WALNUT — When you think of horror and sociopathic killers, what place comes to mind?

Well, if you’re Derek Mungor, it’s got to be the annual Fourth of July celebration in Walnut.

Mungor, who grew up in Walnut, is a Chicago filmmaker, and he would love to make his next movie in Walnut.

The proposed movie, “You Are Not Alone,” will tell the story of Natalie, who will reconnect with friends and family as she visits her hometown over the Fourth of July and runs into a dangerous sociopath who is in the midst of a killing spree in the area.

Mungor’s interest in film making goes back to his childhood.

“I think, like a lot of people that are drawn to it, I developed an early interest in it,” he said. “Around 4 or 5, I was trying to talk my mom into writing scripts, making costumes and getting a camera.”

Mungor said he would try to make a version of whatever movie he was watching.

“So ‘3 Ninjas’ became ‘1 Ninja,’ and I was the one ninja,” he said.

After graduating from Bureau Valley High School in 2005, Mungor attended Full Sail University in Florida. After getting his degree, he worked freelance for a few years, including traveling to military bases across the country working for the USO and “Sesame Street Live,” producing live shows benefiting military families.

A few years ago, Mungor moved to Chicago. He produced his first feature-length film, “Desolation Wilderness,” and released it for free online last October. That led to his current position.

“I co-founded Gorilla Tango Motion Pictures with Dan Abbate of Gorilla Tango Theatre last year,” Mungor said. “Since then we have overseen the production of two films as executive producers and this, ‘You Are Not Alone,’ is our first production together as a creative team.”

Mungor said “You Are Not Alone” is unique in both its subject matter and its approach.

“’You Are Not Alone’ sets out to tell a suspense/horror story in a new and interesting way,” Mungor said. “At its core, it is very much a story about family and returning to the place you grew up to find that it’s not so much that the places have changed, but you have.”

Almost everything is ready in preparation for the movie. Walnut village leaders have been notified, and the cast and crew are set.

There’s only one problem.

Gorilla Tango is covering half of the budget with a campaign set into motion to cover the rest.

“Our production team is trying to raise the remaining portion of the budget by pre-selling the film through Kickstarter,” Mungor said.

Mungor and his partners are looking to raise $8,000 through Kickstarter, a website for creative projects that allows for people to participate in small and large ways.

“This is the absolute bare minimum needed to make this film happen,” Mungor said. “Your money will go toward location rentals, feeding and housing the cast and crew during production, props, wardrobe, make-up, transportation and other production expenses.”

All donations are returned if the total goal isn’t met, and various rewards are offered depending on the amount of the donation. For “You Are Not Alone,” the rewards range from a listing as a contact on Natalie’s cell phone for $5 to a limited speaking role for $2,000.

Besides Kickstarter, there are other ways for local people to get involved.

“We are still locking down locations and looking for extras,” Mungor said. “For me personally and as a producer, I would like for anyone in the area who is interested to take part in this production. The film is very much about the area and the people that live in it.”

All pledges must be made before midnight June 26. Mungor said they must shoot this film before the actual Fourth of July Celebration in Walnut, which will provide the backdrop for the movie.

“Any later than this and the film might never get made,” Mungor said.

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Want to learn more?

For more information, visit http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/dmungor/you-are-not-alone-a-first-person-thriller/. The deadline to participate is June 26.