Students from Montgomery County Community College’s Short Filmmaking course invite the community to the world premiere of “The Stranger,” an urban western set in Philadelphia. The premiere will take place on Wednesday, Sept. 16 at 7 p.m. at The Ambler Theater, 108 E. Butler Ave., Ambler. Admission to the screening is $5. The event is open to the public.
The 40-minute film revolves around a “Man with No Name” who walks into town and tries to save a working girl from her pimp. The plot leads down a dark path involving gang fights, shoot outs, betrayals and, ultimately, redemption. Written and directed by MCCC Communications student Brendan Joyce, the film stars Jeremy Beitler as The Stranger, Sami Cojocariu as Elle, Frank Fierle as Christian, and Steven Kane as The Mick.
The class met under the direction of Adjunct Communication Instructor Mike Wagner. The crew consisted of Joyce as writer and director; Harry Yanoshak as producer/first assistant director; Leslie Kobzina, as unit production manager; Yani Payne as director of photography; Jerry Collom as production designer/colorist; Paul Vidas as sound designer; Kyle Pasquino as editor/gaffer; Matthew McClanahan as composer/first assistant camera: Michael Liberatore as composer/boom operator; Kerri Hughes as art director; and Heather Massey as script supervisor/assistant video editor.
The Short Filmmaking course was a pilot project made possible by a grant from the Montgomery County Community College Foundation. Deemed a success, the course will become a regular part of the College’s Communications course offerings beginning spring 2010.
In addition to “The Stranger,” other short works from MCCC students and alumni will be shown at the screening on Sept. 16.
2008 Five Day Film Festival entry “neuRomance” is a five-minute horror film about a young man looking for his lost girlfriend. The film won the Best Sound Award in the festival, with MCCC student Shawn Vela as sound designer. The striking visuals are provided Director of Photography Brett Williams, one of the most talented up-and-coming filmmakers in the region.
MCCC’s own music sensation Shawn Vela, aka Shawn V, will make his big-screen debut with the showing of his fourth music video. He teams up with Tres to give his fans something new, both visually and lyrically, with his new hit single “Invisible.”
Rounding out the evening, Writer/Director Kyle Pasquino will debut the trailer for his upcoming short film “Devotion to the Kill 2,” which is due out this winter. The film is a sequel to his hit short horror film from last spring, “Devotion to the Kill.”
The screening of “The Stranger” is a part of the Ambler Theater’s Cinematique Series, which is dedicated to showing classic films and local treasures as well as first-run films.
