A film industry veteran who recently started living in the Shuswap full time sees the area鈥檚 cinematic potential and wants to bring it to the silver screen.
Dan Rizzuto has worked in many movie business roles, from bodyguard to the stars to stuntman and fight co-ordinator. Most recently, he was in the director鈥檚 chair for the production of Torn, a thriller which tackles racial tensions. Rizzuto co-wrote the film with Joshua Mazerolle, who has also done extensive work as a stuntman.
Rizzuto鈥檚 career has seen him share film sets with movie stars like Nicolas Cage and renowned martial artists Tony Jaa, Iko Awais, Jean-Claude van Damme and many more.
As he works to get Torn distributed, possibly through a streaming service such as Netflix, Rizzuto is developing a film which he hopes will be able to take advantage of the scenery in the place he now calls home. He is working on the project with Todd Scott, another stuntman who is originally from the Salmon Arm area.
He described the fledgling project as a story set in the outdoors and based on a local Shuswap legend he has heard since moving to the area.
Just one of our concept posters for TORN. We鈥檙e getting closer and closer to our premiere screening! @cerebral_monkey_ent
鈥� dan rizzuto (@danrizzuto)
Rizzuto said because the plan is to write the forthcoming film with the Shuswap in mind as a location, last minute adjustments to make story conform to the realities of the location it will be shot in won鈥檛 be necessary.
鈥淲e鈥檙e writing for the environment, so our story is based on what we have access to, what鈥檚 around and what鈥檚 the most beautiful. We鈥檙e going to write to that so we don鈥檛 have to change it and can take advantage of what鈥檚 here,鈥� he said.
Both Torn and Rizzuto鈥檚 future projects are being developed through Cerebral Monkey Entertainment, a company he started four years ago.
鈥淚t was founded by a stuntman, it鈥檚 being run by a stuntman, right now it鈥檚 being funded by a stuntman and it鈥檚 all Canadian. Everybody involved right now is Canadian which is something we want to focus really heavily on.鈥�
Although many of the key players in the production company have made their living performing the stunts that bring adrenaline-soaked action movies to life, Rizzuto said Torn defied some people鈥檚 expectations by delivering a story dealing in thought-provoking subject matter鈥� he wants future projects to do the same.
鈥淎uthentic stories are what I want to do, I think that鈥檚 kind of lost in the world today.鈥�
Rizzuto said technology, such as drones and less expensive cinema cameras, has made it easier for smaller-budget filmmakers to achieve results worthy of the silver screen. It has also helped with getting films distributed. He said it鈥檚 much easier to get an independent film onto Netflix than it is to get it distributed to a studio.
Rizutto is unsatisfied with the present order of things, where the film industry in Vancouver and the rest of the province largely serves American productions. He said his wants to showcase the B.C. Interior and get more Canadian stories told on film.
jim.elliot@saobserver.net
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