Christmas in July?
Toolbox
By DAWSON RASPUZZI Herald Staff - Published: May 20, 2008
With summer quickly approaching and the mercury in thermometers on the rise around the state there is a prediction for three weeks of snow in Chester starting the last week of May.
Rutland-based Edgewood Studios expects to begin shooting their upcoming film "Mistletoe" on May 27, transforming Chester into a winter wonderland for the family film, which is said to star Tom Arnold.
The film is expected to take three weeks to shoot and will require adding fake snow to some parts of the town to portray December in Vermont, as well as digital effects for wide shots of the entire town, the production company's president, David Giancola, said.
The screenplay, written by Joany Kane, tells a story of a family that loses the true meaning of Christmas and how they reignite the spirit of the holiday season in a small Vermont town.
"It's a heartwarming family film," Giancola said. "It just tugged on people's hearts the right way, the people who read it couldn't put it down."
The film sits in a different genre than the majority of Edgewood productions, which don't generally take phrases like "heartwarming family film" to describe them. After producing many sci-fi films with zombies and explosions tearing up Rutland and other Vermont cities, Giancola's latest production is a step in a different direction.
"We've destroyed half of Rutland five or six times before," he said. "It's nice to do something sweet for a change."
Giancola said the storyline is similar to the 1946 Christmas classic "It's a Wonderful Life."
"I'm trying to expand Edgewood out of just doing genre films," Giancola said, "and make some stuff that's geared more for the family."
Giancola said he has been looking to produce a family film for a long time, but until recently hadn't come across the right screenplay. When he read Kane's "Mistletoe," he said he knew he'd found it.
The film will be directed by Springfield resident Karen Arthur, who has a long history of directing theatrical performances and television shows and films.
"It is such a great script and the chance to work with an extremely experienced and truly talented director like Karen Arthur, I couldn't let this opportunity pass Vermont by," Giancola said.
The lead role will be played by Tom Arnold, who acted in and produced many episodes of the TV sitcom "Roseanne" and took the lead role in the 2005 holiday movie "Chasing Christmas," as well as numerous other films and television productions.
Giancola said the rest of the cast is not being publicly released yet, although said Vermonters will fill much of the supporting cast. He is also looking for a local chorus as well as people interested in being extras in the film, encouraging them to contact the studio at the Howe Center in Rutland.
The final scene of the film features the entire community joining together on the town green to sing Christmas carols, so the need for extras in the scene will be great for that day of shooting.
"Extras will need to come dressed in their winter's finest and sing Christmas carols — what can be better than that in June?" Giancola said.
Giancola said he decided to wait for winter to finish up before beginning shooting so Vermont residents would be disrupted as little as possible. Because spring is generally the off-season for tourism in the state, Giancola said there will be little disruption created by filming.
Also, the town of Chester will benefit from the off-season revenue brought in by the production, expected to be greater than a half-million dollars to businesses, professionals and the workforce throughout Central Vermont, said Vermont Film Commissioner Joe Bookchin.
Besides generated revenue, Giancola said the publicity of the film will also generate more tourism for the town.
"It's like an ad for Vermont tourism," he said, adding that the film "paints the town in a positive light."
Edgewood is working closely with Bookchin to hire local crew members for the film and help develop new contacts to strengthen the state's infrastructure for film productions in the future.
Edgewood Studios has been producing feature films since 1990. For more information on the studio, visit www.edgewoodstudios.com.
Contact Dawson Raspuzzi at dawson.raspuzzi@rutlandherald.com.
36