Cape & Islands News

Cameras are rolling on the Lower Cape

Future stars hone their craft in Wellfleet and Truro

   On location with Jomar Motion Pictures in Truro. All photos courtesy of Jomar Motion Pictures.

by Bethany Gibbons

Cape Cod has, on occasion, been a playground for famous folk, but for the past few weeks, playgrounds on the Lower Cape might have been visited by future stars. The cameras have been rolling in Wellfleet and Truro, as Joel Greenberg and crew shoot scenes for his second independent film, Ironsides, based on his book 12 Year Old Ironsides.

The story takes place on a secluded island offshore the New England coast, where, as Greenberg’s synopsis puts it, “a 1973 summer vacation becomes a battle for two boys who each strive to make their fathers proud… one by fighting, the other by seeking peace.” The pacifist’s father makes a meager living as a ‘low-level boxer’ who espouses a cool-headed, fists-free response to trouble, while the town bullies endure sadistic tutorials in street fighting from their alcoholic father. In what is perhaps a nod to William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, the island-bound rabble rousers adorn their faces with war paint and advocate brutality.

Creating a summertime resort

With a stable of child actors from around the country on hand, as well as adult leads and local extras, Greenberg’s Jomar Motion Pictures has made use of Wellfleet’s seaside rental cottages and Truro’s Concert Park to create the feel of what Greenberg calls a “summer beach-type resort.” Based in Peabody, the company’s choice of film location was a natural choice, and Greenberg has no shortage of flattery when it comes to describing the area. “We needed a town common for 2 scenes and discovered Concert Park. The backdrop is almost like a wheat field, and it has a little stage built in – it just looked perfect. Everyone at Town Hall was very receptive – very friendly people,” he said. Wellfleet’s scenes were shot on rented private property that doubled as housing for the crew. As public land was not used, clearance by that town’s government was not required. “The location here is just beautiful,” Greenberg said of working in Wellfleet.

Rain, rain, go away

Shooting commenced last Thursday in Truro, after rainy weather caused the first delays the production has seen. The Truro scenes included a talent show, during which the drunk, aggressive father creates an uncomfortable disturbance as he removes his son from the festivities for embarrassing him – apparently tough guys really shouldn’t dance. The second shoot in Truro was a Fourth of July fireworks scene, with incendiaries to be added digitally in post-production.

Ironsides is the first film Greenberg has both written and directed. The script for his first independent film, You Have the Right to Remain Violent, earned a world-wide top ten rating in the 2007 Slamdance Screenwriter’s Contest. Greenberg harnessed the screenwriting talent of Doug Klozzner and Ted Campbell for that project and found a multi-award winning director, Roberto Monticello, to direct the film.

The genesis of the Violent film is a story itself. “My whole company was really founded by accident,” said Greenberg. “Our first story began as a joke.” Greenberg was working as an ice-cream truck driver and ran into trouble with his neighbors – and Massachusett’s Blue Laws – for parking his truck in his driveway. Forced to purchase some commercial property, he made lemonade from lemons and expanded his fleet. While driving his route, he met a 13-year-old Mark Munford at a local skate park and the two got into joking around about the restrictive town government. They became fast friends and collaborators and soon came up with the idea for Greenberg’s first film. With a degree in communications from Boston’s Emerson College, Greenberg was no stranger to the mechanics of television and film, and he boasted friends in both places. “I’ve been around the business for years,” he said.

Putting the "Mar" in Jomar

It wasn’t an obvious choice for Greenberg to produce his first independent movie. “We were offered $100,000 for the rights to the screenplay and story,” he said. “We refused it. They wanted to change the story and drop Mark [as the lead character] because he never acted before. That’s not what we wanted to do. I raised the funds on my own from family and friends and people I knew. When I had $150,000 I shot the movie.” That venture just wrapped up post-production work and has been entered in major indy film fests, like the Hampton’s International Film Festival, the Toronto International Film Festival and the Sundance Film Festival.

Greenberg hasn’t left behind young Mark Munford, whose name is ostensibly half of Joel Greenberg’s “Jomar” company name. In the new movie, Munford has a role as the equally abused older brother of the local bully.

Greenberg infused his script for Ironsides with the real-life experience of discovering – and ending – a case of child abuse. He says that he changed the characters and events so much, even the person he was writing about did not recognize himself in the film.

An admitted “big fan of using unknown kids,” Greenberg used a combination of online and in-person casting to find child actors from as far away as Missouri and Ohio. The leading roles are paid, while extras are not. Working hours of the young actors are restricted by child labor laws and some parents are on set. Greenberg is quick to note that there are also adult actors, and principal roles total around 10 characters.

Local talent includes behind the scenes players. After posting an ad on Craigslist, Greenberg found Niall Hopkins Builders of South Yarmouth. “He built the sets for the Truro scenes,” Greenberg said. “He’s really become our props person, too. He likes to do movies.”

Greenberg predicts more big-screen action for the Cape. “Hollywood likes the tax credits. They like to see 25 percent of their film back,” he said, making reference to the expanded tax credits for filmmakers Governor Deval Patrick helped put into place in July of 2007. “Plymouth Rock Studios should also bring a lot of film into the area,” he said.