A Simple Machine

Starring Richard Blackmon in a breakout lead role, A SIMPLE MACHINE is a coming-of-age story following Nick Allander, a recent college grad trying to figure out his life’s direction during the late stages of the pandemic. In a last-ditch attempt to get out of debt, Nick makes a series of radically frugal lifestyle choices without telling his girlfriend (Gabriela Bloomgarden) that he's going off the grid.

Shot in luminous black and white in Portland, Oregon by award-winning cinematographer Kevin Fletcher (It’s What’s Inside) and featuring an original score by Mark Orton (Nebraska, The Holdovers), A SIMPLE MACHINE is a deeply human and timely story about personal freedom and the cost of wanting less in a culture built on more. At a time of economic crisis, housing instability, and digital saturation, it offers something rare: a grounded, thoughtful counterpoint rooted in the deliberate choice towards simplicity and financial freedom. Based on the novel A Simple Machine, Like the Lever by Evan P. Schneider.

“…relevant to almost everyone in America, as affordability becomes one of our biggest worries.” Tim Molloy, MovieMaker