Independent feature film premiered at local cinema (1/28/2016)
Filmmaker Scott Baldyga might tell you that he hails from California, but his roots can be traced back to Western Massachusetts. He even chose the Agawam Cinemas for the New England premiere of his independent feature film "Misled" that took place on Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. "Misled" is the delicately told story of two brothers from southwest Detroit desperatly trying to find ways to survive while dealing with issues ranging from poverty, prostitution to drug addiction or family secrets. Scott Baldyga told more about the plot and filming process in an after-screening Q&A session.
(This article was originally published in the West Springfield Record of Thursday, Jan. 28, 2016. By Clotilde Percheminier, edited by Jack Farrell).
West Springfield native and filmmaker Scott Baldyga flew all the way from Los Angeles to present his independent feature movie "Misled" for its New England premiere at the New England Cinemas on Thursday, January 21. The event included a photo shooting session on a red carpet, the screening of the 90-minute movie, a Questions and Answers discussion and an after-party at the bar Kaptain Jimmy's in Agawam.
The movie, based on real events, was shot in November 2012. It was chosen as an official selection and screened at the Gasparilla Film Festival in Tampa, Fla., and at the Temecula Valley International Film Festival in California in 2014. In addition, that same year, the Detroit Music Awards awarded the film's music its "Special Recognition for Soundtrack." The music features songs by bands from Detroit and a score composed and written by Mr. Baldyga himself. This movie is a Screen Actors Guild signatory and has been produced by J. Squared Productions.
Mr. Baldyga is not new to film production. He has worked in the field for the past 20 years in Los Angeles, producing, writing or even starring in movies. However, "Misled" is his first feature film as a director. Mr. Baldyga's background includes many other different activities such as nonfiction writing. He released the book "Frozen" in 2009, which he wrote with Larry Johnson, about cryogenics.
"Misled" can boil down to one key question: How far would you go for family? The movie essentially tells the story of Jason, a young man from southwest Detroit who struggles to make ends meet while supporting his widowed mother. Threatened to be thrown out of drama school because he cannot pay his fees, Jason will to stripping and even prostitution while trying to help his brother Bobby, who just got out of jail. Jason will try to help Bobby deal with his ever-worse drug habit. As they both spiral down this path, a family secret will re-emerge.
Mr. Baldyga has put together an interesting cast. "Misled" stars actor and Detroit native Jonathan Stanley, whose life has inspired the movie's story and who co-wrote and produced it. He plays Jason, the main character, while his brother Bobby is played by Matt Lockwood. This actor can be seen in movies such as "Answer This." Sammy Sheik, who appeared in "American Sniper," also plays a character in the movie.
For Scott Baldyga, the three keywords of the movie are the following: family, sacrifice and choices. The movie addresses the issue of economical distress closely. Where it is set is signicant: "Detroit was in the news so much when we shot the movie, when it went bankrupt, that I felt the city was emblematic of what was going on in the country in general," Mr. Baldyga explained.
The film attempts to cast a light on poverty through this story, and essentially, to answer this question: "How do you pull yourself up from a dire economic situation you were born into, and then, what you make with hard work and sacrifice," Mr. Baldyga said.
Last week, the "Misled" New England premiere drew a substantial crowd in Agawam. The level of noice due to chatting during the photo shooting session was slightly too high for Mr. Baldyga, who asked to talk more softly because another movie was being screened in the other theater. He found it important to bring the movie to New England, insofar as this is home for him. Even though he now lives in California, he was born in Springfield and grew up in West Side. The event allowed him to meet other artists.
"There were a few local writers and filmmakers in the audience," Mr. Baldyga said, "I was able to talk to them after the show and this week I will be reading their scripts and watching their independent films. It is a tough business and the more sense of community, the better."
Before the screening, the director expressed his gratitude to the Agawam Cinemas, the sponsors and the people who helped him throughout this project. Directly after the movie, Mr. Baldyga took questions from the audience and came back on the process of directing and shooting the movie. He confessed he had never directed a love scene before and said he was sometimes more stressed than the actors.
It is worth noting that Mr. Baldyga made a cameo appearance in the movie, weirdly sneaking up on the character Jason and on of his clients in a dark alley. He was therefore referred to as "creepy man in the alley," sparking laughter in the theater.
Remembering the shooting, Mr. Baldyga recalled that the crew sometimes lost locations the day shooting was meant to happen. Those days represented the thoughest for him during filming. On the other hand, he remembered some powerful moments related to the fact that the movie's plot is closely linked to Mr. Stanley's life.
"He basically put all the bad stuff that happened to him," Mr. Baldyga said. The actor had a very emotional response when he saw the family house used for the shooting. "He broke down crying. It was so real for him."
Agawam Cinemas
Agawam Cinemas reopened on Nov. 6. Kimberly Wheener, the owner, is delighted to host this event for what it brings to the community, she said.
"It is very important for us to host the New England premiere of "Misled" and to make local events happen, tighten ties between the community and local artists," she said.
The theater's former owner had to close in 2014 because of the high cost of replacing the projectors. Ms. Wheeler managed to re-open it after many efforts. She created a page at Kickstarter, a crowd-funding website, to raise money for the $40,000 new projectors. The total cost of re-opening the cinemas was $200,000. The theater is the same size but is now handicapped-accessible. Acoustic work has also been carried out inside.
So far, Ms. Wheeler has been impressed by movie-goer attendance. "It surpassed all of my expectations," she said.
She surmised this may be due to the big movies which have been screened, such as the latest Star Wars flick.
"I thought it would take a long time to reach the public, but in fact it was very easy. I have had nights when every seat was packed," she said.
By Clo Percheminier, edited by Jack Farrell