August 28, 2002
Cast and crew 'Vow' to complete feature-length movie
Local talent in front of and behind camera for filming of psychological thriller
By Carol South
Herald contributing writer
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With writer/director Tim Hall glued to the monitor, the actor, cameraman, sound guy and lighting person roll through a scene in a locally written and produced movie called "Vow."
Staged at locations around town, including one the set of an apartment built above Union Street Station, "Vow" tells the story of love gone awry as passion takes a dangerous turn.
"I've always wanted to make a movie, have done video projects before and my wife, Paula, acts," said Hall, co-owner of Tempest Entertainment, a company that stages murder mysteries.
Hall and his friends decided to make their own movie at an Oscar party last year, after one-too-many-times of criticizing a movie they had just seen in the theater. Hall wrote a 150-page screenplay in a week and a half, then began refining it with the help of his friends. After three re-writes he began finding actors, financing, locations, crew, costumes and props. The cast of 27 began shooting last Saturday.
"It may not be the 'Citizen Kane' of our times, but we're giving it our best shot," said Hall, who noted that independent films are doing well in the industry and he is just beginning to consider distribution plans. "Major studios are trying to make everyone happy all the time. But to make something that is going to last_"
Hall believes that "Vow" has the potential to boost the careers of the many talented people involved in the production.
"My goal is to get to a level with this film to use it as our catalyst, a boarding pass for those talented people who don't want to leave the area," he noted.
Describing the process of making "Vow" as serendipitous, Hall said that time and again this summer, whatever the movie needed would turn up at the right time. With the project a mere three days old, they found someone to back it financially. Finding a house to shoot some scenes in was as easy as contacting an Old Town Playhouse member who was also a Realtor - who happened to have a house that met Hall's requirements available.
Then the Traverse City Police Department loaned some uniforms and many Old Town Playhouse veterans began offering to help with everything from acting to production.
"It has been wonderful to work with all this local talent in Traverse City," Hall said. "It was cool to come up with this somewhat random idea of this film and have the support of so many talented people."
"I haven't had this much fun on a project in years - they are all MVPs here," he noted.
The movie stars Dominik Ramon and Paula Hall and has a main cast of eight more. Ramon, who lived in New York a decade ago to pursue acting before deciding to join the military and travel, is pleased to have another chance in front of the camera.
"After being in Death Defying Acts at the Old Town Playhouse, the old spark came back and I just wanted to keep doing it," said Ramon, a native of Connecticut and former Navy corpsman. "Acting is very, very intriguing and you get to do stuff you wouldn't normally do."
Paula Hall said her many years of acting did not prepare her for one aspect of starring in her husband's movie. Hall has previously had one small walk-on part in a film and has many years experience on the stage.
"The most challenging thing was to kiss another man in front of my husband," she said ruefully. "Give me death, give me crying. Under seven layers of make-up I know I was purple and I needed a little liquid courage to get through it."
Filming a movie on a shoestring budget has its challenges, certainly Steven Speilberg does not have to jump-start a $300 car or have it stall repeatedly when filming a scene. Or pinch pennies wherever possible - from food to staff to locations - to make the budget last through the two weeks of filming.
"If I have to have it, we buy it; if I don't have to have it, we don't," Hall noted. "We go to a lot of garage sales."