Sacrifices of an Imaginary Friend (2024)

Sara’s imaginary friends, Bee, Mini, and Lily have never left her side, even into adulthood. But what happens when these imaginary friends become real? What will it take for Sara to learn the truth?

stills

director’s statement

Being the youngest daughter with two older brothers I missed out on the experience of having close feminine friendships as a kid. It’s something I craved often going into public school, later realizing the connection to my sexuality as I got older. Along with my family moving often and experiencing bouts of online school, I felt mostly alone in my experience as a queer girl. When I began to make my own films I had the overwhelming urge to create things that were unapologetically feminine, exploring the vulnerability of these friendships and our existence as feminine people. This film was created from a short story I wrote exploring the fairytale-like friendship I wish I had from a young age, even if it was imaginary.

watch sacrifices of an imaginary friend now!

cast and crew

Directed and Written by
Kris Mitchell

Lead Cast
Maddie Beattie as Sara
Crystal Orser as Bee
Aurora Haziri as Mini
Bella Licari as Lily

Supporting Cast
Hailee McClelland as Student
Hailee McClelland as Pizza Delivery Person

Director of Photography
Cristian Elias

Assistant Director
Virginia Murphy

Assistant Camera
Daniel Giles

Gaffer
Brandon Fecteau
Hannah Zimmerman

Grip
Curran Landon

Sound Mixer
Henri Jones
Luke Rogowski
Jack Chisik

Script Supervisor
Jamela Lugo-Thomas

Art Direction + Set Design
Hailee McClelland
Hannah Kinney

Location Supervisor
Gabe Armelin
Avis Kerns
Ana Bosnjakovski
May

DIT
Jack Chisik

Costume Design
Avis Kerns

Styling
Avis Kerns

Makeup Artist
Leah Barringer
Avis Kerns
Maddie Beattie

BTS Photographer
Kayla Stotts

Editor
Kris Mitchell

Animation
Allison Frankfort

Sound Design
Jasmin Choi
Henri Jones

Colorist
Daniel Giles

Special Thanks
Daniella Lyle
Oksana Mirzoyan
Hailee’s Mom
Virg’s Mom
Virg’s Grandma
Arts & Scraps

behind the scenes
photos courtesy of kayla stotts