Scene and Heard

Swoon in June?

If it’s up to the boys at Scorpio Film releasing, you will. Multiple award winning film director, Richard Griffin of Pawtucket, RI, is well-known for his internationally distributed feature films in the horror genre. However, Griffin has been inspired once more by his love of William Shakespeare’s stories. Griffin is in pre-production for his screen adaptation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Scorpio Film Releasing’s 15^th feature film.

“Earlier in my filmmaking career, I did a number of Shakespearian films,” says Griffin. “It’s only now that I’ve been drawn back to that influence.” Griffin’s adaptation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Shakespeare’s most beloved comedy, is a return to the classics for Scorpio Film Releasing after a 12-year hiatus. Ted Marr will produce.

Midsummer will begin its production shoot in September 2013. “We have a powerhouse of actors lined up,” says Griffin. The players include Elyssa Baldassarri, Patrick Keefe, Nat Sylva, Shannon Hartman, Ryan Hanley, Rich Tretheway, Michael Thurber, Christopher Ferreira, Erin Olson, Kevin Killavey, Jesse Dufault, Johnny Sederquist, and many more.

Scorpio Film Releasing creates works that are highly imaginative and often anarchistic. The project will be cast, filmed and edited almost completely in Rhode Island.

Griffin and Marr set up an indiegogo.com fundraising account at: http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/a-midsummers-night-s-dream-the-movie. Their goal of $25,000 will help to cover pre-production, production and post-production costs. Donating also will allow Scorpio to continue giving many people their first shot at their dream of working in a motion picture – not only cast members, but also the hard-working and dedicated crew.

For more information about Scorpio Film Releasing, please visit www.scorpiofilmreleasing.com. Check out their FB page at: https://www.facebook.com/AMidsummerNightsDreamTheMovie?fref=ts

The team behind the feature-length independent horror film Provoked is excited to announce the launch of their official website, ProvokedFilm.com

ProvokedFilm.com went live early this week and has been met with nothing but compliments . The site’s designer, Paul Flebotte, spent countless hours building this site. In the site, Paul (who is also an executive producer on Provoked) created a Provoked community where members who sign up (free of charge) have the opportunity to communicate with the film’s cast and crew.

When asked about the website, Provoked director Jordan Pacheco said, “The site is beyond my expectations. It’s talent and dedication like Paul’s that will bring this film to the next level.”

Provoked producer David Langill worked with Paul a few years ago and is beyond thrilled that Paul and he get to work together again.

Visit ProvokedFilm.com to view pages full of exciting content, and enter to win your chance to receive two tickets to the premiere screening of Provoked.

Provoked follows a group of amateur investigators who, despite investigating for months, have never found any proof of the paranormal. During the group’s most recent investigation, like many times before, they come up empty. At this point, team member Matt (played by Chris O’Reilly), losing faith in the existence of the paranormal, performs risky attempts to provoke the spirits. At first, Matt’s taunts appear to go unanswered but while on his way home, the investigating equipment starts to register at its highest level. The spirit answered Matt’s taunts and followed him home. Terror quickly escalates for Matt, and his girlfriend, Jamie, (played by Nicole LaSala) who attempts to defend his house from the ghostly intruder.

We’ll keep you updated on the premiere and what’s next for Langill and Pacheco and the rest of Team Provoked – stay tuned!

He’s at it again. Seth Chitwood of Angelwood Pictures never stops. I’ve worked with him in one short, The Women of Harry, due out in July, and currently “Red Circles: The Final Season,” and I still don’t know how he does it. Right now, he’s in production for Season Two of the web series “Family Problems.” Marie Brandt, Alex Pires, Paula Delatte, Sean McPherson, Lorrie Bacon, Michael Thurber, Scott Shekerow, Jen Lynn, Lisa Coleman, Alexander Hauk, Evan Clinton, and Susan Waletkus joined the cast. Wendy Hartman (Detective Ellison) joined the cast at the end of Season One. “Family Problems” is about a family covering up a murder and stars Theresa Chiasson, Peter Morse, and Natasha Hatalsky. The second season has yet to announce a premiere date. www.angelwoodpictures.com/familyproblems

“Red Circles: The Final Season” also started production. Nicholas Dimaio, who plays partner to my Detective Gretchen Lewis, recently joined the cast as Detective Walker. Eilis Quinn was also announced to be the new Officer Penny Jones (replacing Season Three’s Thais Vieira). The series premieres October 13, 2013, at 9 pm EST. www.redcircles.ws

The web series “World’s Worst Director” will air the season finale on Sunday, June 30, 2013, at 8 pm EST. The series will return for a third season in March 2014. Seth Chitwood (Moses), Mary C. Ferrara (Katie), and Erica Derrickson (Penny) plan to return along with most of the cast for the next season. Catch new episodes every Sunday at 8 pm EST. www.worldsworstdirector.com

Angelwood Pictures also started production for the short A Single Intervention. Casting has begun for the ensemble piece about a family and friends who throw an intervention for Charlie, a single gay guy who needs to get a date and stop complaining about being single! Johnny Sederquist will play Charlie. Paul Kandarian and Jeanne Lohnes will also co-star. Lorrie Bacon and Pat O’Hara have also been cast. If you want to submit for a role, e-mail angelwoodpictures@gmail.com. Looking for all types. The series will be filmed in August and premiere in December 2013.

If all that is not enough, Angelwood Pictures announced a new web series called “Lungs,” starring Kimberly Mae, Dave Sackal, and Ellen Levenson.  “Lungs” is about a woman (Mae) who hopes to find meaning in her life by walking on a trail that runs from Westerly, Rhode Island, to Manhattan, New York. She meets Daniel (Sackal) and Saree (Levenson) while on her journey. The series will air a 10-episode first season on Sundays at 8 pm EST in December. www.angelwoodpictures.com/lungs

Recently, I had the pleasure of appearing on a TV show called “To the Edge” with another guest, Seth Chitwood. This show pays homage to indie filmmakers and their projects, along with the local talent that appears in these projects.  The show’s host, Roland Khorshidianzadeh and his sidekick Mike Messier interviewed us about “Red Circles” and other upcoming projects, including that fabulous publication Motif Magazine.

In 2011, Roland began producing “To the Edge” for BTV Access Corporation. At first, the series focused on pop culture and current events and he was not the host. In 2012, he radically changed the series and after guest-starring on an episode, Mike Messier, an independent filmmaker, became the co-host, and Roland then jumped in front of the camera and became the host. From there, “To the Edge” began to focus on spotlighting independent films, web series, publications and the film industry in general. This is when the series found its niche, and because of “To the Edge,” he has become involved in independent films projects as well.

48 Hour Film Project

Two, four, six, eight, who do we appreciate? 48! 48 Hour Film Project that is. Yes, I know this was quite possibly the corniest opening to anything I’ve ever written here, but it rhymed. I just had to. With that piece of prose out of the way, many film folks in New England have just gotten over the Boston 48 and the New Hampshire 48.  Guess who’s next?

That would be our fair city of Providence. I did my first one last summer and have not looked back since. It’s what got me back into acting! We had a blast, and we’re gearing up for another one on the weekend of July 12. I’ve joined Laura Pepper’s team again, and who knows what wacky farce she will pen this time? Last weekend Pepper was at it again with team member Jennifer Scharf and cutie pie Deirdre Robins from the NE Kids Actors Group. They headed up to NH for a wild weekend of furious filmmaking, and we are awaiting the results of that particular 48 project with bated breath. Bravo Laura Pepper for taking on all five 48s in the New England area!

As always, stay tuned for Nick Iandolo and me on the next episode of “Take Two” as we review a chick flick – probably a really sappy one. (Sorry Nick, gotta get you back for Star Trek Into Darkness).

Remember folks, film is rolling.