About

Fed up with her mother calling her a fat and stupid Water Buffalo, Ann runs away from home to join the circus, or more likely, to hang out at the local fantasy con. There she encounters monsters, superheroes, warriors and ninjas in preparation for the battle against her arch nemesis.

Who is Wonder Buffalo?

Wonder Buffalo is me. She's you. She's anyone who ever got looked down upon, anyone who got bullied or mistreated just for being different, or as we prefer to call it, unique. She is the epitome of the misunderstood, mistreated and unappreciated. And she will never let any of these keep her down. She is a work in progress. Always growing, learning, becoming better, stronger, tougher. What's her superpower? Tenacity.

Wonder Buffalo to us is a way to show and tell everyone that you are great, that you are awesome just the way you are. Find the superhero inside of you and stand up for yourself against any oppression.

Our Story

Christine T. Berg - Wonder Buffalo is the more interesting version of what I went through as a child. I've always wanted to deal with the name calling and body shaming that I've experienced throughout my life. It's in every culture really. Within my family I was called a hippo as a way of being fat shamed, and a water buffalo as being stupid. I developed insecurities, which led me to agree at fourteen to accept an engagement approved by my parents. We were engaged to marry when I turned eighteen, but during the waiting period, I became more confident in myself, and it had to do with the rare few women around me at the time who taught me to follow my dreams regardless of cultural expectations or my own fears. I ended the engagement and have been struggling to find a way to tell my story, to inspire others and myself. Out came Wonder Buffalo, a superhero! She inspired me to let go of the past, and I hope she inspires others to let go of fear and social pressure and to follow their dreams no matter what.

Simon Shterenberg - Like Christine, I grew up alienated due to my hearing loss incurred suffering from meningitis as a child. Growing up it was hard making connections and communicating with the people around me. I felt looked down upon, misunderstood and mistreated. But I never let this put me down and strived as much as I could to achieve equal footing with those around me. I channel my connection to the misfits and underdogs into the story of Wonder Buffalo. I want the audience to be inspired by our story. Stand strong and follow their own path, their dreams, and find their true selves.

THE CAST

Vera Charoenying - Wonder Buffalo

Vera was born in the bleeding hot Nation of Thailand, but raised in the occasionally hot state of California. As a Thai American Vera looks forward to and enjoys the usual mindless action movies, but tempers her bloodlust with movies that enlighten and inspire her. Although a frequent moviegoer, being in one was never part of the plan. Yet Wonder Buffalo has given her the opportunity to pursue a lost dream.

Atif Hashwi - The Ninja

Atif was born in Canada and raised in Detroit, Michigan. He has been acting since he was 14 years old and is currently a junior at the University of Southern California School of Dramatic Arts. A self proclaimed nerd he relates to Wonder Buffalo’s struggle as a misfit and especially to his character, The Ninja.

He loves being a part of Wonder Buffalo as the story encourages diversity in film by allowing him to play a regular Lebanese American teen and a ninja and not be stereotyped as most Middle Eastern characters usually are.

Katherine Crawford - Wonder Chick

Originally from South Africa, Katherine immigrated to the United States in 1998 and 10 years later joined the United States military. After suffering injuries which resulted in an honorable medical discharge, she began to pursue a career in modeling and acting in hopes to build awareness in the community of diversity and disabled individuals. She hopes to one day began a non-profit organization to help differently abled youth reach their goals within the performing arts.

THE CREW

Christine T. Berg - Writer/Director

Christine was born in Bangkok, Thailand and raised in a military family, traveling the world. To finance her education she served eight years in the army, reaching the rank of Sergeant as a Russian Linguist, Blackhawk Helicopter Crewmember, Armorer, and Electronic Warfare Specialist. After the military, Christine earned a BA in Cinema from San Francisco State University and an MFA in Film and Television Production from University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts. She writes stories that involve a diverse cast, cross cultural differences, social, political and military effects on daily lives, all with a daring edge that pushes at our comfort zone, as she has been on many sides of life herself. Christine participated in the 2013 Military Veteran Writing Retreat at the Writer’s Guild of America.

Simon Shterenberg - Writer/Producer

Simon hails from the tiny nation with big problems of Israel. He has struggled since young age with hearing loss and meningitis. Growing up mostly a loner, he developed a taste and passion for dreaming, writing and creating worlds. He grew up playing video games, role-playing and card games such as Dungeons and Dragons and Magic the Gathering. He got drafted to the army and as soon as his military service was over set his sights on Los Angeles with dreams of pursuing a career in film. He would like nothing more than to push towards a more progressive and equal society where we all can live and work together without the issues many face today.

Katrina Nelson - Producer

Katrina Nelson, MSTM is an award winning Producer and has over 15 years experience in the Entertainment Industry. Moving to Los Angeles in 2004, she hit the ground running, working on Feature films and then as a Contract Admin Coordinator for Buena Vista Films. She gained her Television experience working as a Network Media Coordinator for Disney/ABC Television where she honed her skills as a researcher and Daytime, Primetime and Late Night Promo Scheduler. Working with ABC Senior Level Executives, she maintained awareness of the competitive programming environment on other networks and cable channels, contributing to the development of innovative programs that fit with the overall network’s programming goals, audience retention and marketing strategies.

Stepping out on her own, she created NABB Productions to write and create “great” content for both Television and the Big Screen. She holds a Bachelors Degree in English from Coppin State University and a Masters degree in Telecommunications Management from Morgan State University.

Katie Walker - Cinematographer

Since completing her MFA in Film Production at USC, Katie has been shooting everything from music videos to documentaries, narrative to reality. Her love for cinematography comes from her background in photography as well as her undergraduate degree in world literature, which developed her love for storytelling. Katie recently finished post production on “Bread and Butter,” a feature film she shot about the trials of finding storybook romance in the real world, and her second feature “Lola’s Last Letter” will be finished in summer 2014. Katie loves exploring new places, gardening, and making movies of course.

Robert Lydecker - Composer

Robert Lydecker has composed music for everything from short, independent projects to Hollywood blockbusters. He currently scores and is Emmy nominated for Fox's TV show, "Sleepy Hollow" along with Brian Tyler. Other credits include "Iron Man 3", "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014)", "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3", and the second and third "Expendables" films.

Lydecker is looking forward to composing the score for "Wonder Buffalo" as the story and characters smash stereotypes, showing us that there's a badass superhero inside us all, despite what society may tell us.

Kathryn Fernandez - Makeup and Hair

Kathryn began her career in makeup working in Product Development for the cosmetic brands: Urban Decay, Hard Candy and Too Faced Cosmetics. Unhappy with corporate life she shifted her career to the film industry. It’s been a fun five years specializing in blood, guts, and injuries.

This is not the first project that Kathryn has worked with director Christine on. After reading such an inspirational script about a young girl’s struggle to find her own inner strength and voice, Kathryn knew she had to be a part of it.

And many more...

Where does the money go?

Filming in Los Angeles usually comes with a high price tag-- location fees, insurance costs, equipment rentals, permit fees, etc. Every penny goes directly towards production and contributor rewards. Before we can start shooting Wonder Buffalo, we need to cover a myriad of production and post-production expenses including:

Cast - Wonder Buffalo, The Ninja, and Wonder Chick, the mother, her Thai posse, superheroes and villains, cosplayers galore.

Crew - Cinematographer, Assistant Director, Production Designer, Hair and Makeup, Sound Recording, Cosplayer Wranglers, and a Studio Teacher.

Equipment - Camera Packing, Lighting, Grip and Electric Gear.

Production Design - Set Dressing, Props.

Costumes - The Water Buffalo horns, superheroes, henchmen and women, monsters and so many more.

Locations - Meltdown Comics OH YEAH!, bus, Thai town, and places that look awesome.

Permits & Insurance - LA City Permits, Production Insurance (not cheap).

Craft Services - Meals, Beverages, Papaya salad and Thai BBQ Chicken (Yumm!).

Editing - Editor, VFX, Assemblies, Rough Cuts, Final Cut, Sound Design, Sound Mix, Color Correction, and Hard Drives. Must feed editor.

Music - Fat Beats, Sweet Jams, Rocking Riffs, Bob's the word.

Just to name a few...

CONNECT WITH US ONLINE

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/WonderBuffalo

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/WonderBuffaloXL

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/WonderBuffalo

#WonderBuffalo

Email us at Kapow@WonderBuffalo.com

A few last words

If you can't afford to donate but still want to back this project, there are other ways to help us out. Just spreading the word by liking or sharing us on Facebook, Tweeting about us, or telling your friends to check out our kickstarter page is such a huge help. The best thing for our project right now is to get that kind of exposure, and it would mean the world to us! From all of us here at Wonder Buffalo...