the hippo from Two Dollars Please on Vimeo.

The Hippo is the story of 13-year-old Shane (Christian Pickering), scouring the streets of Los Angeles searching for plastic bottles to recycle in order to help he and his mother (Andie Karvelis) survive.

Coping with the death of his father, Shane mulls a childhood poem his dad used to read to him. The poem helps Shane to keep perspective through these difficult times. Like vulnerable prey, Shane and his mother must stick close together to avoid being preyed upon.

Based on the short story Recycling by Lisa Heiland, The Hippo is named after the T.S. Elliot poem The Hippopotamus that is recited throughout. Originally conceived by director Jeremy Asher Lynch, the film was a collaboration between Lynch, Heiland, and Nicolo Gullo. Shot exclusively in Los Angeles in just four days, The Hippo portrays the hardships of a child living on the streets of LA while thinking back to how life was before the tragedy.

OFFICIAL SELECTION IN THE 2012 LA SORTS FESTIVAL
WINNER OF THE NOHO FLIX FILM FEST
OFFICIAL SELECTION IN THE MANHATTAN FILM FESTIVAL
OFFICIAL SELECTION NEW FILMMAKERS LOS ANGELES

Directed and Edited by Jeremy Asher Lynch
Written by Nicolo Dominick Gullo
with excerpts from « The Hippopotamus » by T.S. Eliot
Orignal Score by Alex Hung-Tai Chang of Dirty Beaches
Director of Photography Michael Pescasio
Produced by Angel Thompson
Executive Producer Sharon Justice

Shot on R3D Epic
Shot on location in Los Angeles, CA