Sunday, June 3, 2018

6/4/18 9:15am pst - lead actress Jessica Lee Keller and writer-director Chris Wright call in to KUCI 88.9fm to talk about their romantic short, The Way it Begins. The film screens at the DANCES WITH FILMS FESTIVAL - featured on "Get the Funk Out!" Monday 6/4 at 9:15am pst -

"The Way It Begins, a musical dance short to make
world premiere at DWF 




LISTEN to today's conversation with lead actress
Jessica Lee Keller and writer-director Chris Wright!

HOLLYWOOD, May 21, 2018 - In the style of such romantic musicals as “La La Land” and “The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, writer-director Chris Wright will screen “The Way It Begins” at the 21st Annual Dances With Films at the TCL Chinese Theaters in Hollywood, on Friday, June 8, 2018 at 2:45PM.

“The Way It Begins” stars Robert Roldan (So You Think You Can Dance, La La Land) and Jessica Lee Keller (Adjustment Bureau, Now You See Me 2), as two strangers who cross paths on a train, and they end up spending the day together, dancing through the beautiful city of New York and moving one step closer to finding love. There is no dialogue in the film. The emotional journey of the two characters is conveyed through music and dance. The charming and whimsical film is part of the Downbeat: A Celebration of Music and Dance program.

Chris Wright is a respected Visual Effects Supervisor on several television series, including “Luke Cage”, “The Punisher”, “Person of Interest” and the award-winning sci-fi series “Fringe.”

“This movie came out of my love of old Hollywood musicals and was directly inspired by the holiday classic, “White Christmas.” I wanted to tell a story about two people finding each other and explore what the range of emotions would look like if expressed only through movement and music. I wanted to show their journey of emotional exploration set in one of the most exciting and beautiful cities in the world, New York City. This movie is not only a story about two people falling in love but also a love letter to New York itself,” says Wright.

“The Way It Begins” was produced by Jeremy Horn, Carlee Briglia, Steven Carbajal, and Chris Wright. The original score was composed by Alan Koshiyama and was lovingly filmed by Cinematographer Rachael Levine.


About DANCES WITH FILMS
This year’s final lineup will feature more than 200 titles, chosen from a record 2,200 submissions from all over the globe. The juried narrative competition section includes 16 features and more than three-dozen shorts. DWF also has a category for groundbreaking short and feature documentaries, provocative genre fare in the Midnight section, and the most exciting music videos and dance-themed films from the indie scene in the Downbeats section. The Fusion section brings together a multitude of additional features and shorts.

Notable Dances With Films alumni who first gained notice at the festival include Gina Rodriguez, Bryan Cranston, Jesse Eisenberg, and John Hawkes, among many others.

Tickets and passes will be available for sale May 18th at http://www.tclchinesetheatres.com/. Additional screening and ticket information can also be found at https://danceswithfilms.com.

For more information about “The Way It Begins” or to schedule an interview with the cast and director, please contact Deborah Gilels at LA Media Consultants, ddgilels@prodigy.net.






Coming up! UCI Claire Trevor School of the Arts - Joel Veenstra, Chair, Department of Drama, Head of Stage Management

Chair, Department of Drama Head of Stage Management Joel Veenstra is a professional stage manager, production manager, producer, and improvi...