CONTENTS

---

Be sure to check-out our trailer and Pic Gallery (They are both near the bottom of this page).

TAG LINE: Not a coming out story – A coming to terms story

SHORT SNYOPSIS: “Neighborhood Stranger” is about Craig:  an older, out gay man who returns to his estranged home to care for his terminally ill mother. Their neighbor:  a young, closeted gay man who is ‘outed’ to his family – Without his consent.  With Craig’s words of support and encouragement the young man accepts his sexuality and is able to move on. 

LONG SNYOPSIS:  “Neighborhood Stranger” is about Craig:  an older, out and proud, successful,  gay man who is summoned back to his childhood home to care for his terminally ill mother, Emma.  He stops along the way for a one-night hook-up. As Craig cares for his mother she tries to take advantage of his entrapment to change him into the son she wants him to be. Next door is the young, closeted gay neighbor who lives with his holier-than-thou, Christian-Bible-Banging father. The young man is outed to his Dad. The young man is devastated at being outed against his will. He turns to Craig’s words of support, wisdom and encouragement and comes to terms with his sexuality and is able to move on. 

HOW DID THE FILM GET OFF THE GROUND?

When Fred learned I am a cinematographer he told me about a short story he wrote in 1994 when his boyfriend (now Husband) told him about how he was outed to his parents on the day of his sisters’ wedding. I told him to turn it into a script. After I read it I said “You wrote this?  We have to make this movie!” After that, the toughest part was getting funding. Thankfully we have a really great group of supporters.

WHAT METHODS DID YOU USE TO GET THE BEST FROM YOUR ACTORS?

I allowed the actor to perform freely for the first take with little direction. Then I gave direction and explained what worked and what did not. This is so I can see their take on the character. Then view the second take as a combination of my vision and theirs. I believe this creates synergy between the director's vision and the actor's interpretation.   

WHAT WAS IT LIKE DIRECTING YOUR FRIEND AND FELLOW PRODUCER?

Fred is extremely organized which made not only the pre production process go smoothly but the 3 shoot dates as well.  As Line Producer he kept everything organized and on schedule. When it was time to shoot his scenes he easily moved into actor mode.

WAS IT DIFFICULT TO FILM THE NUDE SEX SCENES?

Not really. I take any film gig I put my name on seriously and with the art in mind.  

Fred and Nick were great scene partners. We discussed the scene, choreographed the actions, rehearsed the blocking and filmed the take. We kept everything professional and easy going which made us all feel really comfortable.

WERE THERE ANY ONSET PROBLEMS FILMING? HOW DID YOU DEAL WITH IT?

As in every production there were onset problem: Air planes being one. It proved hard to get the audio needed in between the sound of the planes going overhead. We just remained patient and got what we needed though it took several takes.

HOW DIFFERENT WAS WHAT YOU ORIGINALLY ENVISIONED THE FILM BEING LIKE TO HOW IT EVENTUALLY TURNED OUT?

We rigorously stuck to the script almost 100%. Fred says it is exactly how he saw it in his imagination

WHAT DO YOU THINK THE BIGGEST SURPRISE ABOUT THE PROCESS WOULD BE TO AN OUTSIDER?
The amount of time it takes! From conception to pre-production, production and post production. One editing session was over 5 hours long and ended up with a scene that was only 2:20 min.! 

ABOUT THE EQUIPMENT USED:

White Leaf Productions provided all the equipment needed. Using my Black Magic camera, lighting kit, audio equipment we had more than enough to complete the project smoothly. I also used Adobe Premiere.

WHAT MADE YOU PURSUE FILM MAKING?

I have always been a storyteller. I love to write which peaked my interest in the visual arts portion of storytelling. Making short films brought joy to not only me but the people involved in the film process as well as the viewers.    

WHAT ROADBLOCKS DID YOU FACED WHEN YOU WERE STARTING OUT?

I was 18 when I started my film company. I was determined to continue to progress but as a young adult I struggled with time management and over booking myself. I've gotten better over the years but it does help to have a film partner like Fred to keep me on track!  

WHAT DO YOU LOVE ABOUT DIRECTING?
I love taking a story and making it come to life. I think this story is touching and written well. I enjoy working with the actors as well as my camera crew to get a beautiful film in totality.  Plus I love working with Fred. I believe we work well together!

WHAT DO YOU WANT THE VIEWER TO TAKE-A-WAY FROM YOUR FILM?

I believe the lesson behind the story is powerful. It shows the different outcomes of the lives of 2 individual homosexuals that intertwine resulting in the unfortunate blessing that is the outing of the character Nelson. This lifts a huge weight off of him and he is able to find a new mentor in not only his career but his life as an outed homosexual.

Title: Neighborhood Stranger

Rating:  TV-MA*

Running Time 30:00 (Including Credits)

Date of Completion: November, 2022

Copyright: MMXXII

Aspect Ratio:  16:9

Shooting Format:  4K

Master Format: MP4/MOV  H:265  4:2:0  ---  DCP AVAILABLE

Audio Format: 48,000kHz - 32 bit - Stereo

Language: English

Film Genre: Drama/LGBTQ

Filming Locations: Park Ridge and Des Plaines, IL USA

*This Film Is Not Yet Rated by the Motion Picture Association of America.

Socials:

Twitter        @neighborstrang            Neighborhood Stranger

FaceBook  https://m.facebook.com/Neighborhood-Stranger-101030675754168/ 

TikTok         @neighborstrang            Neighborhood Stranger

Instagram  @neighborstrang            Neighborhood Stranger