Chicago filmmaker Jerry Vasilatos says “no copyright infringement is intended” by his shoestring-budgeted short film “The Dark Knight Project,” which he filmed this past weekend.
His Batman fan short bridges 2005’s “Batman Begins” and the upcoming “The Dark Knight” Warner Bros. blockbuster.
Last spring, Vasilatos returned to Chicago after 10 years in L.A. working as a producer, director and editor with clients including Universal Home Video, The Reelz Channel and Fox Atomic.
He asserts he’s not looking to get rich or famous with the effort and is merely doing so for the love of the game.
“I always wanted to shoot a Batman story. He is one of my favorite characters. Since I sincerely doubt Warner Bros. will ever ask me to direct one for them, I decided to use the resources I have available and do one myself,” jokes Vasilatos, who wrote the story, produced and directed it.
“Every time I am downtown, I am reminded of the fact that we live in virtual Gotham City,” he says.
“The Dark Knight Project” chronicles the adventures of Gotham Midtown students Heather Nolan and Mikey Bale (played by Allyssa O’Donnell and David Sanchez).
Intent on being the first people in Gotham City to capture actual video of Batman in action for a school project, they set out with their video camera to interview people on the streets.
They witness the evacuation of a city block by police in the middle of a bomb scare and ultimately encounter Batman (played by actor Chris Nendick) in the middle of a back alley break-in where he saves both high schoolers from a menacing group of thugs working for the Joker.
Vasilatos teamed with co-producer Zoe Triantafillou and DP Trevi Albin, working on a shoestring budget. They relied on the downtown locations and authentic costuming to bring the short film to life.
