[442]INDIE FILM BY MTSU CREW TACKLES TRAGEDY OF IRAQ WAR

OR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 12, 2008EDITORIAL CONTACT: Gina Logue, 615-898-5081

INDIE FILM BY MTSU CREW TACKLES TRAGEDY OF IRAQ WAR
Third Locally-Produced Movie by Bob Pondillo and Friends Makes Festival Circuit

(MURFREESBORO) – With antiwar sentiment stronger than ever in this presidential election year, MTSU’s independent filmmakers await word from some 40 film festivals on how critics and viewers of YouTube will receive their latest effort. In fact, the movie is titled “Wait…,” an emotionally powerful examination of an American’s reaction to the news that his son has died in Iraq. Dr. Bob Pondillo, professor of electronic media communication and the screenwriter and director of “Wait…,” says he suspects the anti-war sentiment expressed in the film might have had a role in its rejection by at least one film festival. The Cinema Society of San Diego, a city with an economy heavily dependent upon seven military bases in the area, turned down “Wait…” without giving Pondillo a reason. “I would be saddened if our movie was banned for some overt political reason,” Pondillo says. “San Diegans should have the right to see the film and make up their own minds.” The 9:25 short subject was shot in one dreary, rainy day in November 2007 at a college student’s rented Murfreesboro house, which had been revamped to look like a disheveled Chicagoan’s lower-middle class home. Pondillo tapped his friend David Lawrence to play the lone role in the film. Lawrence, a Los Angeles-based actor, portrays John H. Kavazanjian, Sr., a father who is informed that his son has died in the war in Iraq. He says he gained a great appreciation for the character once he arrived on the set. “The oddest things will set things off in my memory, and it doesn’t happen until I’m on the set,” Lawrence says. Among the props that put Lawrence in the mood were dated, well-worn furniture, various tidbits of Chicago Cubs paraphernalia, pictures of Jesus and a video of the son as a playful young boy running on the VCR, eerily reminiscent of the final scene of Jonathan Demme’s “Philadelphia.” Chattanoogan Carianne Lance, a May 2007 MTSU graduate who has worked in commercials, music videos, theater and television, was the set designer. “We were on a very low budget, so we had to just go with what we could find,” Lance says. In addition to $1,200 of his own money, Pondillo obtained $500 from the Department of Electronic Media Communication, which has been supportive of all of Pondillo’s screenwriting, directing and producing endeavors. Students and alumni were the backbones of his prior two films, “Would You Cry If I Died?” and “My Name is Wallace,” and Pondillo clearly loves sharing the creative process with them. “They do a great job and they’re right on top of things,” Pondillo says. “They do a great job and they’re right on top of things. They ask the right questions. So I’m very impressed by our group. They’re terrific. I like the fact that I work with all these young people who want to make something amazing.” Justin Stokes, a production assistant from Indianapolis and president of the newly formed MTSU Film Guild, was responsible for making sure the rain on that gloomy shooting day in November 2007 didn’t get into the lights. He wants to work primarily on feature films after he graduates. “My theory on it is that everyone’s interested in film,” Stokes says. “I mean, that’s like, everyone’s fantasy, that they’d like to do something with film. It’s just one of those mediums that everyone appreciates. I’ve known people who’ve not always liked music or not always liked to read, but films are just something everyone can enjoy.” At the start of the film, the camera transports us past a pickup truck through a cluttered front yard into a lower-middle class home. A heating and air conditioning repairman in his 50s reads an official-looking letter while sitting at the kitchen table. Sobbing bitterly, he pours himself a drink. For the next nine minutes or so, the viewer will gain insights into his thoughts until the climactic moment—which is punctuated by a shocking twist. “Wait…” takes a far more serious tone than Pondillo’s last effort, “My Name is Wallace,” a quirky comedy about an emotionally challenged man who went looking for love in a very strange way. “Wallace,” another collaboration with students and alumni, captured 14 awards and honors at film festivals nationwide last year and was promoted at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival. In addition to the joy of working with talented, engaging students, Pondillo says knowing that maybe 200 people will ever read his academic papers pales by comparison with the professional satisfaction he gets from stretching his imagination on film. “At least ‘Wait…’ is something that will be seen and will be judged just on its aesthetic nature, as well as the story and the acting,” he says. To view the film and for more information on “Wait…,” go to http://www.waitfilm.com. For interviews, contact Pondillo at 615-904-8465 or pondillo@mtsu.edu.

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ATTENTION, MEDIA: For color jpeg photos shot on location during the filming of “Wait…” and still photos from the movie, contact Gina Logue in the MTSU Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-5081 or gklogue@mtsu.edu.