January 28th, 2010 http://www.examiner.com/x-26350-Ottawa-Movie-Examiner~y2010m1d27-Donkey 4 out of 4 Locally Grown Movie Beans Starring: Matthew Stefiuk, Gregry Wilson and Adrian Langley. Don Keys (Stefiuk) has just been released from jail after serving two years for driving the getaway car in an armed robbery. The cops were able to catch Don after he crashed the car and his partner left him, making off with the loot. Now that Don is out, the first thing on his list of things to do is not to hook up with some ladies and have a few drinks, but to get some revenge. After all, what kind of man leaves his partner behind? Unfortunately for Don, things get complicated when the woman he has loved for years is kidnapped and her father can't pay the ransom. It's up to Don to get her back and it looks like it's going to be a wild ride. I have to say that Adrian Langley has really raised the bar for Ottawa local features. This movie was shown in Empire Theatres next to Sherlock Holmes and it seemed right at home. The crowd lined up as though it were "cheap Tuesday" and it was packed. "Donkey" was a great blend of action and comedy. The plot moved at a nice pace, the script was well written and the talent was 100% in the moment. Stefiuk's character looked like he would be at home on the Sopranos, but wasn't over the top. Apart from the story and acting, Langley took the time to produce a high quality film with attention to cinematography and production. Everything from the visual transitions to the soundtrack was seamless, something which can lack in locally produced films. The great thing about seeing a movie where it was filmed with the cast and crew in attendance, is all the cheering for every character, no matter how small the role. It's amazing and something that every movie-goer should experience! You have not missed your chance, "Donkey" will be playing again January 28th at 7 and 9 pm at the Rideau Centre Empire Theatres and I encourage you all to attend. Special Movie Bean Salute: Gregry Wilson, most excellent comedic delivery against Stefiuk's straight man. January 20th, 2010 http://www.metronews.ca/ottawa/local/article/427568 Move over, Hollywood North - the nation's capital is a great place to produce films, an Ottawa writer/director said recently. And Langley should know. On Jan. 27 and 28, he will be screening his new film, Donkey, at Rideau Centre's Empire Theatres. Langley's Fluke Films, in association with Ottawa's Parktown Productions, utilized 100 per cent local talent, facilities and creativity in producing the film. Langley's project, to create a film completely "indigenous" to Ottawa, was a reaction to what he calls the film industry's "shoot and exploit" approach to the city. Local actors, writers, and directors are frequently forced to go to Montreal, Toronto, or the United States to work. Langley said that his vision for Donkey was to create "mainstream fare with artistic flare." He described the film - which tells the story of a "two-bit" thug caught up in a kidnapping plot - as a crime drama, and said it's more accessible than his first full-length feature, Dealer, which came out in 2002. Langley is excited to have produced a film that Ottawa can truly call its own. "I hope Donkey can serve as an example that Ottawa can do more than service outside productions," he said. January 11th, 2010 It's official, it's happening and we're stoked! Donkey will be premiering at 7:00 pm & 9:30 pm on Wednesday January 27th and Thursday January 28th at Empire Theatres, Rideau Centre in Ottawa. We all hope to see you there! Donkey's creators' schedules have been packed with TV shows, short films, music videos and commercials over the last two years, but we've reached the end of the long road to completion on our favorite project and it's turned out great! To celebrate with everyone we've revamped the site and dropped the new trailer to set it all off. The screenings are coming very soon so stay tuned. Follow us on donkeythemovie.com or on your weapon of choice, be it Facebook, Twitter or MySpace. You can find the direct links at the top of the main page. We'll see you there! January 10th, 2008 Local indie filmmakers shoot while Ottawa fiddles. To the rest of the country, politics is the only show in town in suited-up Ottawa. But scratch the surface and one finds a feisty indie film scene where experimental short films and violent genre thrillers happily co-exist. Later this month, Brookstreet Films' latest horror feature, Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer directed by Jon Knautz, screens at Slamdance, Utah's alternative film festival. The tale of a ghoulish childhood memory, Monster Slayer stars Ottawa's Trevor Matthews as Brooks, and as his counterpoint, Professor Crowley, horror legend Robert Englund - Freddy Krueger of the Nightmare series. Currently in the hands of distributors, the buzz is good on Ottawa director Adrian Langley's action crime-drama Donkey for Fluke Films and Parktown Productions. Also in the genre vein but with a noirish Mexican flavour comes The Dead Sleep Easy, the latest feature from local legend Lee Demarbre. Shot in Mexico and starring Canadian-born wrestling superstar Ian Hodgkinson, the thriller has its Ottawa premiere run at the ByTowne Cinema, Feb. 22-25. When it comes to putting cameras in hometown hands, nobody does it better than the Independent Filmmakers Co-operative of Ottawa (IFCO), which celebrates its 16th anniversary with a screening party, Jan. Eight local filmmakers will have their films showcased at IFCO's Winter Gala, Feb. 8. Formats and styles range from Pixie Cram's stop-animation music video Secret Love to Ariel Smith's Savior Complex, a visceral upending of the "hooker with a heart of gold" stereotype. Check out www.ifco.ca for more info. December, 2007 This last summer, many locations in the Ottawa region were used for the filming of an action film which was conceptualized and produced locally and which featured artistic and technical talents from our region. |