'Fire Lily,' film made in Southeast Missouri, lights up big screen

"Fire Lily" hits the big screen Saturday, but not everyone is invited to the show. The first screening will serve as a test run for the film with students and faculty from Southeast Missouri State University providing feedback and opinions on the movie written, filmed and produced in Southeast Missouri.

"Fire Lily" was filmed in June and July 2007. After a year-and-a-half of postproduction, the crew has a feature-length product. Writer and director Dr. Kenn Stilson, a professor in Southeast's Department of Theatre and Dance, said the screening Saturday will help polish the film -- identify scenes that don't fit, edit the sound.

"We'll be tweaking it," he said.

The movie was adapted from his play "Independence Day," which Stilson wrote using his own small-town experiences, influences of his grandfather and "A Doll's House" by Henrik Ibsen. "Fire Lily" tells the story of April Moretti, a small-town girl who begins to question her life and why she has settled for life in a small town.

A public viewing is planned May 22 in the Rose Theatre for a little more feedback and then "Fire Lily" will be sent to various film festivals. Stilson's plan is for a major distributor like DreamWorks or independent film distributor Magnolia Pictures to see it, pick it up and pay to distribute it to movie stores, art houses and independent film channels.

"There are hundreds of film festivals around the world. We're not going to be sending it to hundreds," he said. "We'll send it to ones that in the past have accepted this type of film."

A national theatrical release would be nice, Stilson said, but that's not the point of filming "Fire Lily."

"The real hope is that this film will sell and will serve as a feed of sorts so we can attract additional financial backers," Stilson said.

Victor Kantchev, the film's sole financial backer, has championed the film since the beginning. He and other area filmmakers have projects in various stages. Kantchev said he hopes to use international and local talent to complete his scripts and projects. Kantchev said "Fire Lily" should attract money for other projects.

"It has all the components for a successful movie," he said. "I am pretty confident that we have a competitive project."

Aside from access to deeper pockets, Kantchev said the talent and components needed to film in Southeast Missouri already live here. Southeast professors Fred Jones and Shirlee Wilson helped adapt the play into a film script. They edited the film with Matt Hickey and Bart Elfrink. Other local people helped with filming, sound and other aspects of the film.

The hope is that this film will start a "cottage industry," Stilson said. "There's a great void in filmmaking between the two coasts."

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