By Chelsea Roseman
The Expo, which ends tonight, drew in thousands of moviegoers from across Long Island and featured more than 60 films. Sponsored by the Long Island Film/TV Foundation, the Nassau and Suffolk County Film Commissions and the Nassau County Sports, Entertainment and Tourism Commission, the Expo has become known as a launching pad for directors, producers and screenwriters wanting to make a name for themselves in the film industry, or at the very least, some important contacts.
That's exactly what Robbie Bryan was hoping for with his film, "The Stand-In," which was selected as the opening night feature. "It's an honor when you've been asked to open [the Expo]. You're setting its tone," said Bryan.
"The Stand-In," shot in suburban New Jersey and New York City, is based on the life of Robbie Bryan, who in the movie plays Brian Rosensweig. Bryan's character pursues a career as an actor instead of attending law school and makes a breakthrough as a stand-in for a famous actor. Bryan explains that the movie greatly reflects his own life, having worked as a stand-in for Michael J. Fox in four movies.
Danny Margotta played a role in "The Stand-In" as well as played a part in other opening night shorts "I am Woody" and "Wannabees." His role in "I am Woody," a comedy short, earned him the award of Best-Supporting Actor at this year's New York International Film Festival.
Among other shorts selected to be part of the Expo are "Colorforms" and "Confection," only six and eight minutes, respectively. Both "Colorforms" and "Confection" are films directed, written and produced by Eva Saks, a NYU graduate student. "These two films are part of a trilogy celebrating New York City after Sept. 11, 2001," said Saks. She intends to shoot "Date," the third installment of what she refers to as memorial movies this fall in New York City.
While this Film Expo honors Independent Films from all around the country, there is certainly an emphasis placed on local filmmakers, especially from Long Island. Among them are the Snyder Brothers and Matt Morillo.
The Snyder brothers, Robert and Phil, have been making movies on Long Island since there were about 10-years-old, said Robert. Their latest production, "Paperman," was shot last year in Lawrence and other locations in the Five Towns and is a spoof on the newspaper business. Robert, who is the film's screenwriter and co-director and star, based many of his ideas for the film on his real-life experiences as a newspaper writer. Co-director and producer, Phil, anticipates the screening of the film to be "a nerve wracking experience to see how an audience will respond."
Another Long Island filmmaker, Matt Morillo, had his movie, "Maid of Honor" shown at festival. A veteran to the Expo, having films shown three out of the last four years, Morillo has already won several awards for his work and attributes some of his success to the fact that he has a good eye for spotting talent.
"I built a stable of actors who have some of the best untapped talent," said Morillo, adding that many of them go on to bigger, more well known projects, like spots on hit television shows like "Ed."
Among the other world premieres is "As Luck Would Have it" a student film, directed, written and produced by Columbia Film School student Leslie Weinberg. She describes the 22-minute short as an "exploration of luck, how whatever happens to you, someone tells you that you're lucky."
That very topic of luck seems to be the theme and hope of many of the new filmmakers who made their first appearances at the Expo. But judging from the lines at the box office on opening night, there will be plenty of buzz about their films and much feedback in audience ballots.
