#Jadelyn Breier

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Jadelyn Breier

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REFLECT - Review

DISTRIBUTOR: Cranked Up Films

SYNOPSIS: “Unhappy with her current relationship, Summer sets out on a road trip to Sedona, AZ, accompanied by her four gal pals to a spiritual obstacle course. Upon arriving, they are greeted by their uncanny host, Hermes who leads them into the vast desertscape which becomes the foreground for the interdimensional game show they unknowingly are participating in. Diving into issues surrounding trauma, mental health, and female relationships, the girls start to go missing one by one. We discover mysterious hooded figures are following them. As the tension rises, who will figure out how to escape this and become the last one standing, ultimately winning The Game of Life?” - Press Notes

REVIEW: Actress, writer, executive producer and director, Dana Kippel's latest project is the feature film REFLECT. The plot is a satirical take on the New Age culture of Sedona, AZ, as five diverse girlfriends go on a spiritual quest, lured by the promise of a cash prize if they complete a mystical obstacle course in the hope of improving their lives.

The set up and development of the five female characters is straightforward as the viewer is presented with plenty of background on each as they interact and embark on this spiritual odyssey. What becomes a bit confusing is the so-called “spiritual obstacle course.” The concept of an “obstacle course” comes with certain assumptions, and it does not meet expectations. There is this subplot of an interdimensional game show. It’s thinly presented early on, a character inconsistently appears offering commentary, and the last girl standing is presented with the motivation for these beings watching over the participants progress. As a result something may or may not have happened at the end, and I say that because it was unclear. I re-watched the scene a couple of times to see if I missed something but I didn’t see it. There is a sequence during the credits that adds to that confusion and feels like it is poking fun at the viewer for having sat through.

As a filmmaker, Kippel is an adept technician who is most likely restricted by the film’s budget at fully achieving her vision. Shot in Sedona, AZ, and around areas called magnetizing energetic “vortexes”, such as Cathedral Rock & The Birthing Cave, I feel the film could have done more to capture the natural beauty of the area. The location for much of the film’s drama is a barren area with little vegetation and a limited color palette. The cinematography is solid, but there isn’t much there for it to capture. The visual effects feel like something “off the shelf” and not engaging or inspired. I enjoyed composer Ched Tolliver’s score. It added some nice touches to the visual and narrative.

The five principal actresses do a credible job of carrying the film. There is a nice group dynamic that engages the viewer’s interest and holds your curiosity to see how the story is resolved. The secondary characters, such as Hermès, Moon, etc., feel like they are on a different rack and they’re performances are a bit goofy and either flat or over the top. Their satire is flat, it doesn't hit, and the rest of the film makes their comedy feel awkward.

Dana Kippel’s feature debut is a mixed bag of satire and drama. There are times when it works and others where it leaves this viewer scratching their head and struggling to make it through to the end. Strong performances wrestle to overcome budget limitations and the film never fully captures the location to its advantage. Dana Kippel does a fine job in front of the camera and demonstrates her skills behind the camera. I’d be curious to see what she might have achieved with a slightly larger budget and more time to shape her vision in pre-production. Per her credits, she clearly has an attraction to the horror genre and I’m curious to see what her next film, “The Pink House,” offers viewers. Absolutely a name on my list to be on the lookout for.

CAST: Dana Kippel, Grace Patterson, Ariana Brown, Marissa Patterson, Jadelyn Breier, Joe Filippone, Chris Levine, and Maya Knell. CREW: Director/Screenplay - Dana Kippel; Producers - Loan Thach, Adam Sigal & Zac Coats; Cinematographer - Bernie Tarin; Score - Ched Tolliver; Editors - K. Spencer Jones, Marissa Patterson & Caden Finch; Costume Designer - Elsa Estrada; Visual Effects - Andy Fernandez; OFFICIAL: reflectmovie.com INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/reflectmovie TIKTOK: www.tiktok.com/@metaphysicsgurl TRAILER: https://youtu.be/x5LqdNebNFU?si=o1zIVJYNFvDmgDYV RELEASE DATE: VOD & Digital January 9th, 2024

**Until we can all head back into the theaters our “COVID Reel Value” will be similar to how you rate a film on digital platforms - 👍 (Like), 👌 (It’s just okay), or 👎 (Dislike)

Reviewed by Joseph B Mauceri

[cultfaction]

New age thriller Reflect manifests on VOD this January!

Cranked Up Films is excited to kick off their 2024 slate with the North American VOD release of Reflect, the feature film debut of writer/director/star Dana Kippel. The sci-fi metaphysical thriller follows a group of friends on a spiritual obstacle course hoping to improve their lives, but they don’t know they are being monitored by mysterious hooded entities, eager to take over their…

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Instagram Crush: Jadelyn Breier

http://bit.ly/2ybgIlF

[fearsmagazine]

REFLECT | Trailer, Poster & Images

Unhappy with her current relationship, Summer sets out on a road trip to Sedona, AZ, accompanied by her four gal pals to a spiritual obstacle course. Upon arriving, they are greeted by their uncanny host, Hermes who leads them into the vast desertscape which becomes the foreground for the interdimensional game show they unknowingly are participating in.

Transported, they begin a colorful, surrealistic journey of the soul, diving into issues surrounding trauma, mental health, and female relationships. The girls start to go missing one by one as we discover mysterious hooded figures are following them. As the tension rises, who will figure out how to escape this and become the last one standing, ultimately winning The Game of Life?

Dana Kippel headlines the film as Summer, rounded out by a cast including Grace Patterson, Jadelyn Breier, Marissa Patterson, Ariana Williams, Corey Brooks, Eric Scott Woods, Dash Katz, Maya Knell, Ryan Jack Connell, and Joe Filippone. Kippel produced under her Crazy Carrot Films shingle, alongside Zac Coats, Ryan Jack Connell, Brian Duss, Grace Patterson, Loan Thach, and Rhiannon Moller-Trotter. Michael DeLano of COTU Media served as executive producer.

Cranked Up Films is excited to kick off their 2024 slate with the North American VOD release of Reflect, the feature film debut of writer/director/star Dana Kippel. REFLECT debuts on Digital VOD January 9, 2024, including Prime Video, Apple TV, Google Play, and Vudu.

REFLECT world premiered at the Chandler International Film Festival and went on to screen at the Boston Science Fiction Film Festival, the Sydney Science Film Festival, and the ETHOS Film Awards International Film Festival.