Rhyan LaMarr and Red Guerrilla Entertainment have facilitated the production of North of the 10, an international “bromantic comedy” starring Don Benjamin, Tosin Morohunfola, DeStorm Power, Mykelti Williamson, George Lopez and many more.
LaMarr, who was on Reel Chicago’s Reel Black List, is directing and producing the film set in 2007 during the rise of social media. North of the 10 tells the story of five friends that chase Hollywood dreams from the south side of Chicago and become the first generation of viral video stars in the dramatic comedy. Cam Weston, a wannabe model, lives with his best friends, an actor, chef, dancer, and gamer, as they strive for success in Chicago’s entertainment industry.
They just might get there when Cam meets Nefertari, the daughter of a wealthy family from the United Arab Emirates, and falls in love. The problem? She thinks Cam’s a famous supermodel. Now Cam’s got to actually become one before she finds out that he’s just another poor, broke dreamer.
Thematically, It’s a hangout movie about creative people trying to make it on their own, finding strength in unity, and inviting the world to join them.
In December 2020, it was announced that Red Guerrilla Entertainment signed a multi-million dollar deal with OC Consulting. The deal entails that RGE will create seven films over the next four years, with the company receiving $20 million to cover the cost of the first three films. Mykelti Williamson and Mekhi Phifer are also expected to collaborate with RGE on some of the films within the deal.
North of the 10 is the first of these films and they began filming on location in Chicago from June to July 2021. The cast and crew then jet-setted to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates to continue the project.
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Adam G. Key, Jon Knitter and LaMarr wrote the script for North of the 10. Additional producers on the project include Red Guerilla partners Christopher Jennings, Erika Jacobsen and Andre Burgess, and Jalene Mack. Bishop Eric Garnes is exec producing with Don Benjamin.
Key grew up on the south side of Chicago, where he was raised by a white Jewish mother and a Black catholic father, attended public school and was a member of the local hip hop community where he both worked professionally as a DJ through his college years at the University of Illinois, and as an underground recording artist performing shows up and down the Los Angeles Sunset Strip.
“As for filming back home in Chicago it was great. I grew up on the south side of Chicago with friends and family all over the city, it’s been wonderful being able to come home and showcase our beautiful city as a central piece of the North of the 10 puzzle. I think I speak for a few of us in this film family when I say that being able to bring work back to our birth city and tell positive, uplifting, relatable stories has always been the goal. And now we’re doing just that,” Key told Reel Chicago.
Samer al-Masri, Wes “Wuz Good” Armstrong, Joumana Mourad, Stephanie Nur, Matt Rife, Terrence J., Andrew “King Bach” Bachelor, Adam Waheed, Jeremih, Barton Fitzpatrick, Beau “Casper” Smart, LaRoyce Hawkins, Ta’rhonda Jones and Noor Stars round out the cast.
According to their website, Red Guerrilla Entertainment (RGE) is an entertainment production company that creates diverse forms of visual content for film, television, music, and digital media. In 2013, tired of playing by arbitrary rules and dealing with industry shortsightedness, RGE was founded. Essentially, the company has created its own crayons in order to color outside the lines.
“We make entertainment with passion—and by any means necessary,” Rhyan LaMarr, Director Canal Street, said on Instagram. Today, the Red Guerrilla Entertainment headquarters are in Chicago with a satellite office in Los Angeles.
Joia DaVida reports on the entertainment industry in both Chicago and Los Angeles.
