Local filmmaker to premiere independent movie in Yuma

Local filmmaker Robert Gwinn has put the finishing touches on the thriller “Renovation,” an independent murder-mystery movie filmed in Yuma, and will host its premiere Oct. 23.

Gwinn filmed much of the movie in the long-abandoned Hotel Del Sol in historic downtown Yuma, capturing everything he would need to make his movie in a little over two weeks last autumn.

The premiere will be at 5 p.m. Saturday at the Yuma Quartermaster Depot, 201 N. 4th Ave. Tickets are $30 each and include entertainment and dinner. For more information, call 329-0471.

The Yuma Sun spoke to Gwinn and a few of his actors on location at the end of the shoot. The director had been operating on very little sleep.

“During the first four days of shooting, we wrapped six actors, and during those days I slept maybe three hours,” Gwinn said at the time.

“I was getting about an hour a night. My head would hit the pillow and the phone would ring, and it would be time to get up and get going again. Sleep deprivation is a good thing sometimes. It's all just a blur to me. I have been living on caffeine and I try to keep moving and keep myself up. It has been a little better since then; I managed to get a few hours of sleep here and there, but usually I'm watching the sun come up with all these night shoots.”

Gwinn said “Renovation” won't be a typical mindless and bloody gore fest.

“This is not a horror film; it is a suspense thriller. It isn't a classic slasher film. This is a real crime story that goes wrong and these people are put into a predicament they aren't prepared for. This is more creepy than gory. We had a great cast, and I've had the honor of working with some of the greatest character actors in Hollywood, and they've brought a lot to this project.”

Gwinn said he was on a tight schedule.

“It has been a really good experience. Considering how small a crew we have on this project, the progress has been phenomenal. The level of production quality we've had is way beyond what I expected.”

Actor DJ Perry was cast as Allen Liarsby. He has been in at least 40 films and has worked with many directors.

“I've had the great opportunity to work with a lot of the vets in our industry, and it such an honor to work with people,” Perry said.

“Robert has been a lot of fun to work with. I think that he is coming from guerrilla filmmaking, which is to try to get a location where you can, try to get as many crew together as you can and shoot over the course of three months.”

Even though Perry has been involved in big-name films, he said he still enjoys working on smaller indie projects.

“You hear about these people who get to a certain level in their career and only look forward, but I think if you want to really continue to work in this industry, it is a smart thing to stop and look back and see who else is waiting to be brought up to that next level. You are kind of creating future employment for yourself.”

Local actress Shawn Rougeron was cast in the film as Ana.

“It was fun, but it was long hours,” she said. “It was family-oriented on the set and it was nice to have a smaller cast and to get personal attention as opposed to being on a larger set where you are just a number. Everybody knew my name, and it was relaxed between shoots, but it was kind of creepy during the night scenes when I was walking alone down the dark hallways.”

Tommy Lynch, who was cast as Barry, said working on small productions does have challenges.

“Being on independent film sets, there are going to be a lot of sacrifices. You are going to have to go above and beyond. This is the 15th day of shooting and we're done. Shooting a movie of this caliber in 15 days is almost impossible, but (Gwinn) made it happen. This has been really exciting and all the actors have stepped up. There are some huge names on this thing as far as independent films go, and this has been a great experience.”

Nathalie Ben-Kely, a seasoned stage actress, was cast as Rosa. It was her first time acting in a movie.

“I thought acting in a movie would be so easy because if you mess up your lines, they can yell ‘Cut! Do it again!'” Ben-Kely said.

“Now I have learned it is a whole new and different kind of acting. It's mind-blowing because you have to bring the same level of emotion every time. It's tough, and I was really nervous about it.”

Ben-Kely said Gwinn was a supportive director.

“Robert is hysterical, and he just wants it to work, and whatever way it'll work he'll do it, even if it means staying here until 4 a.m. and pushing us. He knows what he wants and he has that vision in his head and I think it will come across.”

“We will premiere it in Yuma, and the Yuma audience will be the first ones to see it,” Gwinn said.

Chris McDaniel can be reached at cmcdaniel@yumasun.com or 539-6849.