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 KCP
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After five weeks of shooting, we wrapped production of Disappearances at 6:00am on Wednesday, May 17th. Since then, director Jay Craven has been collaborating intensively with editors, musicians, and sound engineers to shape the raw footage into a stunning and memorable motion picture. In September, we submitted a rough cut of the film for consideration by the Sundance Film Festival, and as we wait to hear from them, work continues on the final version. After more than five years in development, we're delighted that the third in our trilogy of Vermont "frontier films" is now in its final stages. Bolstered by a $35,000 production grant from the National Endowment for the Arts and extraordinary community support, we began shooting on April 11th. We assembled a terrific cast. Kris Kristofferson stars as Quebec Bill Bonhomme. He's been a film star, Grammy-winning country music singer-songwriter, Golden Gloves boxing champ, and Rhodes Scholar. Kris calls the script "the best" and "most original" he's read. Other actors currently planning to appear in the film include Gary Farmer (Dead Man, Pow Wow Highway, Ghost Dog, The Score, Adaptation) as professional whiskey-runner Henry Coville; Academy Award nominee Genevieve Bujold (La Guerre Est Finie, King of Hearts, Tightrope, Choose Me, The Moderns, Dead Ringers, Anne of a Thousand Days) as the magical realist sage, Cordelia; Lothaire Bluteau (Jesus of Montreal, Orlando, I Shot Andy Warhol, Urbania) as the notorious Canadian bootlegger Caracajou; and Luis Guzman (Boogie Nights, Carlito's Way, The Limey, Traffic, Punch Drunk Love, Magnolia, The Count of Monte Christo) as train man Compton. Our production designer Carl Sprague headed up an extraordinary art department and took it up himself to move a 1932 Cadillac from Georgia to Vermont to be featured in some of the film's most crucial scenes. Carl was art director on The Royal Tennenbaums and State and Main, and assistant art director on Spielberg's Amistad, Scorcese's Age of Innocence, and others. Costume Designer Jill Kliber was also instrumental in developing the authentic period look of the film. Jill was one of two designers on the Oscar-nominated Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Cinematographer Wolfgang Held also worked closely with director Jay Craven to plan and execute the many complex outdoor and stunt sequences for the film. Wolfgang shot the stunning Academy Award nominated film, Children of the Underground.
Shooting may be complete, but we are still in the midst of a crucial fundraising campaign to support the production of Disappearances: We've launched an ambitious campaign of tax-deductible contributions to match the National Endowment for the Arts grant and bolster this very challenging production. We're working to raise $150,000 that will close the gap and support us through the remainder of post-production. Supporters who contribute $550 or more will be listed in the film's credits as part of our special White Lightning Brigade of supporters. You'll be included in the credits for all screenings, broadcasts, DVD sales, showings, etc. The credits will close soon, so act now! Please visit our fundraising page to see how you can play a leading role!
After thirteen performances in ten Vermont towns, our fall tour of The Voices Project closed on October 9th with a sell-out show at Burlington Flynn Center for the Arts. The Burlington Free Press has called the production "insightful,” “evocative,” and “remarkable in scope." Seven Days said it “brilliantly articulates the unique challenges of young Vermonters.” And we were delighted to receive favorable coverage in the New York Times. With the tour complete, we now hope to give the project new life through a DVD of the production that was shot at a single special-engagement performance at Johnson State College the weekend after our closing. The Voices Project was created as a unique, statewide initiative to raise awareness about the challenges faced by Vermont teens through the creation of an original stage production based on their voices. During 2004, we presented a series of workshops, roundtable discussions, and other forums where teens expressed their hopes, concerns, fears, ideas, and opinions about growing up in Vermont. The product of that research was then adapted into an original script with music, written in collaboration with teens from across the state. After numerous rounds of statewide auditions and an intensive rehearsal period this summer, we toured the show throughout Vermont for five weekends this fall with a cast and crew made up of young people from across the state. The tour has fostered critical dialogue about the physical, emotional, and spiritual health of Vermont's young people and how they can be better served, valued, cared for, and empowered by their communities, which we hope will continue with the help of a series of community forums organized by our sponsors at Vermont Public Television. The Voices Project grows out of a vision to expand KCP's media arts programs for youth. For more information about how you can participate, please visit the Voices website at http://www.bcbsvt.com/voices or call our office.
Whether you saw the show or are hoping to get a taste of the magic you missed, we are pleased to be able to make the original soundtrack of The Voices Project available now. You can purchase it online or ask for it at your local Vermont bookstore or music outlet. Also, check out LISTEN, a multi-media collection of some of the best creative writing, music, and video we collected from teens during The Voices Project's research period. Get a glimpse of what Vermont teens are thinking, feeling, and saying! The DVD of the production itself is available for purchase now, for holiday shipping starting on December 1! Order yours now! The Voices Project is a joint venture between KCP and The Vermont Health Plan, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Vermont's HMO affiliate, which helped fund Bess O'Brien's acclaimed documentary film Here Today, exploring the impact of heroin addiction on Vermont families and communities. Windy Acres Kingdom County Productions' Vermont comedy series, Windy Acres, co-produced with Vermont Public Television, won two New England Emmy Awards at the 28th Annual Boston/New England Emmy Awards held at the Boston Exhibition and Convention Center on Saturday May 8. Entries were judged by peers in other regional chapters of the National Television Academy. Windy Acres received Emmys for Outstanding Achievement in Entertainment Program for Jay Craven, Executive Producer; Lauren Moye, Producer; Hathalee Higgs, Producer; Dan Harvey, Producer; and Outstanding Achievement for Music Composition for composers Brett Hughes and Gordon Stone. KCP's first foray into series television, Windy Acres was released in the fall of 2004. The 7-part comedy aired on Vermont Public Television and Mountain Lake PBS in upstate New York to enthusiastic audiences for seven consecutive weeks. Plans are in the works to release Windy Acres nationally through American Public Television, a sales and service organization supporting PBS affiliates nationwide. An upcoming broadcast is also being planned by WGBH-TV, Boston's flagship station. The series is also available on video and DVD in stores throughout Vermont and New England -- as well as here on our website! Windy Acres tells the story of New York marketing ace Stephanie Burns, who loses her job at an upscale children's clothing company. Eager for a change, she discovers a website for "agricultural tourism" in Vermont and impulsively stuffs her two daughters into a borrowed car, setting out for unexpected adventure in the Green Mountains. Once in Vermont, she meets rugged, love starved, hard-scrabble Vermont farmer Lucien LaFlamme, and sparks start to fly. Determined to find success as an agricultural tourist, Stephanie sets out to micromanage Lucien's flagging farm into fame and fortune. Lucien needs the help, whether he likes to admit it or not, so Stephanie sharpens her corporate marketing skills to get the job done. But when her teenaged daughter, Titania (Ariel Kiley) falls for outlaw mechanic, Turkey Tatro (Stivi Paskoski), Stephanie goes haywire. Of course, everything that could go wrong does, as this offbeat ensemble of characters makes their way through seven weekly episodes of misadventure. What viewers are saying: "It's a scream! Great work!" - A viewer from Winooski, VT "Terrific show. This is the first time in 20 years I am excited about a TV program." - A viewer from Waitsfield, VT "Fantastic show! We were tuly impressed with all aspects of this new, truly Vermont comedy. We wish it were 1 hour long and really hope that it makes it beyond its first season. Thanks!" - Viewers from Barton, VT "We love Windy Acres and hope you will continue with the series. It falls in line with some of the English comedies we enjoy. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!" - Viewers from Wilmington, VT Windy Acres was shot over six weeks this summer at locations in Barnet, Peacham, and St. Johnsbury, using the Morrison dairy farm in West Barnet as our main exterior location. The Morrisions were incredibly welcoming to more than 25 crew and cast members who gathered around their house and barn almost daily. The cast and crew worked 6-day weeks and 12-hour days for the duration of the shoot, pulling off an extraordinarily ambitious schedule. We're grateful to them and to all of our neighbors and sponsors who made the production possible!
Windy Acres is available NOW on video and DVD! The 2-disc set includes all 7 episodes, plus extra features including a behind-the-scenes documentary about the making of the series, out-takes, bonus scenes, and more! All that for just $24.95! (VHS set includes all 7 episodes, plus the doc, on 2 tapes.) To order, call toll-free 1-888-315-7700 or visit our on-line order form! Please contact us if you have ideas or contacts for screenings in your community of this or other KCP productions. We can play 35mm theaters, libraries, schools, and alternative spaces with high-quality video projection. Jay Craven, other producers, and cast and crew are often available to attend and discuss the films. Contact us at kcp@pshift.net or 802-592-3190.
Due to our work on The Voices Project this summer, we will not present the Fledgling Films Summer Institute, our annual intensive program for young theater and film artists, this year. We will return in the summer of 2006 with improved and expanded programs in filmmaking and theater production. Check back here for updates! 2004 marked the seventh year of Vermont Arts Institute, our summer arts institute for teens. We welcomed more than a hundred young artists from New England and beyond to the Northeast Kingdom for intensive programs in dance, theater, visual arts, animation, screenwriting, and of course, filmmaking. Working closely with professional artists, students had the unique opportunity to gain hands-on, in-depth experience in their discipline of interest under the guidance of skilled mentors. With a record number of returning students, 2004's Fledgling Film program is sure to be remembered as among our most productive. This year's program produced 5 short films: "What's Eating Julie", "Voice Change", "Dated", "The Full Circle Project", and the neo-German-expressionist audience favorite, "Das Panik Factory". The 2004 Fledgling Films will be screened during KCP's annual Fledgling Film Festival in 2005. Screenplays for the films produced during the Institute are adapted from works submitted by teens nationwide as part of our on-going Teen Writing Contest. Please contact us if you have a play, screenplay, or short story you're interested in submitting, or if you would like more information about the Institute or other Fledgling Film programs.
Since March 2002, Jay Craven's latest film, The Year That Trembled, has played to enthusiastic audiences in theaters and festivals across the U.S. In December 2002, Kingdom County Productions became the official theatrical distributor of The Year That Trembled and has since put the film into theaters throughout Vermont and New Hampshire, plus recent dates in Los Angeles, Boston, Chicago, Ithaca NY, Madison WI, Portland ME, Tucson AZ and Marietta GA. On the heels of this extensive theatrical release, KCP is proud to announce the release of The Year That Trembled on video and DVD, courtesy of Los Angeles-based Ardustry Home Entertainment. Look for the film in stores and rental outlets now! The Year That Trembled is a 1970 coming-of-age story set in rural Ohio. It follows a group of high school buddies during the year after their graduation. These friends find their idyllic summer of self-discovery clouded by the turmoil of the period: the Kent State shootings, the impending draft lottery, the politics and travail of Vietnam. Screen-written and directed by Jay Craven, The Year That Trembled is based on the novel by Scott Lax, and produced by Novel City Pictures of Chagrin Falls, OH. KCP Executive Director, Hathalee Higgs, is an Associate Producer. Kingdom County Productions offered producing consultation throughout the development and production phases of the film. The Year That Trembled features an eclectic ensemble of young talent, seasoned comic actors, and veterans from Craven's previous films. Jeff Claus and Judy Hyman (formerly of The Horse Flies), composers and performers for Craven's Where the Rivers Flow North and A Stranger in the Kingdom, composed the score, evoking the period. Please contact us if you have ideas or contacts for screenings in your community. We can play 35mm theaters, also libraries, schools, and alternate spaces with our high quality video projection. Jay Craven, the producers, and some actors are available to attend and discuss the film and the 60's period research that went into it. Contact us at: kcp@sover.net or 802-592-3190. Also check out www.tytt.com for more information on the film and Novel City Pictures. "The overall feeling of the period is just right, and the performances are highly affecting...This is more believable than most depictions of the period because the politics are informed by historical reflection." "Memorable...beautifully reflects a depth of experience of the late 60's and early 70's...a touching glimpse into the lives of young people enmeshed in the political and emotional climate of the times." "Craven is an intuitive director - take his inspired interweaving of stock footage, as when he juxtaposes cops carting away demonstrators with grunts carrying away their wounded brethren. That such scenes are in the news again only calls to mind the provocative parallels." "I was very touched. The film captures the essence of what people were going through at the time - not just the movement, but the regular guys. I highly recommend it to anyone." "...Brandis and Hinkle inhabit their roles with real weight; there's a nice reunion of Martin Mull and Fred Willard as beleaguered Ohio parents, and a spacy turn from Henry Gibson...Craven pays meticulous attention to the details of the Kent State shootings and aftermath, and deftly integrates period news footage (how shocked young of the Iraq war will be to see how close the cameras were in Vietnam)." "The Year That Kent State Exploded. An ambitious coming-of-age story set amid the turmoil that beset rural Ohio communities in the wake of the May 4, 1970 Kent State shootings...The Year That Trembled evokes the fear, anger, and conflict that swept over the country at that time." "Films that effectively capture the mood of the 60's are few and far between. Writer-director Jay Craven's The Year That Trembled succeeds... Craven deftly sets the stage with a montage of news clips before proceeding to a fictionalized
street theater version of a great Vietnam Era protest. Film includes good work from Henry Gibson, Fred Willard, Martin Mull (all playing it straight), and the latest actress from the Chaplin clan, Kiera." "Sweet...touching...historically significant...throw this on your list of films to watch." "Jay Craven's best film yet. With more and more filmmakers succumbing to the monkeymass and avoiding political thought with any substance, it's kind of great to see Craven in the trenches, figuring out how to tell the kinds of stories he wants to tell. After what feels like months of formula movie garbage The Year That Trembled feels like the first important movie of the year." "Lush cinematography and stellar performances perfectly capture
the zeitgeist of this troubled time. The experienced cast makes the most
of the film's subtleties and dramatic high points. Brandis and Hinkle
are especially fine in portraying their dangerous attraction." " *** 1/2! A heartfelt album of relationships...well-honed and non-formulaic...like Robert Altman with an extra dose of gentle humanism." " *** 1/2! The
Year That Trembled features an impressive ensemble cast...capable of making us think and feel as they are of making us laugh.
The Year That Trembled is new territory for the Vermont
director, and he shows every sign of feeling right at home in it. This
is the first film Craven has made whose credits don't list him as producer.
That's deceiving, though. From his earliest work to his newest, Craven
is a filmmaker who always produces." "Personal and powerful- it never gives up hope." "The Year That Trembled deals with matters that
Hollywood won't touch, and gets people thinking about a dramatic piece
of our history that has been largely forgotten. What happened at Kent
State was a microcosm of what happened to the nation. TYTT's
young characters have their lives changed, and we get to know them up
close -- their loves, their fears, their dreams. This is an unusual film." " *** Intimate, subtly riveting, and richly reminiscent. The Year That Trembled captures much of the drama and essence of the Vietnam War protest era." Kingdom County Productions is a non-profit organization that depends on the generosity and vision of its donors and the tireless enthusiasm of its staff and volunteers to continue fulfilling its mission to produce independent, innovative, and engaging films and learning projects. In addition to the extraordinary initiatives listed above, the following projects are also in development: > A second season of regional Vermont TV. Coming off the exhilarating experience of developing Windy Acres, the nation's first regionally-produced dramatic TV series, we're committed to producing another season of television drama ￦#189; a second season on Windy Acres, a detective series, another comedy, who knows...? > New feature films, including two new film noirs based on classic novels. They Don't Dance Much based on James Ross' Depression-era tale of skullduggery in a small rural town, one of Raymond Chander's all-time favorites. Also, A Crime Unpunished (working title), based on Georges Simenon's novel, The Fugitive. > Northern Borders. Based on the novel by Howard Frank Mosher, this haunting coming-of-age story is set in rural northern Vermont in the 1950's and is filled with luminous memories and the deepest of childhood secrets. A New England Booksellers Award winner. > A new hour-long documentary, Soldiers Lives (working title), by Jay Craven, Matt Sienkiewicz, and Sascha Stanton-Craven. Including more than 25 interviews with Vermont combat veterans, focusing on the human impact and experience of war. Produced with the cooperation of the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in White River Junction. > New Initiatives in arts education. Including The Voices Project and changes with our Fledgling Films programs, including expanded film and theater projects. Rip Torn (Noel Lord) currently has two films in the works; Eulogy with Ray Romano and Welcome to Mooseport with Gene Hackman. He recently appeared in Novak Love Object which played at the Tribeca Film Festival and co-starred in Men in
Black 2 with Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones. Tantoo
Cardinal (Bangor) recently starred in two TV films: The Lost Child
with Mercedes Ruehl, and Navigating the Heart, a Hallmark Hall
of Fame production. She also co-starred in Dana Yeaton's Vermont
production Mad River Rising. Michael J. Fox continues to be the voice of animated characters such as Stuart Little in Stuart Little and Stuart Little 2, Milo James in Atlantis:The Lost Empire, and Ghandi's Remaining Kidney in the MTV series "Clone High." Bill
Raymond (Wayne Quinn, Resolved Kinneson) played Ernie Whirly in The Year That Trembled, Jay Craven's latest film. He co-stars in the comedy, A Hole in One and What Alice Found which played this winter at Sundance. He also appears in the new Lars von Trier's film, Dogville starring Nicole
Kidman. John Griesemer (Henry Coville and Welcome Kinneson) played Sen. Jess Erickson in Nora Jacobson's new film, Nothing Like Dreaming. He also appears briefly in
Boiler Room with Ben Affleck, and recently published his first novel,
No One Thinks of Greenland. Martin
Sheen (Sigurd Moulton) continues to play the President in the popular,
critically acclaimed TV series "The West Wing." He also
recently appeared in Catch Me If You Can with Tom Hanks and Leonardo DiCaprio,
and Jerusalem, with Macaulay Culkin. He can soon be seen in The Commission playing Deputy Attorney General Nicholas Katzenbach. David
Lansbury (Charlie Kinneson) recently co-starred with Cherry Jones, Dana Ivey
and David Warner in the hit Broadway production of George Bernard Shaw's
"Major Barbara." He also co-starred in Ibsen's
"Hedda Gabler," also on Broadway. Ernie
Hudson (Walt Andrews) appeared in Miss Congeniality
with Sandra Bullock, The Watcher with Keanu Reeves, and co-starred
in the TV series "HRT." He also appeared in
the acclaimed HBO series "OZ." Henry
Gibson (Zack Barrows) recently appeared in Jay Craven's new film The
Year That Trembled as Ralph Tyler. His performance in Paul Thomas
Anderson's Magnolia continues to win favorable notices
nationwide. Sean
Nelson (Nat Andrews) co-starred in The Year That Trembled as
well. He also appeared in the critically acclaimed HBO series The Corner,
and in The Wood with Omar Epps and Taye Diggs. Matt Salinger (Stranger Executive Producer) plays the part of Professor Jeff Griggs in The Year That Trembled. Matt also produced the Obie and Drama Desk Award winning play, "The Syringa Tree", which played twenty months off-Broadway and at London's National Theater and continues to tour in the US. Marin
Hinkle (Helen in The Year That Trembled) gave
acclaimed performances last summer in the off-Broadway Blue Window
production, and as Strindberg's Miss Julie in the July
Berkshire Theater Festival.
Check out KCP's calendar for events in your area! |
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