Learn more about our 2017 filmmakers with our Take 5 series. Meet Lovell Holder, producer of Some Freaks.
#1: In 140 characters or less, describe your movie and why someone should see it.
"Some Freaks" details the troubled romance between a one-eyed boy and an overweight girl, and it provides audiences with a story that appeals to the outsider in all of us.
#2: Biggest lesson learned in getting the film made? Best part in getting the film made?
I think the most important lesson I learned was the power of persistence. There were so many challenges we faced over the course of our process, including the fact that we had to shoot the movie in two sections six months apart to capture the characters' lives in both winter and summer, and to also allow one of our actors the time to achieve a very significant physical transformation that directly impacts the narrative of the story. Keeping the train running through all these hurdles was incredibly difficult, but we all knew that we had a very special story that we believed in, and it is now an incredible reward to see that story come to life. Consequently, the best part of the film is to know that we have created a story that features a strong, plus-size female lead (the extraordinary Lily Mae Harrington) in a role that showcases so many of the complexities that young women can confront in contemporary society, from personal triumphs to ill-a dvised mistakes. Seeing this character on screen gives me great pride every time I watch the film.
#3: Tell us about you. What is your movie making background?
I'm originally from Charlotte, NC, and I grew up there until I attended college at Princeton University. "Some Freaks" is the first film that I produced, and I began working on it right after completing grad school at Brown University in Providence, RI (where we eventually filmed to movie). My classmate, our writer/director Ian MacAllister-McDonald, invited me to partner with him on the film, and Ian's beautiful script spoke to me instantly. In the years since, I now live in Los Angeles full-time, where I work as a writer, director, and producer. Most recently, I directed and co-wrote my first feature film, the high school dramedy "Loserville," which is available on Amazon and iTunes (and stars a wonderful ensemble led by newcomer Chris Bellant, Matt McGorry, and Darby Stanchfield), and I produced the upcoming short film "Surrogate" with Olivia Hamilton and Oscar nominee Damien Chazelle.
#4 What do you want the Oxford Film Festival audience to know about your film that isn't obvious from its title or description?
One of the things that I am most proud of in "Some Freaks" is that Ian (our writer/director) does not let the characters OR the audience off the hook. The movie, while frequently touching, funny, and deeply humane, does demand that the audience wrestle with some very tough questions by the end of the film. The movie embraces the imperfections of these characters, and in doing so, it forces the audience to reckon with the characters' choices in a way that I find deeply visceral and important. I've been thrilled to see so much audience dialogue following the film at all the festivals it has screened at over the past few months - it compels any viewer to form an opinion.
#5: What does the future hold in store for your film and for you?
First off, we're so excited to screen in Oxford, and we're so humbled to have been extended the invitation by the terrific OXFF team. We also remain so grateful for the festival run that we have had so far, where we've won multiple awards at festivals such as the Fantasia International Film Festival (in Montreal), the Rhode Island International Film Festival, the Portland Film Festival, and the Princeton Film Festival. We are very pleased that "Some Freaks" will continue to play in several other festivals in 2017 (which we unfortunately can't announce yet) before it goes into official release later in the year. We're thrilled to be sharing the film with more and more audiences, and we can't wait for it to be available to anyone who wants to watch it.
Learn more at: Twitter: @somefreaksfilm Instagram: @somefreaksfilm2016 Facebook: @somefreaksfilm
or buy tickets at www.oxfordfilmfest.com
