IF SAG DOESN’T STRIKE, the “The Beast,” starring Patrick Swayze, whose pancreatic cancer thankfully appears to be under control, will start shooting here July 28 through late November. The production is headquartered in offices at Chicago Studio City.
MICHAEL PHILLIPS, the Tribune’s erudite movie critic, filled the house to capacity when he spoke to the Screenwriters Network last Sunday.
More than 60 members gave up their beach and barbeque to fill one whole dining room and the bar of the Lincoln Restaurant to hear Phillips opine on what makes a good movie and what doesn’t.
“CHICAGO OVERCOAT,” the locally made mob movie by Beverly Ridge Productions, and starring
Frank Vincent (“The Sopranos”) holds a July 15 screening at Film Row Cinema. Everyone is welcome on a first come basis.
ALWAYS BUSY ACTRESS IRMA P. HALL joins the cast of “The Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans” in N.O. next month, a remake of the 1992 movie about a corrupt cop. She plays the grandmother of young actor Denzel Whitaker. It stars Nicolas Cage, Val Kilmer and Eva Mendez.
THE ILLINOIS PRODUCTION ALLIANCE is seeking movie paraphernalia from movies, TV shows, local productions and facilities, such as hats, jackets, scripts, posters, etc. If you have things like that you’d like to contribute, contact Jennifer Jobst at jj-mrl@sbcglobal.net.
SEPTEMBER IS SHAPING UP as a month of debuts and special events. Here’s what’s on the calendar so far:
* ReelChicago will transform from this format into a monumental new website. It will be a major resource delivering expanded news of almost every aspect of Chicago’s billion dollar visual media industry, plus many, tremendous, new interactive features.
You’ll hear more about the conversion as it moves along to its mid-September launch.
* The Screenwriters Network is in the process of finalizing details for its first screenwriting contest and a welcome addition to the film scene. Earlier this year, both film offices declined to continue running the statewide contest that had enjoyed a healthy run of 15 years and attracted an average of 300 submissions annually.
* The September speaker at the Screenwriters Network’s monthly meeting will be Hollywood’s Linda Segar, author of a dozen books on the craft of screenwriting, despite the fact Ms. Segar has never written a screenplay herself in her life. If you bring a script for her to critique, load up on salve and bandages because her words leave you dazed and bleeding.
