Buffalo-Niagara Film Commission Cindy Abbot-Letro, left, talks with Lockport Mayor Anne McCaffree and Niagara Falls Mayor Paul Dyster prior to the premiere of "The American Side" Friday night at the North Park Theatre in Buffalo. (PHOTOS BY SCOTT LEFFLER / ENP STAFF)

BY +Scott Leffler 
scott.leffler@eastniagarapost.com

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"The American Side" Director Jenna Ricker talked with the media prior to the film's debut.

BUFFALO -- The Lock City was on screen for just a couple minutes, but it was quality -- not quantity -- that mattered in the new independent film, "The American Side."

The new flick made its world debut Friday night at The North Park Theatre, where Mayor Anne McCaffrey was in attendance, as was Lockport Caves and Underground Boat Ride owner Tom Callahan.

Two separate scenes were shot in Lockport, although Lockportians may take issue with their geographic precision. The first scene, shot at the locks, purports to downstream from Niagara Falls as police find a body of a man that's said to have jumped over. The second scene is shot in the caves, but purports to be underground in Niagara Falls.

Both scenes, however, brought Hollywood stars -- and crews -- to Lockport, adding to the city's ever-growing list of movies being shot in Lockport.

The movie premiere lit up the North Park marquee.

McCaffrey said Lockport "is a great set for Hollywood. We've got some unique views of the canal. The topography is beautiful. The views are beautiful. And I think we've got some unique footage."

"I think when people see the views of Lockport on the big screen, it makes them want to come and see it firsthand and enjoy our beautiful city," she said.

McCaffrey watched some of the filming in Lockport and also caught part of the movie being filmed at the Erie County Fair.

Callahan said the film crews that have come through Lockport in recent years have been great to work with and each filming builds on the last. While he was hesitant to give details, he said there is more in the works.

The film's producer and star Greg Stuhr is an Eden native. He said "Buffalonians are very proud of their city and their city looks great on film, and it looks great, I think in this film. So hopefully everybody will come out and take a look at it."



Director Jenna Ricker, not a Western New York native, also had nothing but kind words for the area. "My heart literally overflows with love for this city."

"The American Side" was filmed entirely in Western New York. It features Hollywood stars Matthew Broderick, Robert Forster, Robert Vaughn, Janeane Garofalo and Camilla Belle.

It will play at 4:30, 7, and 10 p.m. today, with select cast and crew in attendance for the 7 p.m. show. It will also run again at 4:30, 7, and 9:30 p.m. Sunday and Monday and various other times throughout next week. It makes its NYC debut on Friday.

RELATED LINKS: 

• Movie filmed in Lockport to premiere in Buffalo
• TheAmericanSideMovie.com
• Podcast of interview with Stuhr and Ricker
• American Side fundraiser surpasses goal
• Independent film shot in Lockport, WNY looking for 'kickstart'
• Lockport serves as set for Hollywood movie

This prop from the movie adorns the entranceway to the theater.

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At left, Norm Sham as McGuire talks with Greg Stuhr as Charlie Paczynski while filming "The American Side" at the Lockport Locks in 2013. (PHOTOS CONTRIBUTED BY FRANK BARRERA)

By +Scott Leffler 
scott.leffler@eastniagarapost.com

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BUFFALO -- "The American Side," a movie filmed throughout Western New York -- including Lockport -- in 2013 will make its world debut April 22 at the North Park Theatre on Hertel Ave.

The premise of the movie involves a missing notebook stolen from the hotel room of Nikola Tesla following his death in 1943. The notebook is said to have held ideas for a free-energy system, a death ray and other science-fiction sounding ideas. In the movie, one of the pages is found, leading to a tale of murder and intrigue -- all set in Western New York.

It stars Greg Stuhr, originally of Eden, and features Hollywood stars Matthew Broderick, Robert Forster, Robert Vaughn, Janeane Garofalo and Camilla Belle.

The Lockport locks serve as a crime scene during the upcoming movie, "The  American Side," The movie premieres April 22 in Buffalo. (SCOTT  LEFFLER / ENP STAFF)

The movie was filmed primarily in Buffalo and Niagara Falls over the course of 23 days with a small portion being filmed at the Flight of Five in Lockport on Aug. 19, 2013 including appearances by a pair of Lockport Police Department patrol cars, an SUV and three officers — Lt. Sal Licata, Det. Kevin Schrader and Officer Aaron Belling.

Stuhr produced the movie and wrote the script with the help Jenna Ricker, who directed the flick.

The pair said writing a story around the facts and legends of Tesla proved interesting. "If we told the real Tesla story, no one would believe us," Stuhr said. "I think our fictional story was more believable."

"One of the things that Jenna and I liked about each other is that we both thought kind of big," Stuhr said when asked how the pair landed the likes of Broderick, Forster, Vaughn, Garofalo and Belle for an independent film.

In the end, it was the script that won the stars over. "One of our mantras was that we were never going to say no to ourselves," Ricker said. "At the end of the day, the script had to speak to them because the money definitely was not."

Due to the film being made independently, the duo was forced to raise money themselves to market the film. Their Kickstarter raised $89,526 of $65,000 hoped for with a large portion of it having been raised on the last day of the campaign.

While Stuhr is from Western New York, Ricker is not. But she says her time here made her a fan. "I'm not from WNY but I've fallen hopelessly in love with it and I can't wait to come back with another film -- with another project."

Tickets remain available for the North Park premiere. They can be purchased online (link).

"We want to encourage people to come see how great Buffalo looks on screen," Stuhr said.

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The Lockport locks serve as a crime scene during the upcoming movie, "The American Side," The movie's producers just concluded a successful findraising campaign to market the film in order to grant it a wider opening in 2016. (SCOTT LEFFLER / ENP STAFF)

By +Scott Leffler 
scott.leffler@eastniagarapost.com

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A Kickstarter campaign to increase awareness about a movie filmed mostly in Western New York -- and partly in Lockport -- met it's $85,000 goal.

The campaign saw 582 backers donate a total of $89,525 prior to the midnight deadline, meaning the film's producers will be able to push for a wider release of the film when it comes to theaters in 2016.

Despite its well-known cast, including Matthew Broderick, Robert Forster, Robert Vaught, Janeane Garofalo and Camilla Belle, the film's independent status means without the publicity campaign, major theater networks would be less inclined to show it than that of major movie studios.

The premise of the movie involves a missing notebook stolen from the hotel room of Nikola Tesla following his death in 1943. The notebook is said to have held ideas for a free-energy system, a death ray and other science-fiction sounding ideas. In the movie, one of the pages is found, leading to a tale of murder and intrigue -- all set in Western New York.
The movie was filmed primarily in Buffalo and Niagara Falls, but a small portion was filmed at the Flight of Five in Lockport on Aug. 19, 2013 including appearances by a pair of Lockport Police Department patrol cars, an SUV and three officers — Lt. Sal Licata, Det. Kevin Schrader and Officer Aaron Belling.

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At left, Norm Sham as McGuire talks with Greg Stuhr as Charlie Paczynski while filming "The American Side" at the Lockport Locks in 2013. (PHOTOS CONTRIBUTED BY FRANK BARRERA)

By +Scott Leffler 
scott.leffler@eastniagarapost.com

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With less than 30 hours to go, an online fundraiser to increase marketing for "The American Side," needs a boost -- to the tune of $17,000.

Alicja Bachleda as Nikki Meeker and Camilla Belle as Emily Chase walk through the Lockport Caves and Underground Boat Rides while filming "The American Side" in 2013.

The movie, filmed primarily in Western New York -- and partly in Lockport -- has completed production but the film's producers want to get the movie into as many theaters as possible. That's why they started a Kickstarter campaign to raise funds to increase consumer awareness of the movie.

As of 6:45 p.m., the campaign had 419 backers offering $68,183 in pledges towards the $85,000 goal. It's all or nothing, so if the goal isn't met, the project won't be partially funded.

Director Jenna Ricker sent out an email this afternoon in support of the campaign. It follows in its entirety:

It is crunch time, so I'm reaching out to ask you to be a part of my Kickstarter campaign.

Kickstarter requires we make our goal, or we aren't funded. We are down to the wire, and we are so close to reaching that goal! With your support, at any reward level, I know we can make it!

Please take a look, takes only a few moments, and if you like what you see, support us:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/917336709/the-american-side-theatrical-release-of-neo-noir-m

Apologies if you get this message twice, or already awesomely backed us. With hours to, I just can't stop spreading the exciting news!

Thank you so much!

Jenna xo

To donate to the campaign, visit the film's Kickstarter page and make a donation by the end of the day Wednesday.

RELATED LINKS: 

• Independent film shot in Lockport, WNY looking for 'kickstart'
• Lockport serves as set for Hollywood movie

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Check out East Niagara Post videos on YouTube, Vine and Periscope.

The Lockport locks serve as a crime scene during the upcoming movie, "The American Side," The movie's producers are raising money to market the film in order to grant it a wider opening in 2016. (SCOTT LEFFLER / ENP STAFF)

BY +Scott Leffler 
scott.leffler@eastniagarapost.com

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An independent film shot partially in Lockport in 2013 is looking for an influx of cash to make a bigger splash when it's released next year.

Producers of "The American Side" are aiming to raise $65,000 by Dec. 10 via a Kickstarter campaign in order to push for a wider opening for the film. Despite the film's star power -- it boasts Matthew Broderick, Robert Forster, Robert Vaught, Janeane Garofalo and Camilla Belle amongst its cast -- it faces an uphill battle for wide distribution due to its independent status.

The project's Kickstarter page emphasizes that the $65,000 they're looking to raise is geared solely towards marketing the film to earn it an opening on more screens in more cities.

Ever stumble across a great film on cable or Netflix and wonder why you’d never heard of it? Too often the answer is simply ‘money’. Major studios control what we see at the movies, even putting out so-called ‘indie’ films that are simply produced by a studio subsidiary. Studios have the resources to promote these films, making them more attractive to theater owners and further limiting the number of screens available for truly independent work. -- "The American Side" Kickstarter campaign

As with all Kickstarters, there are rewards for donation levels from social media shoutouts to t-shirts, digital downloads and the opportunity to see the premiere.

The premise of the movie involves a missing notebook stolen from the hotel room of Nikola Tesla following his death in 1943. The notebook is said to have held ideas for a free-energy system, a death ray and other science-fiction sounding ideas. In the movie, one of the pages is found, leading to a tale of murder and intrigue -- all set in Western New York.

The movie was filmed primarily in Buffalo and Niagara Falls, but a small portion was filmed at the Flight of Five in Lockport on Aug. 19, 2013 including appearances by a pair of Lockport Police Department patrol cars, an SUV and three officers — Lt. Sal Licata, Det. Kevin Schrader and Officer Aaron Belling.

Originally slated to be released in 2014, it is now scheduled for a spring 2016 release. How many screens it's released on is up to the donors.

Watch the Kickstarter video below and visit the Kickstarter page for more details.

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East Niagara Post is the official media sponsor of Hockey Day in Lockport.

CONTRIBUTED ART - The Asylum, a Hollywood  production studio, filmed part of an upcoming feature movie in Lockport on Sunday.

When a Hollywood film company needed a location for people to fight off alligators in a cave, of course they chose Lockport.

The Asylum, the same outfit that made "Sharknado" a trending topic on Twitter last summer, filmed part of their latest endeavor, "Alligator Attack" at Lockport Caves and Underground Boat Rides on Sunday.

The film, set in New York City, used about 40 extras from Western New York in scenes in Lockport and Buffalo. Their task? Fighting off imaginary alligators, which would later be added to the film digitally.

Tim Clark, film commissioner for the Buffalo Niagara Film Office, says Western New York is becoming a destination for film makers.

"I think a lot of it, quite honestly, has been a lot of these tax incentives that have made their way through the Legislature,"Clark said this afternoon via phone.

"Niagara County is just fertile ground because it's always been very under-shot ... under-photographed," he said. "Instead of recreating ... in a sound stage in Hollywood, why not go to Lockport and get the real thing?"

"Alligator Attack" is hardly the first Hollywood film that was shot in Lockport. Last summer, "The American Side," starring Matthew Broderick, was partially filmed at the Erie Canal locks in Lockport using local police as extras. It is set to be released sometime this year.

"In a case of Lockport — in the city — it's go so many nice buildings, architecturally, it works so well for these things," Clark said.

The Niagara Falls area has been host to movie productions for years, including the Johnny Depp movie "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End;" "Canadian Bacon," with John Candy; Bruce Willis' flop, "Hudson Hawk," and the Troma film, "Return to Nuke 'em High," which was filmed last year with scores of local extras. The Marilyn Monroe classic "Niagara," was actually filmed on the Canadian side of the border.

"So much of this stuff is very very secret and the film company doesn't want to tip it off before hand because they don't want crowds," Clark said.

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