Chicago is My Home

17
Sep

New Shoot Information Surfaces on Indie Thriller ‘Root of All Evil’ in Chicago

Author: Adam Fendelman, Category: Independent Film

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Following up on my Sept. 16 report about indie thriller “Root of All Evil” now filming in Chicago, I received additional shoot information from a new reader at 11:10 p.m. on Sunday.

There is a production company called [Three Good Men that] blocked parking and was filming [Sunday] evening for “The Cache” (now “Root of All Evil”), according to the flyers they distributed.

They are surrounding Howard Orloff Volvo (at 1924 N. Paulina St.) and [the Chicago Police Department] towed cars off the 1900 blocks of Hermitage and Paulina and the 1700 block of west Cortland.

About eight movie equipment and support trucks now line these three streets and they did some staging at Orloff.

Creating concensus from two independent people, the Sept. 16 report also mentioned Three Good Men as this film’s production company.

9:12 a.m. update: On Monday morning, I received a report serving as third independent confirmation that Three Good Men is the name of the production company for this film.

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16
Sep

‘Chicago Overcoat,’ ‘Root of All Evil’ Making Blips in Chicago

Author: Adam Fendelman, Category: Independent Film

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Though it’s certainly not like “The Dark Knight,” I have in the last 24 hours had a couple blips with the two indies now making small waves in town: “Chicago Overcoat” and “Root of All Evil”.

As for “Chicago Overcoat,” I was with friends at the Blue Stem Bar & Grill on Saturday night where I ran into a gentleman working on his first feature-length film role. He was genuinely ecstatic to be part of the project.

He described Chris Charles (the casting director for the film who I’ve been e-mailing with) as kind and enthusiastic. “Chicago Overcoat” is slated to film in Chicago from Oct. 1 to Nov. 30.

As for indie thriller film “Root of All Evil” (previously named “The Cache”), I received a letter on Sunday from a first-time responder. As this is only one person’s account, please take it with a grain of salt.

Hi, Adam! We’re enjoying your movie [site].

On Saturday, I crossed paths with someone who did a couple days of work on that flick. She struck me as rather dippy, [which led] me to take her statements with a grain of salt.

At best, she’s naive and uninformed. For example, she didn’t grasp the distinction between an indie flick and a major studio production. She mentioned the following:

She said she thought director Steve Anderson is “mean,” [which led] her to shun talking to him.

I found this rather bizarre as she’s likely an extra. We all know extras don’t [often] get to engage in chit-chat with a director.

On Friday, they were shooting by O’Hare. On Saturday, they were shooting along Elston Avenue.

She claimed the title of the movie is “Three Good Men”. I have no clue if that’s a working title, a brand-new title or if this babe totally tripped her trolly.

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14
Sep

Indie Film ‘Bert’ Portends Impending Promise For Mr. Bean-Like Scott Beehner

Author: Adam Fendelman, Category: Independent Film

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CHICAGO – Scott Beehner seems relaxed, confident and ready to conquer the world.

This is a huge departure from on-screen character Bert Lozenge in his directorial debut of “Bert,” which showed on Sept. 8 at the Big Damn Film Festival in Chicago.

“Like so many of us, the character Bert Lozenge grew up thinking he would hit all the heights of success that life has to offer as an adult,” Beehner said in an interview with Dustin Levell of HollywoodChicago.com as he drove a rental car from the airport to a relative’s house in Chicago.

Beehner continued: “When the realization sets in that you’re not where you thought you’d end up and you probably never will, you basically have two choices: you can deny the hopes you used to cling to or you can deny the present by doing something to shake up your situation.”

It clearly sounds like he’s talking about his own life.

Beehner was born in Elmhurst, Ill. and grew up in Omaha, Neb. He left the Midwest to study in New York’s famed Actors Studio and was directed in Woody Allen’s “Sweet and Lowdown” and Sidney Lumet’s off-Broadway play “The Shawl”.

He left the east coast for Los Angeles. There, Beehner has spent the last seven years playing parts on shows like “Charmed” and “Jake in Progress” as well as the Jerry O’Connell comedy “Tomcats”. While success has been slow coming, just this year he was hired to the Groundlings’ Sunday Company.

“When I first moved to Los Angeles, I showed a short film I had written and performed in while in New York called ‘Crooks,’” Beehner said. “People liked it so much I decided to write another short about a man on the run from the cops.”

Bert does his fair share of running from the cops. And the mob. And a ticked-off clown. Everyone seems to have it out for this guy.

Bert Lozenge is a nothing-special everyman who spends his days at a boring office job and his evenings moonlighting as a bartender. Long having given up his dreams of being a song-and-dance man on Broadway, he has settled into mundane repetition.

It’s after being fired from his desk job that he gets suckered into a fake stock tip and owing the Omaha mob $50,000. Lucky for him, gangsters in the Cornhusker State have Midwestern hospitality and are willing for him to pay off the loan by doing one simple favor: rob a bank.

While on this chore, he runs into his high school sweetheart. She decides to become a quick accomplice. Now everyone is after him and the money.

A production with so many different locations and an ensemble of 105 speaking roles should have cost him several million dollars. Aspiring independent filmmakers should take note: Scott Beehner has found a way to make an inexpensive movie without sacrificing production quality.

Back in Los Angeles, Beehner was waiting tables at an Italian restaurant. He offered: “I asked the owner if I could film a scene there when the restaurant was closed. He told me he charges $10,000 a day.”

As the perfect solution, he decided to move the entire shoot to his hometown of Omaha. He placed an ad on Craig’s List and filled the cast and crew with mostly amateurs and first-timers eager to get their 15 minutes of fame in the movie business.

Even so, shooting in a less show business-savvy town wasn’t without its pitfalls.

“We had the police called on us twice,” Beehner recalled. Some good Samaritans saw a scene where the mob throws Bert into the trunk of car and did their civic duty. “I guess they didn’t see the cameras.”

Ultimately, Omaha is no Los Angeles. While he might have scored all his locations for free, some eager filmmakers with Canon XL2 equipment and consistent August weather for the 28-day shoot, what he sacrificed was acting talent.

Beehner called on a couple friends he knew from Los Angeles and New York to take the leads. His love interest, Mabel, is played by DePaul University graduate Jennifer Schemke. She delivers the funniest line in the movie during the bank robbery.

A friend from New York and “Law & Order” regular David Raymond Wagner plays Ike and gives the most attention-grabbing performance in the movie. While the rest of the cast is rounded out by Omaha natives, be on the lookout for Chicago stand-up comedian Johnny Beehner as a sadistic clown.

Beehner, who penned the script, made himself the straight man in his series of outlandish situations. He carried every scene where an inexperienced actor was given a long monologue. He tacitly reacted.

From the “Keystone Cops”-inspired chases to Bert’s stone-face responses, Beehner’s comic ability ranks with Buster Keaton and the stars of the silent era.

For the shoestring budget, the production quality was impressive and often gave the feeling of watching Mr. Bean or another slapstick-based British comic.

Cinematographer Rob Williams balanced his work well with natural and hard lighting and Michael McGuire’s score complemented the action. Though filled with some obnoxious background noise and mixed unevenly, the inaudible sound problem that usually follows a low-budget indie wasn’t present here.

While the film overall was mildly amusing and the story was sometimes slow, it showed great promise for Beehner and his future projects even though he’s not yet sure what they will be.

“I’ve been so busy with the Groundlings and promoting ‘Bert’ through the Big Damn Film Festival,” reflects the actor turned director turned producer. If “Bert” is any indication, Scott Beehner will find a way to produce a film with worth that exceeds its budget..

By Dustin Levell
Senior Staff Writer
HollywoodChicago.com

© 2007 Dustin Levell, HollywoodChicago.com

Note: This has been republished from HollywoodChicago.com with permission.

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14
Sep

Coming to Chicago on Dec. 14, Watch Out For Acclaimed Indie Film ‘Juno’

Author: Adam Fendelman, Category: Independent Film

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On Sept. 12, I published a list of independent films coming through the Chicago circuit over the next few months.

While I’m familiar with many of them, I wasn’t with a film called “Juno” from director Jason Reitman. It was the smash of the Toronto International Film Festival and the Telluride Film Festival.

Enough said. Watch out for it. It opens on Dec. 14 at Landmark Century Centre in Chicago. Here’s the just-released trailer.

It’s being touted as an end-of-year best screenplay possibility. The film features Ellen Page, Michael Cera, Allison Janney, J.K. Simmons, Olivia Thirlby, Rainn Wilson, Jason Bateman and Jennifer Garner.

Roger Ebert on Sept. 9 said Page could snag a best-actress nomination:

I don’t know when I’ve heard a standing ovation so long, loud and warm as the one after Jason Reitman’s “Juno,” which I predict will become quickly beloved when it opens at Christmas time and win a best actress nomination for 20-year-old star Ellen Page.

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12
Sep

Landmark Theatres Releases Upcoming Independent Film Release Schedule For Chicago

Author: Adam Fendelman, Category: Independent Film

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Many of you have asked me for information about and reviews on independent films coming through the Chicago circuit.

Because the two film agencies that blanket Chicago critics with screenings don’t have full coverage for all independent films, I have been in contact with Landmark Theatres to also cover their releases.

As many Chicagoans are aware, the dominant place for quality independent film is Landmark Century Centre Cinema at 2828 N Clark St. in Chicago. Here are the upcoming indie films that will be released there over the next few months.

“Across the Universe,” Sept. 14
“Fierce People,” Sept. 21
“Freshman Orientation”
“King of California”
“Trade,” Sept. 28
“Lust, Caution,” Oct. 5
“Broken,” Oct. 19
“Lars and the Real Girl”
“Great World of Sound”
“Ira and Abby”
“Sleuth”
“Jimmy Carter Man From Plains,” Oct. 26
“Margot at the Wedding,” Nov. 21
“I’m Not There,” Dec. 7
“Juno,” Dec. 14
“Atonement,” Dec. 21
“Youth Without Youth”

In addition, here are the upcoming film releases at Landmark Renaissance Cinema in the Chicago suburb of Highland Park.

“Pete Seeger: The Power of Song,” Sept. 14
“In the Shadown of the Moon”
“Into the Wild,” Sept. 21
“In the Valley of Elah”
“The Jane Austen Book Club”
“The Darjeeling Limited,” Oct. 12
“Lust, Caution”
“Ira and Abby,” Oct. 19
“Sleuth,” Oct. 19

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