PETROL MART
After
leaving Des Moines, Iowa and the Amoco Corporation, I returned to my
beloved Kansas City. I joined a fledgling film group started by
Kirby Cobb, the KC Independent Filmmakers Coalition.
I was a published short fiction writer interested in screenwriting. Rather than writing screenplays with no chance of being produced, I decided to blow some of my retirement money on making a short film. (Not something I necessarily recommend) I wrote a short production script inspired by my Amoco experience and Anthony Burgess's "A Clockwork Orange," which I had read as teen. Through the IFC I met NYC film school graduate John Niernberger and local industrial filmmaker Holly Edwards establishing the core production team. All we needed was a brilliant cinema photographer. Broadcast quality video was available in the form of Hi-8mm at the time, but being determined filmmakers we decided to go with 16mm film. Local filmmaker Kevin Willmott recommended a Lawrence Kansas cinema photographer Tim De Paepe. We met with Tim at the Free State Brewery in Lawrence and he agreed to shoot the film. Best of all, he was co-owner of a 16mm camera.
We held an open casting at the Kansas City Westport Library. Through this open casting secession, we selected local actors Paul Bruening to play the title role of Victor and Tom Taylor to play the gas station attendant. Additional casting included David Cohen, B.J. Crofton, Bob Mehan, Kathy Metz, Bill Stevens and Jerel Taylor. Local media personality Glenn Stewart and Meteorologist- Actor Brian Busby completed the cast as the Petrol Mart video host.
Finding a gas station to shoot the main scenes proved almost impossible, so I fell back on my Amoco dealer network to secure a location. The only downside was the station was open 24/7, so we would be shooting in an open C-Store. Throughout the filming we met many of Overland Park’s Police making sure our staged gas station robbery was not the real thing. The Light’s On Film truck helped us look like real professional film crew, which helped convince the police we really were filmmakers. Production occurred over two weekends in Waldo, Midtown, Downtown, the River Quay and Overland Park, Kansas.
John Niernberger performed the off-line edit, with Eric Manuel completing the on-line edit. Local musician Bob Blount provided a brilliant sound track.
In the postproduction process, my girlfriend dumped me, I spent more money than I ever dreamed possible, and developed a nasty case of the shingles virus. So lonely, broke, and feeling like I was dying “Petrol Mart” was completed. It won awards at the KAN Film Fest, The Missouri Video Festival, and screened at the SXSW Film Festival.
I was a published short fiction writer interested in screenwriting. Rather than writing screenplays with no chance of being produced, I decided to blow some of my retirement money on making a short film. (Not something I necessarily recommend) I wrote a short production script inspired by my Amoco experience and Anthony Burgess's "A Clockwork Orange," which I had read as teen. Through the IFC I met NYC film school graduate John Niernberger and local industrial filmmaker Holly Edwards establishing the core production team. All we needed was a brilliant cinema photographer. Broadcast quality video was available in the form of Hi-8mm at the time, but being determined filmmakers we decided to go with 16mm film. Local filmmaker Kevin Willmott recommended a Lawrence Kansas cinema photographer Tim De Paepe. We met with Tim at the Free State Brewery in Lawrence and he agreed to shoot the film. Best of all, he was co-owner of a 16mm camera.
We held an open casting at the Kansas City Westport Library. Through this open casting secession, we selected local actors Paul Bruening to play the title role of Victor and Tom Taylor to play the gas station attendant. Additional casting included David Cohen, B.J. Crofton, Bob Mehan, Kathy Metz, Bill Stevens and Jerel Taylor. Local media personality Glenn Stewart and Meteorologist- Actor Brian Busby completed the cast as the Petrol Mart video host.
Finding a gas station to shoot the main scenes proved almost impossible, so I fell back on my Amoco dealer network to secure a location. The only downside was the station was open 24/7, so we would be shooting in an open C-Store. Throughout the filming we met many of Overland Park’s Police making sure our staged gas station robbery was not the real thing. The Light’s On Film truck helped us look like real professional film crew, which helped convince the police we really were filmmakers. Production occurred over two weekends in Waldo, Midtown, Downtown, the River Quay and Overland Park, Kansas.
John Niernberger performed the off-line edit, with Eric Manuel completing the on-line edit. Local musician Bob Blount provided a brilliant sound track.
In the postproduction process, my girlfriend dumped me, I spent more money than I ever dreamed possible, and developed a nasty case of the shingles virus. So lonely, broke, and feeling like I was dying “Petrol Mart” was completed. It won awards at the KAN Film Fest, The Missouri Video Festival, and screened at the SXSW Film Festival.