Sunday, October 13, 2024
By Kira Doman
Contributing Writer
Though the holiday season is upon us, that doesn’t mean we have to leave scary movies and thrillers behind.
Green Bay will be the setting for a new indie thriller film, Room 108: The Clearing, written and directed by local filmmaker Freddy Moyano.
The urban legend which Room 108 is based on follows a love triangle between an actress, her co-star and an enraged husband (played by Moyano) which led to a double murder and suicide at the Vic Theatre after the husband found the two actors together after a show.
Moyano discovered the urban legend in a previous issue of The Press Times and became enthralled by the story housed within the four walls of the Vic Theatre.
Wanting to highlight the history and beauty of the Green Bay area, Moyano has been involved with several short films, often thrillers, filmed in and around the city.
“I want to begin showcasing Green Bay's hidden, yet rich history, with The Meyer, Heritage Hill and Vic Theatre,” Moyano said. “We are not as congested as Hollywood, production-wise, but I believe in ‘Greenbaywood’ as I like to call it. The milder weather and the bay's beauty deserve to be in the spotlight.”
Latina Mitchell wrote the script with Moyano, and they’ve been blown away by the community support and excitement.
“We actually have recruited about 200 extras who are willing to donate their time, free of charge,” Moyano said. “We've gotten so many emails in the past couple of weeks from people saying ‘This is my bucket list!’ and requesting their entire families to be featured in the background. We're overwhelmed by the community support we've been getting.”
Filming for Room 108 began in early November in Peshtigo and other areas around Green Bay, including at the National Railroad Museum and The Depot Restaurant.
Although reconstruction activity means filming inside the Vic Theatre is difficult, one scene will be filmed inside the supposedly haunted theatre in the coming weeks.
Other staple locations in and around Green Bay will serve as filming locations for the production, though, such as the Meyer Theatre, St. Brendan’s Inn and Heritage Hill.
Parts of the film will also be shot at the Belgian Heritage Center in Brussels, as Moyano wanted to touch on the Belgian heritage of northeastern Wisconsin and the large population that immigrated to the area between 1850 and 1900.
The film will take place both in 1900, when the urban legend occurred, and in 2000, when an amateur paranormal investigator (played by Stevens Point actor Steve Martin) fascinated by the theater’s history is desperate to catch proof of the lingering spirits.
The film is set to be between 80-90 minutes with a $20,000 budget, capped by the SAG rules, and will premiere on August 27 2023 at the MLC awards.
Excitement and support for the film and its production continues on the Room 108 Fans and Backers Facebook page.
