by Pat Nowak
Northwest Ohio resident and movie producer Cap Averill – Mantis and Moon unveiled his new movie “The Society” for the cast, crew, supporters and media at The Ohio Theater. Based on a true story, the film will now be entered into the film festival circuit with hopes of scoring big with judges.
This is the second collaboration on a full motion picture between Averill and Zachary Gordon, who acted as cinematographer. Their first movie entitled “Out Of the Shadows” won a Hollywood International High Definition Award for the best full length motion picture in 2005.
The plot follows a resident of Sylvania, Ohio who meets an attorney from Bogota, Colombia online. The movie follows their relationship from falling in love to going through the trials and tribulations of establishing a household together in America.
This love story quickly turns into a legal drama about how greedy management can take advantage of people and misuse their power. “The Society” explores how these wrongdoings can have a ripple effect, touching the lives of many while. The significant theme is how wrongdoing pushes people to the brink with destruction and dissension occurring between honest friends; it is pragmatic but not without hope.
He worked with the Colombian Film Commission to be allowed to film in Bogotá using Colombian Special Forces. Working in Columbia was enjoyable says Averill, adding “what we know of Columbia is really not what is going on; it is a beautiful country.”
Shooting Locally
The United State scenes were shot in Sylvania, Wauseon and Toledo, Ohio. Averill approached the Sylvania Chamber of Commerce for assistance and the organization saw the benefits of showing their community to the film festival circuit. Sylvania Police assisted in the making of the film – handling the logistics of getting the film equipment down the city’s street.
Auditions were held and many NW Ohio local residents were cast in roles as extras; many with speaking parts in the drama. The Honorable James E. Barber, Fulton County Common Pleas Court Judge has his acting debut in the film. He portrays the Judge in the epic courtroom battle between Greg Hill Jr and The Society.
Making Music
The scoring was done under the direction of noted composer Pierre O’Reilly. His path to a music career has been far from straightforward. He served as 3rd and 2nd Navigating Officer in the Merchant Navy for 4 years where he met Averill on a Mediterranean cruise – they kept in touch and much later a score was born for the film.
Mantis and Moon also has three documentaries in the “Thunder Series” nationally televised on Public Television and distributed by the National Educational Television Association as well as the studio’s most recent work, a financial documentary “Wants and Needs.”
