Ugly Lights in the Newspaper

The film that I’m working on with some friends called Ugly Lights was recently showcased in the localaper. They did a full page spread on the film and our work on it. Check out the article here or read it below. There was some cool pictures too that maybe I’ll post later.

When the lights go up; film shoot takes place at trinity lounge
Posted By CATHY DOBSON

It started out as a bit of fun among friends.

Nothing serious, just an experiment to find out what a bunch of local 20-somethings could do on film.

The result will be a feature-length movie, produced on a shoestring budget using the combined talents of about 60 writers, actors, producers and editors.

“We’re having a blast,” says 23-year-old Nathan Colquhoun. “We’re all having fun working with film and meeting a lot of new people.”

He met writers Mark Tetreault and Michael Higgins last fall through a friend and decided to lend his technical skills to the project.

Tetreault said he wanted to make a movie and pulled together a group of people who might be interested. None had experience beyond home videos but everyone brought some sort of talent or at least some enthusiasm to the table.

They rented cameras and put out a casting call in early January for men and women aged 18 to 30. About 60 showed up to audition and virtually everyone was given a part, either playing one of the eight pivotal characters or filling in as extras.

The script for “Ugly Lights” was written in a couple of weeks, including three rewrites. It tells the story of a group of recent high school grads gathering at the end of summer at a local watering hole, each making critical decisions about their future.

Ugly Lights refers to the lights switched on at the end of the night as the bar clears out.

“You see things for what they really are when the lights go on and you see that some of the characters are making good decisions, while some are making decisions that don’t make any sense at all,” Colquhoun explains.

The owners of the Trinity Lounge on Christina Street allowed the moviemakers to use their bar for three days of filming free-of-charge.

“The price was right and the place was really unique. It works as the characters’ neighbourhood hangout,” said Colquhoun.

He’s built a computer specially for the many hours of digital editing ahead and will take on the task with SCITS co-op student Branden Dale and two others.

The editing team intends to start work on more than 36 hours of film this weekend. When they’re done, Colquhoun estimates “Ugly Lights” will be anywhere from 50 to 80 minutes long.

“It’s amazing what a group like this can do on film these days,” he says. “It’s a great way to express yourself because it’s an art form that wasn’t anywhere near this accessible just 10 years ago.”

It’s being produced “dirt cheap” with about $1,000 raised among the writers and producers.

Colquhoun says it’s possible the group will recoup some of their money by having a showing at the Imperial Oil Centre for the Performing Arts and by selling copies on DVD.

“If we sell a few tickets, that would be great but for me it’s just fun,” he says.

“It’s been a way to meet more people.”

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