The Loon

Benji Loon, a young man searching for identity, is forced to confront the generational patterns he’s desperate to break when his lineage-obsessed father sends for him.

[theloonfilm]

Completed

Well, that's it, folks—the Loon is fully completed and has been submitted to the Maine Mayhem Film Festival alongside many other amazing projects. From start to finish, watching ideas on paper come to life was truly an honor. 

From a personal perspective, this was a true milestone—perhaps unlike any I've reached before. I pushed my limits, often searching for excuses not to move forward because it made me uncomfortable. Yet, overcoming those fears of self-doubt and criticism has strengthened my confidence for future projects.  Because of this experience (and you can say my story is material), I also bonded closely with my family, especially my father. 

Getting to share with my dad what filming The Loon was like was a conversation I never imagined having. Before editing the film, I spent time at the location with my father; we went on multiple walks, just talking about filmmaking, the experience, what I was going through, the troubles, and the stress. He was there through all of it—watching me handle situations, being my shoulder to lean on when I needed to rant or just talk. I will always remember those walks and our conversations. Now, being only two days away from the premiere, I cherish the time I had sharing with him, and I can't wait for people to finally see it.

Overcoming obstacles has been a consistent challenge throughout this process, and it has taught me a great deal about myself as a director, highlighting the strengths and weaknesses I need to work on. This experience has truly prepared me for the field I'm about to enter. I've witnessed the differences in set culture and work environment, and I'm excited to see what the future holds because it just keeps getting more exciting.

[theloonfilm]

The Loon Post-Production - Pt. 7

Hello, this is Ryan Habeeb of The Loon team, here to discuss a bit of personal reflection, personal creation, and more updates of The Loon. I am excited to announce that we are officially wrapping up post-production, and that The Loon film is officially complete! Set to premiere at the Maine Mayhem Film Festival hosted at Nickelodeon Cinemas (Patriot Cinemas) on May 7th, it is 1 of 8 amazing featured short films all created by brilliant students enrolled at Southern Maine Community College. Do not forget to purchase your tickets, they are nearly sold out!

For more information, check out this page: https://www.patriotcinemas.com/movie/2026-maine-mayhem-film-festival

Besides the 8 short films, there are an additional 13 micro short films directed by the producers of these short films. This includes The Loon producer, Oliver Hartt Caron, with his micro short Shower Chicken. It also includes my psychological thriller micro short called MARIA, which I had much fun creating along with those I am grateful for helping me bring this vision to life!

BTS from MARIA:

Personally reflecting on this Maine Mayhem experience, I was very happy to partake in it. I have learned a lot in the process of what it means to be a filmmaker truly collaborating with those around you. Along with this, I have made many great friends and connections as I continue on into the media world.

The Loon was an experience that I’ll never forget, not just as part of my career, but my life. I want to thank Charlie Stacey for recruiting me as a producer, and everyone else who have taught me new things along the way. Thank you, and I look forward to the future films we make!

[theloonfilm]

The Loon Post-Production - Pt. 6 - Micro Short

Hello, this is Oliver Hartt Caron with another update for The Loon that is a little different than our usual post as I will be talking about my micro-short that will be shown at the Maine Mayhem Festival.

So the way the festival works is that there are 23 students who will make a film to be shown 8 of these students make a 15 minute short film while the rest make 1 minute micro shorts. I am one of those students making a micro-short.

The micro-short that I am making is quite different than The Loon as mine is a mockumentary. I have always loved mockumentaries, some of my favorites being Spinal Tap and American Vandal. So my micro short is a spoof on my strange addictions with a mockumentary feel about a a man who eats a whole chicken in the shower every night. So the only thing related to The Loon about mine is the use of a bird...

I was really excited about making the film and the footage turned out as amazing as I had hoped and can't wait to see it screened alongside The Loon and all the other films at Maine Mayhem this year.

That is all for this week folks.

(That's actually a lie the Maine Mayhem premiere at the Nickelodeon has it's date set for the 7th of May and tickets are live! Here's a link! https://www.patriotcinemas.com)

[theloonfilm]

The Loon Post-Production - Pt. 5

Hello, this is Ryan Habeeb of The Loon team here to update you all on our current progress in the post production stage! As we continue to work on the fine cut of our film, we have much more to keep you all informed on regarding merch, music, and advertising!

To start off, we are currently in the process of designing official Loon posters. With a variety of pictures taken by Leo Millecchia and Luis Valmadrid, each poster has a special theme tailored to The Loon film’s aesthetics, all graphically designed by Charlie himself. These will be posted up around Southern Maine Community College and other locations in southern Maine.

Merchandise is also still being made, with an expected release by August of 2026 for those that donated to our Indiegogo fund. We once again thank those who have donated, and all of those that have continued to support us along the way!

As we come closer to the end of post production, we will finalize it with an official composition that will bring the ultimate unique feel to our short film. Composed by J-Wizdum, these soundtracks will bring an extra emotional depth to The Loon. Check out his Instagram: prod.jwizdum

As we approach the end of post production, we have been reflecting on the journey up until this point, grateful to have been partaking in the creation of this short film. We will continue to keep all of you updated. Until then, thank you all!

[theloonfilm]

The Loon Post-Production - Pt. 4

As we head into week 13 of the Maine Mayhem experience, we are tasked with finalizing a rough cut of our film to be watched and reviewed by our classmates. This is Charlie Stacey, writer, editor, and director of The Loon.

Since wrapping production, our crew has spent a lot of time helping out on other classmates’ sets and working on additional projects. While this has taken up a significant amount of time, it has also been one of our goals as a team to support as many films as possible during this process.

As the director, I have been working closely with our cinematographer, Luis Valmadrid, to refine our cuts. We’ve been reviewing scenes together and discussing which moments could potentially be trimmed or removed in order to save time and improve the pacing and consistency of the film.

I have also reached out to a composer for the project, and we’ve exchanged dates to hopefully meet soon and discuss the sound and musical direction of the film. I’m especially excited about this because it will be my first time collaborating with a composer in this way.

Our social media presence has also been doing well. We’ve tried to stay active and keep the buzz around our project alive by running marketing campaigns on campus, including putting up flyers and organizing scavenger hunts open to anyone. It’s been a fun way to engage people and keep interest in the film growing.

I'm very excited for the coming weeks ahead, so much time, love, and effort were put into this class, and I can't wait to see it recognized.

[theloonfilm]

The Loon Post-Production - Pt. 3

Welcome back y'all!

This is the assistant director/producer Oliver Hartt Caron with another update on The Loon post-production.

The post production journey has been going well for us so far, our director Charles Stacey is hard at work making rough cuts and has been sharing with us (the producers myself and Ryan Habeeb) and asking for our input as we cut the film to fit the festivals requirements.

We have also started a fun little scavenger hunt for those who like puzzles and are in the area! We have hidden loons across the SMCC campus and if you find them all and contact us you can get a ticket for the premiere on us (while ticket availability last.)

So be on the look out for loons and more updates on the film!

Finally sharing post from us is what gets people to see our film so please share with your friends and family!

That's all for this week. Thank you all again and we will update you all again in a week!

[theloonfilm]

The Loon Post-Production - Pt. 2

Welcome back, folks! This is writer/director Charles Stacey with an update on The Loon post-production.

As mentioned earlier, we have officially wrapped filming. While this isn’t the first project I’ve written and directed, it’s easily one of the experiences I’m most proud of. We truly put everything we had into making this film something special.

I first started writing The Loon on May 12, 2025, and quickly began building a cast and crew from the ground up. What’s incredible is that the same team stayed with me throughout the entire process, which made the experience even more meaningful and helped bring everything together.

Below is a photo of all of us right after finishing our final scene—it was one hell of a weekend.

The editing phase has been moving steadily. One of the biggest recent steps in post-production was purchasing DaVinci Resolve. I’ve been handling most of the rough cuts myself, while our director of photography, Luis Valmadrid, has taken on the role of colorist.

Thankfully, Resolve works well with the camera we used—the RED Komodo (Shown below), so the workflow has been smooth overall.

We’ve been organizing each scene into its own timeline, which allows me to focus on the intention behind each moment without disrupting the full cut, which is still being assembled.

I’m especially excited to move into sound design and scoring. Before production even began, I connected with a local composer who has experience working on thriller and horror shorts, and he’s been patiently waiting to jump into this project.

Outside of editing, we’ve also been pushing forward with marketing. Recently, we created 3D-printed loons with custom QR codes on the bottom and placed them around campus as part of a scavenger hunt. The goal is to grab people’s attention—even if they’re not film fans. Here in Maine, almost everyone knows what a loon is, so we’re hoping that familiarity sparks curiosity.

Besides that, I’ve also had the chance to work with a local graphic designer, Hudson Nutting, to create logos for our social media. He’s a good friend of mine who I connected with through school, and I’m incredibly grateful to have his name attached to this film.

The logo we’re currently using was actually created before production began, but it still captures the tone of the project and hints at what’s to come—along with, hopefully, more collaborations in the future.

Overall, I’m overwhelmed by the amount of support I’ve received throughout this journey. Sticking to my gut and never wavering has had a real impact on me—it’s made me feel confident that I made the right choices, and it’s pushed me to keep creating the kind of work I believe in.

On a sidenote, I’ve already started writing my next script. I’ve made it a goal to write every day to keep this momentum going. This whole experience started with the mayhem at the beginning, and I’m excited to see where it all leads next.

[theloonfilm]

The Loon Post-Production - Pt. 1

Hello, this is Ryan Habeeb of The Loon team. I am once again excited to inform you guys on all the amazing progress we have made up until now, and our efforts moving forward into our next phases of this journey.

As you all know, we have officially wrapped up the production stage of The Loon! I am personally very proud of everyone’s efforts and contributions to make this story come to life. Everyone brought the best out of one another, and we continue to look forward to the final stages of development.

In transition to the post-production stage, all of us have been assisting on other production sets, helping one another out. We have also been taking a much needed break of course, figuring out the next steps for our film as we continue on. We have further been planning new marketing tactics, especially more fun and engaging ones in attempt to grow The Loon’s presence at Southern Maine Community College and beyond. In addition, we have also been continuing to make merchandise for supporters coming soon.

In regards to the production stage itself, it was a valuable experience that has helped us all grow. We had a lot of fun moments on set that can be reflected on along with lessons we've learned. I am very happy to say that things have been coming out great for this film, and I personally look forward to its further development in post production! We will continue to keep you of you updated on our progress. Thank you all for support!

[theloonfilm]

Production Pt. #2 That's a wrap!

Hey all! It is Oliver again with another update on The Loon film! We had another great weekend of filming and we are now officially wrapped on all principal filming.

As we have stated before, we were filming in the Bangor area of Maine so our weekends were spent traveling and working once on location. Pretty much everyone in the cast and crew stayed at the location so there was a lot of bonding amongst us when we weren't filming. I personally got to know a lot of people working on this film a lot better from this experience.

The footage is looking great from our simple color grades and rough editing! We are excited to share some more about the look of the film but for now it's a bit of a secret.

With the conclusion of filming we are now into post-production, in this phase we will be looking into submitting this film into film festivals, and getting prepared for the first screening of the film at Maine Mayhem!

Thank you all again for all of the support! Once again, THAT'S A WRAP ON FILMING!

[theloonfilm]

Goodbye Pre-Production and Hello Production Pt. #1

Wow! It's been a while, folks. This is Charlie Stacey, writer and director of "The Loon," updating you on how our first weekend of production went!

First off, pre-production ended on a high note when we secured a last-minute location in the town of Buxton. However, due to the weather, we had to reschedule the shoot to fit the crew's availability. It was a rollercoaster of challenges, but we made it work and captured beautiful shots on day one. I want to thank my crew for their communication, and especially my producer Ryan and assistant director Oliver for handling calls and securing permissions.

Thankfully, as we moved into our first shoot weekend, we had no reschedules, though I could have delegated roles earlier. 

I first arrived on location that Thursday to set decor with my director of photography, Luis, and Costume and makeup designer Chloe to discuss the easiest scenes to film without having to move around unnecessarily in the house, which would easily tire us out. The three of us worked throughout the night, setting up the dressing and making the house seem lived in, especially the loon shelf, which was very exciting to see come to life because it was one of the very things I first envisioned for this project.

Our shoot began on Friday after everyone arrived at the location and got situated, finding places to sleep.

Friday night, we began shooting and filmed some very beautiful scenes. Thankfully, we had a set of chiefs ( Curtney & Maddie) cooking us food while we worked hard throughout the night. 

Saturday was our most eventful day yet, where we filmed alot of high-maintenance scenes that are curcial to the film and are imperative that we do justice to the film. We had one locaion outside where Assistant directors Oliver and Logan communciated through walkie-talkies to directed crew and actors. It inclouded long hours and reptitve pratice of rehearsals to get down, but by doing this, it strengthened my relationship with my actors and crew, especially the father actor Sean Ramey, whove ive grown close to and can call my friend now because of this project. 

One thing i forgot to mention is that prior to coming to set my lead actor( Benji Loon) had not met the father actor, yeah and did hes best to avoid his face, to get a more genuine reaction from their performances.

As we move into our last shoot weekend, I've reflected on how proud and honored I am to be working with such talented individuals and artists. I'm blessed to have a crew that will travel to see this film get made and help in every aspect of that. The memories that we have created have already stuck with me, and I wish I could relive that weekend again. Although it had its problems and issues, I believe it was a beautiful way of making art and figuring out challenges and solving them

[theloonfilm]

The Loon Production Journey - Pt. 6

Hello, this is Ryan Habeeb of The Loon team. I am excited to be updating you all on the great progress we’ve made as we move on from preproduction into production full-time for our film. Everything has been going along fantastically, and we thank you all once again for your support on this filming journey!

To start off, we have officially began our filming process as we have completed shooting our first scene with Evan Boston-Cole. Located in the West Buxton area, our setting offered a great feel that is perfect to the visual aesthetics this film contains. Although the location itself was rather busy with drivers, we managed to successfully capture audio that was not overwhelmed with the sounds of other cars.

One thing that is a challenge filming in Maine is the weather, particularly in the winter season and its unpredictability. With a predicted 4 to 8 inches of snow in Southern Maine, our filming took place early morning with the snowfall only occurring the night before. We were not truly sure if the snowfall would be rather light or heavy, when it would generally stop, or how snow plowing would handle it regarding the roads. Thankfully, we got a lighter snowfall than predicted which was easy to clear out for the film set.

Besides filming, we have also made great progress in campaigning. We have continued to distribute flyers for local Mainers, and update followers on all our social media. We are also in the process of designing official merchandise in collaboration with Hudson Nutting. He has been bringing amazing visuals to life working on our t-shirt designs along with Charlie Stacey.

We are continuing our production stage as we enter the next week. Shooting the bulk of our film in the Bangor area of Maine, we are all looking forward to making the trip and contributing to this vision!

[theloonfilm]

The Loon Pre Production Journey Pt #5

Hello! Oliver Hartt Caron here again with another update on our short film journey. We are getting close to the start of our first filming dates and can't wait to share updates about production along with some BTS photos!

For this week's update I am sharing more about our preparation for our first shoot day for next week. The basic preparation is figuring out what days we are going to get what shots from the shot-list. For our first day it is rather easy as it's the only group of shots in a different location than most of the film. Another part is figuring out the logistics of certain shots, my job as AD is to make sure we are getting our shots safely and efficiently. Sometimes the Cinematographer and Director will over look these aspects in the pursuit of the art form.

For our first shoot it is mainly all outside so we have to work around that due to the weather. We will have beverages to stay warm with within carafe's along with hand warmers and dressing warm for the weather. Thankfully the forecast puts that day above 32 and sunny.

Another part is the art for the film! I have been tasked with drawing the sketches within Benji Loons sketchbook. Me and Charles Stacey are working on what Benji would have in the sketch book and how Benji does his sketches.

That is all for this week but The Loon team is excited to start filming and share more with you all! Thank you all for your continued support of this film.

[theloonfilm]

The Loon Pre Production Journey Pt #4

I want to thank everyone who has contributed to The Loon so far. Recently, we hit 100% funded in our crowdfunding campaign, and we can't be more excited to get to work

With the recent success in crowdfunding, I decided to pull the trigger and contact a local carving artist in my area. We met today to discuss a potential partnership to help with the set direction and the Loons that will be used in the film.

I reached out to Mike Hanks from Coastal Carvings on Monday, September 29, 2025, and after some conversations, we met in person so he could show me his shop. We talked about who we are and what my goal is with this film. One thing I learned about Mike is that he’s been carving since he was 15! I didn’t want to ask his age (it felt rude), but in the screenshots, you can see the years of dedication he has to his craft. I felt honored to be welcomed so warmly into his private workspace. Funny enough, I told him his shop would be a perfect place to shoot the film (but oh well).

We filmed videos of him carving without any modern instruments, which got me even more excited to go all out. We also discussed the purpose of my story and the emotional beats and stages I hope we can hit. There was a really cool moment when he mentioned that “in ancient times, they used center lines to carve the edge.” I probably butchered that quote, but it was fascinating.

As of 2/10/26, my main actor, Evan Boston Cole, and I will be visiting his shop and participating in carving techniques used in the film. Mike has expressed gratitude for the opportunity to work with others.

Just recently, I met with my director of photography, Luis Miguel Valmadrid, and went through the whole script and shot list; it reinforced the confidence I have in my script and my crew's ability to pull it off. I'm excited to start shooting this month at our first location. It's about time that mayhem begins and we get the ball rolling.

[theloonfilm]

The Loon Pre-Production Journey - Part 3

Hello, my name is Ryan Habeeb. I am a producer for Charlie Stacey’s “The Loon,” primarily serving as script supervisor and sound designer/assisting sound editor. I am personally very excited to be working with such an extremely talented and dedicated team who have been putting so much effort into this film. With everything in production continuing on, I will discuss my introduction to joining The Loon, the efforts we have made, and the efforts moving forward.

Before officially enrolling, The Maine Mayhem Film Festival was an experience I had been looking forward to. Although I assisted in the production of different proof of concepts, I had not yet officially joined any team. Towards the end of the college semester, I was contacted by Charlie Stacey regarding an available producer role on his Maine Mayhem film project. After he shared his proof of concept for The Loon with me, I was amazed by the quality of the work and instantly captivated by the vision for this film. While Charlie and I did not have any previous production courses together, we have had great conversations and were familiar with each other’s work. Once brief details were discussed, I accepted the producer role offer, and the rest is history. From there, I got to meet assistant director, Oliver Hartt Caron, and other follow crew members. It has truly been an amazing experience so far working on this film.

Considering production efforts are still in their early stages, the majority of progress has been based around funding and marketing. For instance, Charlie graphically designed flyers/posters to be printed and put up locally around Southern Maine Community College and other areas, which I took part in distributing and posting. Along with this, Chloe Falkner has been in the process of printing business cards to be given out by members of the crew. Moving forward, we are in process of designing merchandise and campaign planning to further boost The Loon’s notoriety before its premiere at Maine Mayhem.

As we continue The Loon, I am only looking forward to meeting further crew members, campaigning and fulfilling my production roles on set. We have had the film accepted into one other film festival besides Maine Mayhem, and we will continue to hopefully be accepted into more so The Loon can reach as many audiences as possible.

ATTENTION: Our Indiegogo donation fund has only 2 DAYS LEFT. If you donate as a backer, you can receive a digital poster, a digital copy of The Loon, and more! We greatly appreciate everybody who has contributed to the fund.

The Loon by Charles W. Stacey - Indiegogo

The Loon is a 15-minute Psychological Thriller about generational trauma and how history can hold people back. This film is set to premiere

[theloonfilm]

The Loon Pre-Production Journey - PT2. Paperwork

Hello, I’m Oliver Hartt Caron, assistant director (AD) and one of the producers of “The Loon.” I am excited and grateful to be a part of such a great team and project! As we get closer to production I’d like to share what we are working on back end, to make the production happen. 

I joined this project before it was even conceived. I had been working with Charlie throughout our college journeys and really bonded with him while working on “The Oracle” as a PA on set. We talked extensively about this year’s Maine Mayhem and I immediately knew I wanted to work on his set. When we started the Maine Mayhem class I finally got a chance to read his script and was instantly hooked. I felt a strong relation to the character of Benji and understood that struggle of who you think you should be and who you want to be. When it came to filming the proof of concept there were some complications that lead the actor of Benji Loon (Evan Boston-Cole) unavailable for the shoot dates of the proof. I got the honor of playing Benji Loon for the proof and I thank Charlie for the opportunity to help breathe life into his character for the proof! 

After “The Loon” got officially greenlit for Maine Mayhem 2026 I immediately hopped on as a producer and the AD and we got right to work. That work is well…A LOT of paper work. Right now we are getting together contracts, email lists, call sheets, shot lists, and much much more! The paperwork is not as bad as I make it sound as it is a lot of compiling information that we have already gathered. The other part is making accounts and managing them such as Tiktok, Instagram, Tumblr, and Email. This leads to a lot of typing at a keyboard in front of computers but also a lot of meetings that get us talking about the film we are so excited to put together that it makes the difficulty of the work moot. 

I am learning the ropes of what it means to be an AD as this will be the first film that I have such a role but, getting all of this paperwork done makes me feel much more confident for our set days. Like I have said I am excited to see this film through and can’t wait to share more about this process of making this film! With all of that I bid you all adieu!

P.S. There is still time to donate if you want to help out this short film! Any amount helps!

The Loon by Charles W. Stacey - Indiegogo

The Loon is a 15-minute Psychological Thriller about generational trauma and how history can hold people back. This film is set to premiere

[theloonfilm]

How many fingers am I holding up?

Robert can't hold up any, so we don't know.

[theloonfilm]

The Loon Pre-Production Journey

Hello, I'm Charlie Stacey, the writer and director of “The Loon.” I am beyond grateful and excited to announce that my senior thesis has been officially greenlit to premiere at the Maine Mayhem Film Festival in 2026. As we prepare to enter the production phase of the semester, I would like to reflect on how the pre-production phase went over the months leading up to this moment.

I started writing “The Loon” on June 25, 2025, when I was already attending the Maine Mayhem class as a producer for "The Oracle" directed by Dan Whitman. Being a producer introduced me to what it’s like to have an important role on set beyond just being a PA. It grew a passion in me to pursue larger roles; seeing my work or little suggestions appear on screen in the full film made me actually feel like I contributed. Being a producer also allowed me to make a microshort that played during the festival, which I had so much fun making and enjoyed working with the crew.

That summer after the 2025 mayhem ended, I knew I wanted to take the class again. I spent most days alone paddleboarding on Crystal Lake in Gray, Maine. There, I witnessed hundreds of loons come and go, sometimes getting inches away from one. During this time, I had a lot of self-reflection about myself, how I felt so separated from my family. It brought me comfort that the loons’ calls could be heard throughout the whole lake—a warning, a hello, or a mate call could be heard from anywhere. The bond that they had made me emotional, that no matter where they were, their love could still echo.

It was on that lake I decided I was going to make the story about “The Loon.” I had no idea what the premise was going to be about other than family and guilt, which were the two things I was struggling with at the time. Deciding to write about loons was a big step for me because their history and culture are so important to me that I wanted to get it right and do it justice. So I bought books about loons and did research into different types of calls, their feathers, what they eat, where they migrate, and the Native culture and story behind the white necklace of the loon and how he received it. There was so much information that it overwhelmed me with the direction of the story I wanted to make. At times, I had to sit down and take a break to avoid getting totally overwhelmed.

As I was writing during the summer, I made the mistake of bringing on cast and crew early, as it affected my confidence in myself to finish the story and hope that people would like it. Looking back, I wish I had focused more on what I liked about the story and taken more time organizing it, rather than allowing YouTube videos of how to write a script to clutter my mind. All that did was confuse me, make me not want to write, and contradict things I had already learned.  

All of that was a learning opportunity—helping me fully understand my craft and the steps I’m taking to open the door to the passion I feel for this industry and career. I can’t wait to update everyone when we officially start, because I’m more than ready to finish what I began

p.s if your intersted in funding my first ever short film, here's the link

The Loon by Charles W. Stacey - Indiegogo

The Loon is a 15-minute Psychological Thriller about generational trauma and how history can hold people back. This film is set to premiere