East Rockaway native returns to director's role for 'Latchkey Kids'

East Rockaway native John J. Budion has signed on to direct his first film since he wrote, and was behind the lens for, the award-winning “Rockaway.”

Budion will direct “Latchkey Kids,” written by Meaghan J. Cleary and set to begin filming in June. It’s a dark comedy that follows a bright 9-year-old boy as he befriends an eccentric teenage girl looking to escape the troubling life that her mother has burdened her with. While that is unfolding, the police suspect the boy is killing his babysitters.

“It’s a little dark, a little fun, a little adventurous, and there’s a little drama in there,” Budion said. “It’s a cross-pollination of genres.”

For the two starring roles, Budion and Cleary landed the two young actors they were hoping for in Elsie Fisher and Alan S. Kim. Fisher rose to prominence in the movie “Eighth Grade,” which won Best First Screenplay at the Independent Spirit Awards, and for which she earned a Golden Globe nomination and other accolades. Kim stars in “Minari,” which is set for full release this year. Budion said he saw it at the Hamptons International Film Festival, and determined that Kim was “perfect” for the role in his next project.

“I’m looking forward to their dynamic because in their own respective films, they are so unique and phenomenal,” Budion said. “We’ve already seen the industry get really excited about their potential, and I just think their synergy with one another in scenes is just going to be magical through the lens.”

Cleary said she worked on the script for many years, and she was excited to have the two young actors on board along with Budion. Cleary, a Bedford Hills, N.Y., native who now lives in Ridgewood, Queens, won Best Screenplay for “Latchkey Kids” at the School of Visual Arts in 2015.

She and Budion have similar influences, such as “Stand by Me,” and she was impressed with his work on “Rockaway,” which is a coming-of-age film — partly filmed in East Rockaway — that chronicles characters based on Budion and his brother, Anthony, as they plot revenge against their abusive father and spend time with characters based on friends they grew up with in the village.

“It really sealed the deal when I saw his film, ‘Rockaway,’ that I really knew that this was the right guy to direct my film because of the performances he got out of those kids,” Cleary said. “It was just amazing . . . It’s really cool to have such a great group of people involved as well. It’s exciting.”

After the success of “Rockaway,” which won several awards at various film festivals and is streaming on Amazon Prime and other platforms, Budion worked as the special effects supervisor for “No Sudden Move.” Steven Soderbergh directed the film, which stars Matt Damon, Brendan Fraser and Jon Hamm. Since 2018, Budion has worked with Cleary on editing the script for “Latchkey Kids” until they perfected it. When it was finalized, they passed it on to Budion’s manager, Cory Thompson, who co-founded Tact Media in 2018 and worked with producers from the Related Pictures Group to champion the project.

Thompson said his role is to lay the groundwork for the film, which includes finding financing for it. He has known Budion for many years, dating back to their days at New York University, and was also involved in “Rockaway.” He said he is a proponent of independent movies, and that he was drawn to the project after reading the script.

“I found it to be a really compelling, fun and entertaining script, and I saw potential breakouts for the two leads with their performances,” Thompson said. “Since John has experience working with young actors, this felt like a natural progression.”

Budion said he hoped that by the time cameras begin rolling in June, the country would be in a better place with the coronavirus pandemic. Shooting locations have not been finalized yet. He added that the pandemic has brought about many changes in his profession, including making sure sets are equipped with personal protective equipment and ensuring social distancing is enforced between actors, crew members and everyone involved.

Budion said he learned a great deal from writing and directing “Rockaway,” and he would bring those lessons to “Latchkey Kids.” He also noted that he and Cleary have brought their respective visions to the film and have worked well as a team so far.

“You can tell right away if something’s going to work,” he said. “We felt from the get-go that this could be something really special.”