Laguna Woods video club to premiere new film at upcoming open house - OCRegister

Laguna Woods video club to premiere new film at upcoming open house - OCRegister

It’s said of plants that some transplant easier than others, but while one watches the Video Club of Laguna Woods’ newest short film, it will quickly become apparent that this can be said of people as well.

• Sallyann, left, played by Eveline Hoffman, talks with Maggie, played by Sarah Moscoe, outside the lecture hall in the Video Club’s new short film “What? You, Too?” (Courtesy of the Video Club)

• Maggie, played by Sarah Moscoe, receives a visit from her dead husband, Paul, played by Lewis Marcus, in the Video Club’s short dramatic video “What? You, Too?” (Courtesy of the Video Club)

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• Sarah Moscoe, left, plays Maggie and Sharone Rosen plays April in a scene from the short dramatic video “What? You, Too?” produced by the Video Club’s Video One Productions group. (Courtesy of the Video Club)

• Sarah Moscoe, left, plays Maggie and Sharone Rosen plays April in a scene from the short dramatic video “What? You, Too?” produced by the Video Club’s Video One Productions group. Tom Nash, center, advised the production team. (Courtesy of the Video Club)

Titled “What? You, Too?” the video was scripted by Lucy V. Parker and directed by John Kelly. It tells the story of Maggie, an East Coast transplant who reluctantly adjusts to life in Laguna Woods Village and its uniquely Southern California ambiance.

“It is based on a true story,” Parker said. “I did not want to write from my imagination. I wanted to raise the question: Can you be different and still be friends?”

Laguna Woods residents and their guests can watch “What? You, Too?” and learn how it was made while meeting the talented actors and film crew at the Video Club’s open house at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, March 19, at the video lab at Clubhouse Two.

Visitors will enjoy wine and cheese while touring the control room, learn the central role of a “green screen,” and invited to join the Video Club. Questions? Parker, the group’s publicist, can be reached at 949-456-4657.

The group also is scheduled to appear on a half-hour Village TV (Ch.6) show in April, with exact dates yet to be announced.

The story centers on Maggie (Sarah Moscoe), a crusty, plain-spoken former city manager from upstate New York who had, at the insistence of her husband, moved to Laguna Woods Village and found adjustment rough going. Adding to her woes, her husband, Paul, (Lewis Marcus) suddenly dies of an aneurism.

Typical of Laguna Woods Village, word gets around quickly, and neighbors try to do their best to bolster Maggie’s spirits, except that she won’t have any of it — at least not at first. “Does everyone know everybody’s business here?” she asks exasperatedly as neighbors offer condolences and casseroles.

A women’s Christmas lunch invitation, initially rejected, eventually results in a turnaround for Maggie after she makes two friends who could not be more different from her. What would she have in common with April (Sharone Rosen), a meditating hippie vegetarian, and Sallyann (Eveline Hoffman), a Louisiana evangelical whose son died of an opioid overdose? Not much on the surface, but let’s not give too much away here.

Meanwhile, Maggie has help from her departed husband’s now otherworldly wisdom. With his handsome features beaming from her TV screen, he advises her that differences are meant to be overcome.

As intended, the production offered challenges and new learning opportunities for the participants.

Casting director Sheila Bialka selected actors from The Old Pros, a group of Laguna Woods Village stage actors. However, acting in a video was a first for Moscoe, a stage actress since childhood, who will celebrate her 90th birthday in July.

“I had the respect of the entire crew because of my seniority,” Moscoe quipped.

Originally from Toronto, Moscoe said she felt a connection to Maggie. She moved to the Village 20 years ago, and three years after her arrival her husband passed away.

A writer whose experience includes journalism and public relations, Parker acquired new skills as an editor and producer and, in her words, new respect for the craft of acting. She explained that writers are not usually welcome on set, but as an editor she came to understand that the project was no longer just the writer’s vision. “A film is really created three times, first by the writer, then the director and then the editor,” she explained.

Project advisor Tom Nash taught videography at Biola University. “For me, this was a baptism by fire. But if students can learn filmmaking, retirees can too,” he said.

Kelly, a native Australian, had owned a video company for 35 years. While he specialized in industrial and commercial projects, this is his first drama, he said.

Moscoe summed up the entire effort saying: “I really enjoyed the experience. This is not an amateur undertaking.” Added Parker: “It’s a miracle that we could do this with no budget.”

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2020-03-12 16:34:00Z
https://www.ocregister.com/2020/03/12/laguna-woods-video-club-to-premiere-new-film-at-upcoming-open-house/
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