True Identity is a short picture story film created for a story-telling group project at Cal State Fullerton. It centers around a girl who gets her backpack stolen by a thief, with a twist ending.
Plot Summary[]
Sydney Kaahs is a student at Cal State Fullerton. While she waits at the Nutwood Parking Structure and using her phone, the Thief Student sneaks up on her and snatches her backpack. After a brief tug-of-war, the Thief Student takes the backpack and runs into the Nutwood Parking Structure elevator. Sydney begins running down the stairs to catch up with the elevator.
The Thief Student searches the backpack and is surprised to find a Supergirl comic and T-shirt. To his horror, Sydney pulls the elevator doors open, steps inside, and shuts the doors to trap him during their confrontation. She takes a selfie of herself while strangling the Thief Student to death, then exits the elevator and leaves his body behind.
Production History[]
True Identity was created for a college story-telling group project. It was made as a picture story, much like the previous A Battle to Remember. The film was officially announced on October 1, 2014 at the same time as Alms Pouch, as both were being developed side-by-side. Miraculously for a Mustache Maniacs Film Co. production, it did not experience any delays and was finished on time. It was released on October 24, 2014 to keep fan interest after the hype of Johnny Thunder and the Wisdom of the Ancients died down.
The then-unnamed Super Hero Student was made up on the fly, and neither she nor the Thief Student were named because these details could not be established in the film's short running time. A 2017 canon update fleshed out the Super Hero Student's backstory. A later 2018 canon update revealed the Super Hero Student's identity to be Sydney Kaahs, the daughter of Talia Kaahs and George Kaahs (and therefore, the niece of Ogel) in the Official Cinematic Universe. Andrew Bermudez settled upon the random name Sydney because it sounded just right with the surname Kaahs.
On July 17, 2022, the soundtrack for True Identity was released for purchase.
Audience Reception[]
Although True Identity's release was hoped to maintain audience attention, it saw very little engagement compared to Johnny Thunder and the Wisdom of the Ancients, with only about 100 views and 2 likes on YouTube as of 2022. However, it did partially inspire PeabodySam's story Because Of You, which introduces the Dimension 525 Timeline 1958-D version of Sydney Kaahs.
Jenna Gray was nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role in The Third Mustache Maniacs Film Co. Fan Choice Awards.
Characters[]
- Sydney Kaahs (Jenna Gray)
- Thief Student (Khen Genesis Provido)
Locations[]
- Cal State Fullerton
- Nutwood Parking Structure
Credits[]
- Caleb Coffey - Director; Writer
- Wendy Grieb - Producer
- Jenna Gray - Actor
- Khen Genesis Provido - Actor
- Megan DeHerrera - Assistant Director
- Andrew Bermudez - Cameraman; Editor; Composer
- Michelle Vong - Production Assistant; Prop Manager
Tropes[]
True Identity contains examples of the following tropes.
- Anti-Hero: Sydney Kaahs may be the hero catching a thief, but she has no issues with gleefully killing her enemies.
- Everyone Is Related: After the Super Hero Student's identity was revealed to be Sydney Kaahs in a later canon update, she was also revealed to be Ogel's niece.
- Evil Laugh: The Thief Student lets out a cartoonishly villainous laugh upon getting on the elevator.
- Fight Unscene: While True Identity is not animated, an action scene would likely be difficult to depict in its picture story format. Therefore, once Sydney gets on the elevator and presses the button to close the doors, the scene fades to black, accompanied by the sounds of her beating the snot out of the Thief Student.
- Foreshadowing: Sydney's Supergirl comics and clothing hint at her secret superpowers before she reveals them.
- Milking the Giant Cow: Since there is no dialogue, Jenna Gray and Khen Genesis Provido act entirely with body language. This results in exaggerated physical acting that's clearly played for comedy, such as when the Thief Student gets on the elevator.
- Mugging the Monster: The Thief Student assumes that Sydney Kaahs is just another ordinary student when he steals from her. He doesn't realize that she's actually a powerful superhero who can easily kill him.
- Nameless Narrative: Neither the Super Hero Student nor the Thief Student are named in the film, and the credits only give them generic descriptors. However, later canon updates did give the Super Hero Student a name, Sydney Kaahs. The Thief Student still remains unnamed as of 2022.
- Oh, Crap!: The Thief Student realizes he's in trouble once Sydney Kaahs angrily confronts him in the elevator.
- Pop-Cultured Badass: Sydney Kaahs is not only a super hero herself, but she's also a big fan of Supergirl.
- Red and Black and Evil All Over: Played with. Sydney Kaahs dresses in all black and red, but she's the protagonist. However, she's also a smug anti-hero who cheerfully kills the Thief Student, and she's also the niece of the evil Ogel (who is quite fond of this trope).
- Selfie Fiend: Sydney Kaahs takes a selfie of herself... strangling the Thief Student to death.
- Silence is Golden: There is no spoken or written dialogue, with the narrative told entirely through visuals, music, and stock sound effects.
- Smug Super: Sydney Kaahs is a superhero who strangles the Thief Student to death... while smiling and taking a selfie.
- Super Speed: Sydney Kaahs runs down the stairwell faster than the elevator can descend, allowing her to catch up with the Thief Student.
- Super Strength: Sydney Kaahs is powerful enough to force elevator doors open.
- Superpower Lottery: While the full extent of her powers are not shown in True Identity, the official canon states that Sydney Kaahs has super strength, flight, laser vision, super senses, super speed, and invulnerability. This puts her well above the majority of other characters in the Official Cinematic Universe.
- Unnecessary Combat Roll: The Thief Student gratuitously rolls around while sneaking.
- Worthless Treasure Twist: The Thief Student steals a backpack, only to learn to his frustration and confusion that it only contains Supergirl comics and T-shirts.
Trivia[]
- Sydney Kaahs's selfie at the end was one of Mustache Maniacs Film Co.'s favorite moments.
Gallery[]
