Screen Magazine - Index

Screen Magazine - Screen Magazine: Vol. 29, Issue 9 - Index

DO YOU “BELIEVE?” Is this the year for
the Cubbies? The 100th anniversary
of their last championship? Director
John Scheinfeld thinks so, which is
why he’s teaming with Sedgwick
Productions to produce “We Believe,”
a documentary dedicated to the
love affair between this city and
its team (sorry Sox fans). Producers
include Rich Christian and Rich
Carra of Sedgwick and Chris Claeys
and Tim McGuire of Cutters. More at
www.sedgwickproductions.com.
“CHICAGO OVERCOAT” Update:
The indie gangster film is completing
second unit photography this month.
Starring Frank Vincent (“Casino”),
Armand Assante (“American
Gangster) and Stacy Keach (he’s still
Mike Hammer to me), “Overcoat”
is aiming for a Sundance world
premiere and Midwest Independent
Film Festival Chicago premiere. More
at www.beverlyridgepictures.com.
MARBLES OVER MICHIGAN! The sci-fi
thriller “Red and Blue Marbles” will be
shooting in the Detroit area starting
May 19th. Basically a large asteroid
knocks Earth out of orbit and all hell
breaks loose. Lin Shaye (“Something
About Mary”) and Diamond Dallas
Page (he beats people up) will be
making cameos. Directed by Shaun
Lapacek, produced by Leigh Jones,
Ian Keiser, Joseph Weisman, edited
by Sharon Zurek. Submissions to
redandbluemarbles@gmail.com!
IN THE LAND OF KARTEMQUIN,
heavy post-production continues on
“Milking the Rhino” and “Prisoner of
her Past,” while “At the Death House
Door” and “In the Family” are on the
festival circuit. Kartemquin.com for
the latest!
CURRENTLY SHOOTING: Mann/Depp
mega-budget “Public Enemies,”
“The Unborn” starring Gary Oldman
and indie thriller “Formosa Betrayed”
wrap up work here this month while
Matt Damon and “The Informant”
take over Decatur.
Is your film heading into production? Please drop
me a note at mac@midwestfilm.com and I’ll do
my best to add it to The Call Sheet.
Mike McNamara is a Chicago actor and the
director of The Midwest Independent Film Festival,
www.midwestfilm.com.
Combining elements of the paranormal
with suspense, thrills and humor, “Robert
Alaniz’s THE VISION” is sure to score big
with audiences. Robert Alaniz, who
plays triple-role as executive producer,
writer and director, considers this his
most ambitious and most rewarding
production to date.
Shot earlier this year in Frankfort,
Ill., a south suburb of Chicago, and
starring Samantha Kuebler, Gary Gow,
Jodi London, Lori Duncan and Bruce
Spielbauer, the film tells the story of
an ambitious reporter, a clairvoyant
teenage girl and a series of unsolved
murders. A mysterious, re-occurring
vision haunts the young girl, warning
her to “Fear The Future,” as the film’s
the tagline suggests.
Alaniz chose his hometown as the
shooting location for the thriller. His
decision was based partly on the
fact that he lives there and that it’s
convenient, but also for one less obvious
reason. “My films all tell stories about
ordinary people,” he says “who get
caught up in extraordinary situations,
and there’s no place more ordinary
than Frankfort. That’s not to say that’s
it’s not a beautiful suburb. It is, and
that’s another reason I shoot there.”
Alaniz has three successful films already
under his belt. He wrote, directed, and
produced his first film, “Timeserver,” in
2004 - “Barrymore’s Dream” followed in
2005, and “Bitterblue” soon after in 2006.
They were all shot in Frankfort with talent
from the Chicagoland area. “Bitterblue”
opened to huge local success at the
Marcus Theaters in Orland Park, and
was actually featured in a Fox News
story in April 2007. “Barrymore’s Dream”
premiered at the Lincoln-Way Fine Arts
Center in Frankfort, and was honored to
win Best Feature at the 2007 Route 66
Film Festival in Springfield, Ill.
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Robert Alaniz’s “THE VISION” Shoots In The Chicago ‘Burbs
By Liz O’Neill
��������������� Visit www.screenmag.tv for more daily news than ever before!
“At the time, there wasn’t going to
be another film,” Alaniz remarked,
“but it all changed when I won the
award. People wanted to invest money
in whatever I did next and I had many
aspiring actors and filmmakers contact
me wanting to be involved with my
next project.” Alaniz continues, “This
film is different in the way that I have
a bigger budget and a more devoted
and talented cast and crew.”
Director Robert Alaniz (left) with actress
Jodi London (with knife) and the
production crew.
“THE VISION” also differs in its film style
when compared to Alaniz’s first three
productions. It borrows from earlier
traditions in the horror/thriller genre. The
complete and correct title of the film
is “Robert Alaniz’s THE VISION.” “Not so
much for vanity,” Alaniz explained, “but
instead a nod to the films from the ‘70s
and ‘80s that inspired it, where
the director would place his
name above the title, such as
‘John Carpenter’s THE THING’
or ‘Brian DePalma’s DRESSED
TO KILL’ or even ‘M. Night
Shyamalan’s THE SIXTH SENSE.’”
As with all of Alaniz’s films,
there will be a premiere in the
Chicagoland area, “hopefully
in the City of Chicago this
time,” he says. “There will be
a short run at the Marcus Theaters in
Orland Park and whereever else we
can show it - film festivals, of course, but
this film I’d like to see get nationwide
distribution. I think it’s time to shoot for
a higher goal.”
Robert Alaniz continues his dedication
to innovative and captivating
storytelling through film. He is writer,
director, producer and editor of
original, quality work and owner of
Sole Productions in Frankfort, Ill.
//www.soleproductions.net