3.6 Paranoid Superheroes
Upon revisiting a few things, I looked back at Paranoid Superheroes with a certain amount of bitterness and some sweetness. This is a film I made a few years ago now, and on reflection, it is something I have – with time – become quite fond of and is a source of a certain amount of pride. The bitter part consists of my inability to really get it shown properly. I have a tendency to work very hard during the process, but in the end, a failure to ‘close the deal’. I had high hopes for this film, and although there are always things I would still change, I am content with the level of imagery and performance presented in the movie.
http://youtu.be/clsQ3SowAIg
The sweet part revolves around remembering the various people who made up the cast and production team. The actors (Lara Kelly, Kordo Doski, Craig Stanghetta, Josh Jacobson, James Gilpin and Chris Sas) all committed and made their own contributions in order to create unique performances. The production team (Ken Fournier, Scott Campbell, Ali Gaeeni, Eugene Draw, Tim Foy, Ivan Karimwabo, Walter Swyers, James Carnegie, Antony Nesling, Carlos Esteves and George Saturnino) worked tirelessly on the project and were very patient with me.
The stories in the film were larger than the running time and so I developed a television series based on the characters. Actually, two different series. We were close on going beyond the film, on both accounts, but in the end, and as I said above about ‘closing the deal’, all the work did not come to fruition.
And so, I just wanted to post this on my website as a tribute to the people who made it happen. If you are so inclined, the entire film can be found on my YouTube page HERE.
The Paranoid Superheroes are a group of people that are on the peripheral of society. Sacha Young has dreams of terrible events that she cannot change. Will Williams is a telemarketer who has trouble communicating with others. Charlie Horse is a boisterous man who hides his problems through his loudness and confidence. Denny Tomas is an actor who is intimidated by social interaction.
They are patients of Dr. Mitchel Mifflin and he brings them together to encourage communication. He presents a pill that will regress their problems so they can move on with their lives. Mifflin has created a ‘communication game’ that requires his patients to talk and interact with each other. This environment becomes a sanctuary for them to express, yell, scream, cry and laugh their way through problems.
The Paranoid Superheroes are the anti-thesis of the current comic book genre and the avant-garde of psychologically damaged individuals.