‘Mid-Century’ thriller in theatres produced by local company

Anyone in Hollywood will tell you that the world of film-making is incredibly rewarding, but also the most difficult to navigate.

In fact, when award-winning actor Ron Perlman was on the island in 2021, he told the Cayman Compass that, “Making movies is hard. It’s really as hard as anything you could try to put together”, reflecting on his own time as a producer.

Therefore, when we hear that a local producer has a film in theatres – Camana Bay Cinema being one of them – starring the likes of Bruce Dern and Stephen Lang, attention should be paid.

Moo Studios and ‘Mid-Century’

‘Mid-Century’ is a thriller that tells the story of architect Tom Levin and his wife, Dr. Alice Dodgeson, who rent a mid-century modern home for the weekend. The stay turns deadly when Tom discovers the owner of the house is a psychopath with a backyard of buried secrets and designs on his wife.

Jeremy Walton, co-owner of Moo Studios with business partner David Lyons, started his working life as a lawyer, but in past years has pivoted to enter the shark-infested waters of moviemaking.

The Compass asked him what attracted him to this particular project.

“I first responded to the script, which is a cool supernatural thriller with some clever social commentary on sexism in modern society,” Walton said. “I then got on well with the writer Mike Stern, and liked the director Sonja O’Hara’s vision for the film. Filmmaking is all about teamwork, so you’ve got to enjoy working together.”

He, too, echoes the sentiments of Perlman, which is why having ‘Mid-Century’ – or any other film – is a great feeling and an impressive achievement.

“It’s been a very steep learning curve,” Walton said, referring to his decision to get into the movie business. “Most people work their way up through the industry for years. Also, you have to deal with disappointment all the time – many projects you love, and can spend years developing, never come to fruition or else fall apart at the last moment.

“Now I know just how difficult it is to get any movie made, just seeing it up on a cinema screen is pretty rewarding,” Walton said, adding that validation from audiences and critics was also a big coup.

“I was quite proud when ‘Mid-Century’ won Best Picture and Best Director at the IFS (Independent Filmmakers Showcase) L.A. Film Festival this year,” he said.

Past and future projects

Actually, despite the hurdles of Hollywood, Walton has met with quite a lot of success. Beyond working with Tamer Soliman on documentaries ‘Bright Spot’ and ‘The Great Disconnect’, his company has been involved in a number of other projects.

“We helped to produce a feature film called ‘Those Who Walk Away’, starring Booboo Stewart, which came out earlier this year,” Walton said.

Apparently the company is also about to start pre-production on a film that will be shooting in mid-November, called ‘The Dirty South’, starring Halston Sage, Dermot Mulroney, and Shane West; and is in post-production on another called ‘The Fix’ starring Grace Van Dien and Clancy Brown, which will be released next year.

A particularly exciting venture – a tale based on ‘an untold story of Leonardo Da Vinci’ (according to the film’s website) – involves none other than Jim Capobianco, the Academy Award-nominated writer of the Pixar hit ‘Ratatouille’, along with some celebrity heavy-hitters.

“The biggest project I’m involved in is a stop-motion animated feature called ‘The Inventor’, starring Daisy Ridley and Stephen Fry,” Walton revealed. “As it’s animation, the production process takes much much longer, so that won’t be done until 2024.”

Being a film producer is definitely a rollercoaster ride, even when it comes to watching the finished product.

“I’m hyper-critical, having watched every scene being shot and then edited, so it’s hard to distance myself from that process and enjoy the film as a regular member of the audience,” Walton admitted. “Also, by the time it reaches cinemas, I’ve watched the film a hundred times!”

That being said, there are many who would envy being part of making movie magic.

“I wanted to do something creative but challenging which also harnessed some of the skills I learned in my previous career. I’ve always loved movies and was fascinated by how movies actually get made,” Walton said.

You might say he’s living the dream.

‘Mid-Century’ is presently showing at the Camana Bay Cinema. Buy tickets online at Fandango.