At this very moment co-writer/co-director John Pata and lead
actor Joe Belknap are at Days Of The Dead in Indianapolis, IN, where
we have a vendor table to promote Dead Weight. Since poor ol’ me can’t make it to as many of these events as I’d like to I
decided I should get around to something both John and I have been terribly
neglectful of.
At the end of March we held the public premiere of Dead
Weight at the Time Community Theater in
downtown Oshkosh. We must apologize for the lack of a formal post recapping
that unbelievable weekend. And when I say unbelievable, I mean it in the
truest, most sincere terms. Those screenings were—without a doubt—two of the
best evenings of our lives. After two and a half years of work, worry, and
stress, we were finally able to show you what we were so proud of.
Thank you. If you were there, if you interviewed us leading
up to the film, or if you reviewed it afterwards, then we are deeply grateful
to you for your support. Even if you weren’t able to make it to the screenings,
but still supported us on our journey, thank you. The premiere was an
unbelievable release of energy that had been building up for two and a half
years. A day we sometimes thought would never actually come. During production
we almost reached this point where we stopped even just thinking about the
premiere, because the road ahead and the work to do was so terribly daunting. Thoughts of completion would only result in awful anxiety attacks.
The entire weekend back in March could be summarized as
simply overwhelming. There was too much to fully take in and absorb. I wish I
could’ve recorded every conversation I had that night, every handshake or hug
that took place, so I could relive it all the way it was. Thankfully we had
Mary Manchester, our still photographer, along on Friday night taking photos of
cast and crew, and our friend Dave Wasinger on Saturday to do the same. If I’ve
been able to just once overcome my awful memory and chisel a single permanent lesson into my brain,
it’s that I will inevitably forget the magical moments of a special occasion. I should do anything possible to make sure there is documentation
to call back upon. There have been more than a few crap days made better by
revisiting those premiere weekend photos.
Beyond my own emotional reaction to the weekend, it was also
a huge success for everyone involved. We sold out both Friday and Saturday
screenings, 408 seats each night. That is huge, and we are still in disbelief
that it went so well. That is the first time in 15 or 20 years that a film has sold
out the old Theater in downtown Oshkosh. We could not have been happier to see
everyone there to support what is truly a Wisconsin grown independent film.
Although the premiere marked the end of one enormous step in
the process, and saw the Dead Weight
family finally able to share their work, it also marks the beginning of a new phase. Promotion. As I mentioned, John and Joe are at one
convention this weekend. We’ve also taken part in the Philly Comic Con, Fright
Night Film Fest in Louisville, KY, and Art All Night Film Festival in Trenton,
NJ. We have some other conventions and film fests to announce in the very
near future, please stay tuned for updates on those.
We’ve also seen a flood of incredible reviews come
through from websites and magazines worldwide. The feedback has been
incredible, beyond anything we had hoped for. If you haven’t read some of the
reviews, please check out a few of the links below. Just beware of spoilers if you have not seen the film yet.
We think you’ll enjoy some photos from the weekend, whether
or not you were with us for the premiere. The happiness felt by so many members
of the Dead Weight family should be
apparent below. We hope you enjoy them, because you can be certain we enjoyed
every moment they captured.
Thank you, endlessly and most sincerely. Thank you for
helping us see this production through to completion. We’re just getting started.
Click the "read more" link below in order to view a bunch of fun photos.
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| Co-writers/co-directors Adam Bartlett and John Pata. |
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Joe Belknap (Charlie) and Mary Lindberg(Samantha),
aka "a couple of busters", with John and Adam. |
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| Actors Aaron Christensen (Thomas) and Michelle Courvais (Meredith). |
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Actors Aaron Christensen (Thomas), Joe Belknap (Charlie), Sam Lenz (Dustin),
Jess Ader (Drew), Michelle Courvais (Meredith). |
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Producer Lee Marohn with his one of a kind Team Charlie shirt.
Later gifted to Ma' Belknap. |
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| So much happiness! Producer Dan Kiggins, crew maniac Lance Ford, actor Ashley Lamers. |
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| Adam and John with executive producer Burb. |
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| John with crew member Coye Vega. Apparently they're having fun. |
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| Signing boobs, it's what directors do. Hair stylist Scott Burns. |
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| Actors Michelle Courvais (Meredith) and Jess Ader (Drew). |
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| Actor Michelle Courvais (Meredith) with Adam. Awkward prom photo. |
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| Stangaar, the hero of Dead Weight. |
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| Bad dudes. Actors Mark Muetzel (Clint), Jake Martin (Roy), and Matty Field (Bobby). |
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| Just kidding! They're a bunch of big sweethearts! |
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The ladies of Dead Weight. Actors Ashley Lamers, Michelle Courvais (Meredith),
Mary Lindberg (Samantha), Becky Belknap (Shelly), and Mary Manchester (Alex) |
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| Sorry, bro. Actors Joe Belknap (Charlie) and Jess Ader (Drew). |
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Actors Eric Van Thiel (Doug), Coree Van Thiel (Karen),
and Fran St. Andre (Greg) with Adam. |
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| Actor Jason Ryf (Riley) cradles Stangaar. |
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| Actors Mary Manchester (Alex) and Aaron Christensen (Thomas) with crew member Eric Egan. |
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SO MANY GINGERS.
Producer Lee Marohn and actor Aaron Christensen (Thomas) with John |
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Actor Mary Lindberg (Samantha), not amused with the amount of
enthusiastic hand shaking crew member Eric Egan was doing. |
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| Actor Joe Belknap (Charlie), perhaps not terribly flexible. |
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| Hey, look! We didn't kill eachother! |
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| Family. Just a small portion. |
That was a very fun night. Glad I could be there to be a part of it.
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