EDIT: MISSED THE RED CARPET PREMIERE? Watch CIPHER on SHAW in CAMPBELL RIVER, POWELL RIVER, and the COMOX VALLEY! Here are the TIMES:
Air dates and times:
CIPHER
Thursday October 20 @ 9pm in CR/CV/PR
Friday October 21 @ 10am in CR
Friday October 21 @ 11pm in CR/CV/PR
Sunday October 23 @ 3pm in CR
Sunday October 23 @ 8pm in CR
CR is Campbell River, CV is Comox Valley, PR is Powell River
EDIT: Thanks to FANTASTIC ATTENDANCE and SUPPORT at the one night only showing of CIPHER, we raised over $500 for community theatre group RIVERCITY PLAYERS! Way to go, movie fans and theatre-goers!
EDIT: THE FILM PLAYS ONE NIGHT ONLY IN CAMPBELL RIVER, TONIGHT (WED. SEPT. 28 2011)! SUGGESTED $5 DONATION TO RIVERCITY PLAYERS (Campbell River theatre group, with several of their actors featured in CIPHER). Doors open at 5:30pm at Showcase 5 Theatre at Merecroft Village. Short film and behind the scenes start at 6pm sharp. All done by 6:45!
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After a YEAR worth of work, it’s finally done! And you get to see it! On the big screen!! But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let me back up a bit.
Summer 2010. Rivercity Players (one of Campbell River’s fantastic community theatre groups) sends out a call for interested adult actors to perform in a local film production. Turns out the director of the local film production is 14 years old. Okeydokey. Well, I remember being 14 and interested in the world of multimedia (a path that eventually led me to becoming a professional broadcaster, and volunteer cameraman at multiple community TV stations) so I thought “what the heck”. With my job as a councillor and on the air, and a dad of a 3 year old, I have much less time to enjoy creative pursuits these days. A short ‘n sweet two week shooting schedule squeezed in here and there would be fun.
At the same time, it’s great to be able to support up and coming talent in our community, a portion of the mandate the folks from the CRCIC (Campbell River Creative Industries Council) I’ve worked alongside for a couple of years now also live by.
So we shot the film locally, I met some great new folks and reconnected with some Rivercity Players buddies from productions past (Harvey, Bus Stop, Death Of A Salesman). Then we waited. We had the easy part. The 14 year old director put a lot of blood and sweat and time and talent behind the scenes working on the final product. He wrangled musicians and effects people from across the globe. He edited. He re-edited. His computer crashed. He used other computers from around Campbell River. They crashed too. Or didn’t do what he needed them to do, like computers do from time to time.
Back to that first statement… after a YEAR of work, it’s finally done! A very slick, intense little thriller “short” (18 minutes long) called “Cipher”. And thanks to the assistance of Joan and Tanya at INfilm (the Vancouver Island North Film Commission), among other things, we now have a press release (see below). The now-15-year old director is about to showcase his film to an audience. In a real movie theatre no less.
And how cool is this? It’s also being featured at the TULSA, OKLAHOMA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL on Friday, September 23rd! Here’s the summary AND the movie trailer: After the Campbell River premiere Wed. Sept. 28th (a suggested $5 donation for Rivercity Players, doors opening at 5:30pm, the 18 minute film to be followed by a 15 minute behind the scenes video) it will ALSO be featured at the International Student Film Festival in HOLLYWOOD in November! CLICK for the MOVIE TRAILER and details.
Okay, okay… can you tell I’m excited? No, it’s not my big screen debut (I was an extra in Legends of the Fall, Big Bully, and Excess Baggage) but it is in a “speaking role”! And of course I’m very excited for the young director’s efforts to finally be realized. He’s earned some attention! In case you missed it, here’s the FACEBOOK EVENT page. And without further ado… the press release from INFILM.
N E W S R E L E A S E
For Immediate Release
September 14th, 2011
YOUNG CAMPBELL RIVER DIRECTOR PREMIERES SHORT FILM
Campbell River
On Wednesday, September 28th 15-year old Michael Stevantoni will premiere the short film “Cipher” at Caprice 5 Showcase Cinemas in Merecroft Village. The event is by donation with proceeds to the local theatre group, Rivercity Players.
“Michael is a talented young filmmaker,” says Joan Miller, Vancouver Island North Film Commissioner. “From the initial phone call with his production crew sourcing information on film locations and permitting, our staff always felt like we were working on a professional film project. The story revolves around an explosion that destroys a city landmark,” comments Miller. “It is interesting to see how access to new technology through the art of visual effects enabled Michael to shoot and edit using a software program on his home computer.”
Produced by Michael Stevantoni and Diana Stevan, Cipher features local actors and locations. The story follows detective, Harry Crichton, played by Ryan Mennie, who receives a cryptic message from a bomber. With the city in a panic it is a race against time to find hidden clues in the message before the bomber strikes again but little does Harry know what is really at stake.
“Cipher has been selected for the Tulsa International Film Festival under the emerging filmmaker category focused on students and their work. Official selections within this subdivision will have a high degree of exposure, and their submissions screened at the Tulsa Center for Creativity’s cutting edge facility,” says Miller. “We encourage everyone to support local talent and come out to watch this homegrown production.”
Doors open at 5:30 p.m., show at 6:00 p.m., followed by a behind-the-scenes presentation and question and answer session with the director.
For further information contact:
Producer Diana Stevan
Tel. 250-286-6960
the Municipal Musings of Ryan Mennie 