Synopsis
Ten Eleven O Two explores the haunting accounts of two friends who endured an alien abduction experience while camping in the remote mountains. Featuring psychedelic visuals and an alien hand print, Ten Eleven O Two opens a plethora of questions and is a must-see for anyone interested in the paranormal.
| Ten Eleven O Two still frames
On Thanksgiving, 2002, my uncle Ken sat down the entire family because he had something he wanted to tell us. I don't know if there was anyone there that day who knew what to expect, but I definitely did not. After he told us his story, no one seemed to know how to react.
He told us that less than a month earlier, while on a camping trip with two good friends, Adolph and Kenneth, he underwent what he could only describe as an alien abduction experience. We didn't know what to think, but it was obvious to all of us that he'd been through a traumatic experience of some kind. And on top of that, something that made their story impossible to disregard, he photographed an alien hand print that had been left behind on the hood of Adolph's truck. And about this point, I knew there was something unexplainable at hand. These were the days before digital cameras were ubiquitous. The photos had been taken with a disposable film camera and would have been impossible to fake.
I had just started film school at the time, so Ken asked me to film an interview with him telling his story for posterity, which I gladly did. He wanted me to develop it into a legitimate movie, but with my obligations at school in a different city, and my lack of experience or resources, I had to admit that I wasn't ready.
| Ten Eleven O Two archival photos
Fast forward to 2010. I'd just finished another round of film school (a graduate program this time), and was feeling more confident in my abilities. On top of that, I was looking for a bigger project that I could make my own. It was at this time I felt like I could finally do justice to Ken and Adolph's story, so I approached them about picking the project back up again, and they were both game.
With a small crew and a modest allotment of gear, we set out to the spot where it all happened and spent a handful of days filming interviews and b-roll with Ken and Adolph. Luckily the spot was driving distance from Ken's home base of Fresno, CA, since I definitely was not willing to spend the night in the woods where the event happened.
After we got all the footage we'd set out to get, I did a round of editing. There were shots I thought we still needed, so I ended up going back a few times to get more shots, conducted interviews with my extended family members, held a couple of studio shoots for some visual effects plates, etc.
Things seemed like they were on the right track, but then something happened. First, it's helpful to know that we started filming without a real plan in place. We had a list of shots and interviews to get, but I didn't know what I wanted the film's overall structure to be. Because of this, I ended up painting myself into a corner during editing, and once I felt stuck, I couldn't figure out how to get out.
| Ten Eleven O Two promotional photos
Fast forward again to 2013. I was married with an infant son. Ten Eleven O Two remained at the back of my mind and once, upon mentioning it to my wife, Aiko, a video editor in her own right, she offered to take a look at the film to see if she could identify a possible way forward with it.
She ended up taking the building blocks I'd created thus far, and rearranging them into a different structure. At the same time, Ken approached me with the idea of filming a polygraph examination with him and Adolph, and between these two ideas, I could see a way to finish the film.
We conducted a polygraph exam with a film based in the San Francisco Bay Area, where I lived at the time, and ended up using that scene as the backbone of the film. It provided the perfect structure from which the story could branch off of and return to, allowing the audience to hear and experience everything Ken and Adolph wanted to impart, while always being oriented along the main story.
What started off as a "quick" documentary project ended up becoming a 6-year marathon of a journey, but what we ended up with is something that's really changed my life for the better. Since releasing the film, I've been able to connect with many people from all over the world who resonate with Ken and Adolph's story, and who have really been some of the nicest and most open-minded people I've encountered.
And if you feel so inclined, I'd love it if you'd watch the film and let me know your thoughts about it. More than anything, I want to use independent film to bring people together. I think of this as my small role in helping to make the world a better place, even if it just moves the needle a tiny bit in that direction. Ken and Adolph said something similar to me about why they feel compelled to tell their story in the face of so much skepticism and disbelief.
Through the making of this film, I feel I understand them a bit better. I hope that after watching, you understand something a bit better too. If so, please reach out and let me know. I'd love to hear from you.
Watch/Stream
Ten Eleven O Two is currently available to watch free on YouTube, or if you prefer, directly below on this page.
Featuring
Ken Mathis
Adolph Santistevan
Key Crew
Mackenzie Mathis – Director, Sound Designer, Colorist
Marcia Ong – Cinematographer
Aiko Terui – Consulting Editor
Steve Patapoff – Location sound
Cooper Glosenger – Location sound