By KAREN WILSON Palisadian-Post Intern Emeritus For Cindy Baer and Celeste Davis, it all started as a creative outlet. Family troubles had landed Davis, then 13, in a teen shelter, and Baer, who mentored her as part of the Big Sisters of Los Angeles program, suggested a fun project’crafting a short film about the girl’s struggles. ‘I wanted to give her something exciting in life… a reason to wake up every day,’ Baer says. ‘I believe creative outlets can save lives.’ Eventually, the project grew, culminating in the full-length feature ‘Purgatory House,’ which has screened at independent film fests around the country and, this Saturday, will land locally at the Pacific Palisades Film Festival. Featuring Jim Hanks (younger brother of Oscar-winning Palisadian Tom) and Disney Channel actor Johnny Pacar, ‘Purgatory’was penned entirely by Davis, now 14, who also headlines the film as a teen in crisis. Screening in the Palisades is a coming-home of sorts for the movie, which was filmed largely at Palisades Charter High School during the summer of 2001. ”Currently a resident of North Hollywood, the lively, vivacious Baer, speaking from home the day after her wedding, originally hails from Massachusetts, where at 14 she began acting and modeling. Those pursuits brought her to L.A., where she created Daizy the Clown and Company, a highly regarded children’s entertainment company; she is also a co-founder of the acclaimed Mosaic Theatre Company, with which she acts and directs. In 1997, Baer joined the Big Sisters of L.A., and was paired with young Davis. ‘Growing up I felt very alone, like there was no one there for me,’ she says.”And so when I got older I decided to find a little girl who needed someone, and be the support for her that I never had… Celeste liked to write, and I was an actress, and thus Big Sisters put us together.’ ”After convincing Davis to lengthen her ‘Purgatory’ script, Baer felt that, if produced, the movie could have a huge effect on teenage lives. ‘I felt like Celeste was speaking for a whole generation of kids who felt confused, lost and lonely in the same way she did,’ the director says. ‘Here was something about a teen’s life that was actually written by a teen.’I thought other kids would see this, and feel less alone. Also, I hoped that parents would see this, and have a better idea of what’s going on for teens today.” ”A labor of love, the film was made on a shoestring budget, with its novice writer/actress in the lead role. ‘I really wanted Celeste to be able to tell her own story,’ Baer says. ‘Meanwhile, we shot under the Screen Actors Guild’s limited exhibition agreement for low-budget films, and used Union actors for most of the main roles.’ Those actors included Hanks, Pacar and a gaggle of teenage newcomers. ‘It was really fun working with young actors who had not yet learned many bad habits,’ Baer laughs, adding that ‘most of our Union actors donated their pay back to the movie… and everything that wasn’t donated, I financed myself.’ ”In the end, ‘Purgatory’ was shot in 18 days at 26 locations, many of which were located at PaliHi. Initially, with the production’s start date nearing, Baer and her crew were having trouble finding a suitable school location. Associate producer Tracy Glodery, a PaliHi graduate, suggested her alma mater. ‘They came through for us,’ Baer says of the Pali administration. ‘I can’t imagine having used a different school. The place is just perfect.’ Cameras rolled on-campus in classrooms, bathrooms, stairwells’even the driveway. That footage was supplemented by over 200 visual effects, including, Baer says, blue and green screen composites, which took a year to complete. ‘Every single frame of the movie is digitally manipulated… it’s very exciting what you can do on home computers these days!’ ”Once finished, ‘Purgatory’ was released to independent film festivals across the country, and was recently nominated for a Prism Award, honoring films which accurately portray drug and alcohol use. National media outlets raved, including the Chicago Tribune, which said: ‘Like a passionately scribbled diary entry, this phantasmagoric tale brims with all the heartfelt spiritual bewilderment and deep thoughts that only a teenage girl would, or could, voice.’ Meanwhile, the levelheaded Davis is now a high school senior, and she and her mentor continue their friendship. ”Says Baer, ‘Film festivals are so much fun, and I hope everyone in the Palisades comes down to check out our movie… after screening at events around the country, and seeing how it’s touched people so deeply, I realized that this picture has more potential to heal people than I ever imagined. ‘Purgatory House’ is really about taking responsibility for our own attitudes towards life.’ ‘Purgatory House’ will screen at 7:30 p.m. on Sunday, May 15 at the Pierson Playhouse, 941 Temescal Canyon Rd. Tickets are $7.
This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.
