Toast of Toronto: Buzz for ILM-made films at fest

Emily Blunt and Colin Firth star in 'Arthur Newman,' which filmed in Wilmington last year. Screenings of two Wilmington-made films at the Toronto International Film Festival delivered this week, earning filmmakers standing ovations at packed premiers, producers said. Audience members at the Monday premiere of "Arthur Newman," which stars Oscar winner Colin Firth ("The King's Speech") and Emily Blunt, responded positively, while laughter and tears accompanied the "Writers" debut, the films' producers said this week. "Seeing the film on the big screen with an audience really adds to the experience- I think it enhanced the emotion," said Helen Cappuccino, an "Arthur Newman" executive producer. "The nice thing about Toronto is that it's really a peoples' festival. The public really gets to see the movies. It's nice to have the affirmation that what we did was right." "Writers," a dramatic comedy starring Greg Kinnear ("Little Miss Sunshine") and Jennifer Connelly ("House of Sand and Fog"), also played well among about 1,200 audience members at its premiere on Sunday night, producer Judy Cairo said. "The film was extremely well-received," Cairo wrote in an email from the festival. "There was lots of laughter and applause, and we heard some sniffling and tissue-passing as well." Although the plots of both films have earned mixed reviews, critics praised cast members of both dramatic comedies for their performances. "Writers" stars Kinnear and Connelly as recently divorced parents of a headstrong teenager and aspiring writer (Lily Collins). Logan Lerman ("Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief"), Kristen Bell ("Scream 4") and Nat Wolff ("New Year's Eve") costar. The Hollywood Reporter called the movie "predictable but touching." In "Newman," Firth plays Wallace Avery, a failed golf pro so distraught with his life that he fakes his own death and creates a new identity for himself: Arthur Newman, a golf pro en route to a new job at a country club in Terre Haute, Indiana. On the way, he meets Michaela Fitzgerald (Blunt), and the two take up breaking into people's homes and inhabiting their lives. A review from Simon Abrams on Indiewire.com says audiences never get to understand what Michaela and Arthur want from each other, because it's assumed that role-playing is as far as they've imagined going together. But one local film industry leader who attended a screening of the dark comedy Monday called the film "impressive." "Emily Blunt was captivating. Her performance really shines," Dan Brawley, director of Wilmington's Cucalorus Film Festival, said during a telephone interview from Toronto on Tuesday. "Ninety percent of the film is Firth and Blunt's interaction. It's a little dark, but it's a really impressive film." Brawley also attended the "Writers" premiere, calling the production "funny and charming." "It was fun to see it with an audience," he said. "There were great performances by some young actors." Wilmington actors Nate Panning and Barbara Weetman also get some screen time in the comedy, which features well-known regional spots, such as Wrightsville Beach, the Cotton Exchange, Old Books on Front Street and Cape Fear Community College, Brawley said. "Wilmington is well represented in the film - it was beautifully shot," he said. "Arthur Newman," which filmed at Wilmington's EUE/Screen Gems Studios and at various North Carolina locations last fall, also will offer locals a taste of the regional scenery, Brawley said. The projects are good examples of what the local industry can do, he said. "Both films really represent Wilmington well," he said. "They show that you can get a whole lot out of your money." Neither film has a release date. "Arthur Newman" producers hope to have a domestic distributor soon, Cappucino said. "The purchase of the film domestically will determine the release date," she said. "It would be very late in this year if it happened this year." In the meantime, Brawley said he hopes local audiences will have a chance to see "Newman" at Cucalorus this fall. The festival runs November 8-11, 2012. "We're very excited about 'Arthur Newman,'" Brawley said. "It's hard to say at this point what will happen. They will have to see what's in the best interest for the film." Producer Mac Cappuccino said the filmmakers haven't had time to consider the offer yet. Even if producers forgo a local screening, they said their experience filming in the region would bring them back. "One of the big reasons for coming were the incentives, but it was also the crew base and the community," Helen Cappuccino said. "We're looking forward to finding other projects to do there."

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