cavelier co-founded a production outfit in Los Angeles with his producing partner Ghizlane S. Morlot called Countess Films, which focuses primarily on feature film projects that allow for women’s voices to be heard while creating opportunities to tell more inclusive stories. Shortly thereafter, Countess Films entered into a producing agreement with production and distribution company Pollack Films.
LAUREN MCGILL | EXECUTIVE PRODUCER
Lauren’s background in Research & Development and corporate finance in the private sector has brought great success to the firms that she has managed. For over twenty-five years, with a keen eye on the expense side of business, her skillset has guided every business in which she has been involved to grow exponentially while simultaneously controlling costs at every level. Lauren’s small-town Midwest roots provide a grounded and “salt of the earth” perspective for Pollack Films, which is her first venture into the world of entertainment. She has nonetheless taken a headfirst approach to reading each and every screenplay, book, and treatment under consideration by Pollack Films and she does not hesitate to share both her insights and opinions.
FRANK 'CUBED' HERNANDEZ | WRITER
For over a decade and a half, Frank Hernandez III had designed video games for AAA studios like Sony Santa Monica, the dearly departed Shiny Entertainment, small indie startups, and everything in between. His specialties included moment-to-moment document creation, active camera fabrication and narrative beat layouts. He once worked on a Justice League beat-'em-up based on the George Miller movie, which then got reworked into a 1-on-1 fighting game and then an action game that existed in the TimmVerse! It was an absolute dream come true that would get crushed when the game got reworked one last time into The Green Lantern starring Ryan Reynolds. It was an experience that would result in the loss of his job and sanity. From the smoldering ashes, Frank Cubed, the writer, emerged. When the Cubed one began this harrowing journey into the realm of screenwriting, he chose to enroll himself in the well-known French University, Le Tria'l An'Erreur. It's there he would toil away inside its cathedralic library studying books and sea scrolls authored by the likes of Francois Truffaut and Brian McDonald. Unfortunately, a disastrous concussion would cost him an athletic scholarship forcing him to unceremoniously drop out. Now, with a student debt that no calculator could comprehend, he was left with no other choice than to unleash a series of 13 novellas, including the award-winning "Unsung Lyric", the award-winning "A Monstrous Plan" and the walking lawsuit "Crotch-Tastrophe.