Present

LEAVING METROPOLIS

A film by

BRAD FRASER

Starring

TROY RUPTASH

VINCENT CORAZZA

LYNDA BOYD

CHERILEE TAYLOR

THOM ALLISON

Produced by

Kim Todd

Paul stiles

ken mead

Leaving Metropolis is a feature film based on the hit play Poor Super Man by Brad Fraser. Brad wrote the screenplay, setting it in Winnipeg, and directed the film. It was shot on location in Winnipeg, in the historic exchange district and the inner city.

Synopsis

David is a painter whose success has brought him fame, money and insulation from the life experiences that inspired him to paint. When he decides he needs to get out in the world again and takes a job at a small café as a waiter, the last thing he expects is to fall in love with Matt, part of the husband and wife couple that own the café.

David’s best friend Shannon, a transsexual waiting for her final operation, is extremely vulnerable because of her HIV positive status.

Kryla is a journalist, a friend of David’s also, who resents the ease with which he’s traveled through life and is offended by his new relationship with Matt because her own relationships have all been unsuccessful.

Violet, Matt's wife, thinks of her husband in the narrow terms we reserve for people we think we know well. She likes him because he is dependably predictable.

Love, hate, life and death - all have a place in this contemporary story about a group of thirty-something urbanites whose lives seem to be coming apart.

88 minutes - 5 reels – Dolby Surround – 1,1:85 - 24 frames/sec.

THE CAST

David TROY RUPTASH

Matt VINCENT CORAZZA

Kryla LYNDA BOYD

Violet CHERILEE TAYLOR

Shannon THOM ALLISON

THE CREW

WRITER/DIRECTOR BRAD FRASER

PRODUCER KIM TODD

PRODUCER PAUL STILES

PRODUCER KEN MEAD

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER KIM TODD

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER PAUL STILES

LINE PRODUCER JEFF PEELER

PRODUCTION DESIGNER CRAIG SANDELLS

DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY DANIEL VINCELETTE

CASTING SUSAN FORREST

EDITOR EARL FUDGER

COSTUME DESIGNER CHARLOTTE PENNER

KEY MAKE-UP CINDY SMITH

KEY HAIR CATHARINA SAITES

PUBLICIST LESLIE STAFFORD

STILLS PHOTOGRAPHERS ALLEN FRASER

KEN MEAD

MUSIC DENNIS BURKE

SOUND LEON JOHNSON

TROY RUPTASH

as David

Troy knew from the minute he read the Leaving Metropolis script that he wanted to work on Brad Fraser’s film. “I knew I wanted the role of David right from the start, and once I met Brad I knew he would make me a better actor.” Those are words of high praise coming from an actor who’s had his share of experience in film, television and theatre.

Troy Ruptash was born in Vegerville, a small town outside of Edmonton, Alberta. From there he moved to Toronto and New York, where he studied acting, voice, and dance before trying his hand in the theatre. He has starred in the off-Broadway productions of Funnyhouse of a Negro, Cardenio, Macbeth, The Eagle Has Two Heads and Orpheus Descending. Troy’s television credits include guest star roles in The Fugitive (ABC/Warner Bros.), The West Wing (FOX/Warner Bros.), Dark Angel (FOX/FBC), The District (CBS/CBS Prods.), Nash Bridges and Jag (CBS/Paramount) and guest lead roles in NBC’s ER and Law and Order.

Troy’s film credits include supporting roles in M.V.P. II: Most Valuable Primate (Columbia Tristar/Warner Bros.) and The Perfect Son (Equinox/Tsunami Entertainment), the official selection of the New York and Toronto Film Festivals 2000, and a lead in the independent film When It’s Over, winner of Best Film in the 1997 Hollywood Film Festival.

“When I read the Leaving Metropolis script I realized roles like the character of David don’t come along too often. In fact, I felt so fortunate to be chosen to play this part, because it’s the kind of thing an actor waits for a long, long time,” said Troy. “It’s been an incredible experience, right from the time I auditioned. (Director/writer) Brad was amazing with all the actors and knew exactly what he wanted and how to get it. When we began rehearsing, he made his intentions very clear, but yet he stayed open to any suggestions we (the actors) made. I felt very safe with Brad and trusted him completely. The script is so well written and the characters so complex! When the cast was working we had a lot of fun, but there was also a huge amount of integrity and respect for the script and each other.”

Troy felt the chance to act in Leaving Metropolis was a life-changing experience for him. He lives in Los Angeles, California.

THOM ALLISON

as Shannon

Filming in Winnipeg meant coming home to Thom Allison – it’s the place he was born and raised. Thom moved to Toronto at 17 to study at the Ryerson Theatre Conservatory. Thom’s theatre studies at Ryerson quickly led to the Stratford Festival’s productions of Romeo and Juliet, The Two Gentlemen of Verona and The Tempest His stage musicals include Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat for Theatre Aquarius and the Mirvish Productions of Miss Saigon, The Who’s Tommy and RENT.

Thom met Brad Fraser when he worked with him on the Canadian Stage production of Outrageous where he was nominated for a Dora Mavor Moore award for his portrayal of the lead role of Robin.

Thom’s television credits include the series Queer as Folk (Showtime), Drop the Beat (CBC) and F/X: The Series (CTV). He recently took part in another Winnipeg film, Patrick Swayze’s independent feature Without a Word.

“Shannon is a preoperative transsexual who is HIV positive, but is very busy just living! Her whole goal is to have the final operation and the only thing that sidetracks her is fate (her disease),” said Thom of his character. “I had a ball doing this part! It had its challenges, but it’s a bit like eating an elephant - bite by bite I did it. You realize it’s the little steps that make a life.”

Thom felt the small cast clicked instantly. “It was a great mix of people, handpicked by Brad, and we all trusted each other right from the start, which meant we could be totally comfortable with each other during rehearsal.”

LYNDA BOYD

as Kryla

Lynda is no stranger to her role of Kryla, having played the part in Brad Fraser’s stage production of Poor Super Man in Vancouver five years ago. It’s a role she researched even more since originally taking it on, going so far as to follow around a Vancouver entertainment reporter trying to get a deeper feel for what kind of work Kryla does.

Lynda has always been keen to understand more about acting. Her parents put her into dance school at the age of four and she’s been on the stage ever since. After studying acting and music in college, she decided to abandon her acting career in favor of singing. She joined a techno-pop band called The Blenders and toured with them for a while in the mid-80s before heading back to her first love of acting.

Lynda’s television credits are numerous, including recurring roles in the series These Arms of Mine (CBC), The Crow – Stairway to Heaven (Polygram/Universal) and as a regular and writer on You Me & the Kids (WTN). She has also had lead roles in the television movies Navigating the Heart (Lifetime), The Sheldon Kennedy Story (CTV), Suspect Behaviour (ABC), Angels in the Endzone (ABC) and Nights Below Station Street (CBC) for which she won a 1999 Blizzard award for Best Supporting Actress. Other television credits include ER (NBC), Beggars and Choosers (Showtime), Higher Ground (Fox Family), Cold Squad (CTV), The X Files (Fox), Da Vinci’s Inquest (CBC) and The Adventures of Shirley Homes (YTV).

Lynda has appeared in the recent feature films Mission to Mars (Disney), Bones (New Line Cinema), Silver Wolf (Blue Rider/Fox), The Invader (Spectacor/Promark) and Disturbing Behaviour (MGM/Columbia TriStar).

Portraying Kryla in the film version of Brad’s play was an exciting experience for Lynda. “Even though it’s the same character I played five years ago, there’s a big difference between theatre and film. I had to leave the play behind and realize Kryla had developed a lot since then. I saw a whole other side to her and it was a wonderful arc! Also, Brad set very high standards for all of us and challenged us to hone our craft. He’s as solid now as he was then and we never had to settle for anything less because he knows each character so well. It was a huge blessing to work for him!”

Lynda divides her time living and working in Vancouver, British Columbia and Los Angeles, California.

VINCENT CORAZZA

as Matt

Writer/Director Brad Fraser spotted Vincent Corazza while they were both working out at a Toronto gym. “I thought he’d be perfect for the part of Matt, but I had no idea whether or not he was an actor” recalled Brad. “That night I saw him in a television commercial and decided to call him to see if he’d read for the part.”

This is only one example of the career path Vincent’s life has taken. He was born and raised in a small town outside of Toronto, Ontario and has always enjoyed performing in front of an audience. His beginnings as an actor can be traced back to the sixth grade where he starred in two plays for the annual Christmas pageant. During each performance he found himself gripped with fear and could barely breath between the lines, but part of him thought that if something could be that exhilarating it must be worth pursuing. After taking part in every play and musical in high school, Vincent graduated from Ryerson Polytechnic University and began his career as an actor.

Vincent has appeared in many television series and movies, including Hangman (Columbia TriStar), The Ride (Showtime), Final Jeopardy (ABC), A Glimpse of Hell (fx network), Haven (CTV), Boss of Bosses (TNT) and Bonanno: A Godfather’s Story (Showtime). Other television credits include Earth Final Conflict (CHUM-TV), The Famous Jett Jackson (YTV), The City (CTV), Traders (CanWest Global), La Femme Nikita (CTV) and PSI Factor (CBS). Vincent has also done many cartoon and commercial voice-overs for everything from Molson Canadian to McDonalds, and has had lead roles on the popular animated series Sailor Moon (Bandai/CanWest Global) and Rescue Heroes (CBS/Teletoon) and can be heard narrating the documentary series Zoo Diaries (Lifetime).

Vincent’s film credits include the independent filmsYou Stupid Man, Bless the Child (Buena Vista Int.), Urban Legend (Columbia TriStar) and Bride of Chucky (Universal).

“It’s not every day you get a chance to read such a finely-written script,” said Vincent of Leaving Metropolis. “There are no holes, no wasted scenes and it’s so finely-tuned.”

Of his character Matt, Vincent admitted there were challenges in playing this part. “Matt is on a roller coaster ride discovering who he is. Every role has its challenges, but there were a lot of things here that weren’t me and that can make it difficult. But that’s what acting’s all about!”

CHERILEE TAYLOR

as Violet

Cherilee Taylor was born in the United States but moved to Toronto when she was just a child. She received a degree in Archeology from the University of Toronto, but decided instead to become an actor.

Her theatre credits include Macbeth, Grossinger’s The Last Resort, Cinderella and the musicals Evita, The Sound of Music and Jesus Christ Superstar, where she had the role of Mary Magdalene.

In television Cherilee's latest role was in the naughty prime-time soap Paradise Falls (Showcase) that chronicles the scandalous goings-on of a small town in Ontario. Other credits are Martial Law (CBS/Fox), two seasons of Crazy Quilt (YTV), Animorphs (Nickelodeon) and Power Play (Alliance/Atlantis). Her film credits include the television movie Blackjack (Alliance/Buena Vista) and the feature films Blues Brothers 2000 (Universal), Shepherd II (Concorde-New Horizons) and One Tough Cop (Stratosphere).

Leaving Metropolis is the first time Cherilee has worked with director Brad Fraser. She was prepared for Fraser himself, having heard of his reputation for perfection, but found herself not quite as prepared for her character Violet.

“The character I play is a really tough lady. There’s this analogy that’s drawn in the play that she wants to have this doll’s life where everything is wonderful. She seems very happy, but in fact she’s not. She drives herself really hard.” Though she initially saw Violet as the victim when she read the script, Cherilee changed her mind.

“She rises above her troubles. She suffers a real betrayal but still remains on her feet and I really loved playing a woman who is that strong. It has definitely been my most emotionally demanding role yet. I was thrilled and scared to be challenged to try that. I’ll definitely take a piece of Violet with me.”

WRITER/DIRECTOR

Brad Fraser

“One of the top ten plays of the year,” according to Time magazine. “An unflaggingly witty and often moving slice of life …”

Writer/Director Brad Fraser has been the subject of many reviews and articles like the one above. He is an award-winning and internationally renowned playwright with a reputation for being dark, witty, often shocking and always controversial. His international hit Unidentified Human Remains And The True Nature of Love premiered at the Alberta Theatre Projects PlayRites Festival in 1989. It has since been produced worldwide and translated into seven languages. In 1994, the film version won Brad a Genie Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.

Poor Super Man was first produced by the Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati in 1994 and has enjoyed successful runs in such diverse cities as Sydney, Australia; Edinburgh, Scotland; London, England; Denver, Colorado; and Toronto, Ontario. Poor Super Man, like Unidentified Human Remains… was listed by Time magazine as one of the top ten plays for that year and was nominated for a Governor-General’s Award for Drama.

Brad’s play Martin Yesterday premiered at Buddies Bad Times Theatre in 1997 and has subsequently been produced by Theatre Network in Edmonton (a long-time producer of Brad’s work). It enjoyed a very controversial run at The Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester, England, which also commissioned Brad’s most recent play, Snake in Fridge. His new musical Outrageous, written with composer Joey Miller, has recently concluded a successful run at Toronto’s Canadian Stage and is being redeveloped for off-Broadway. The Royal Exchange Theatre and The Canadian Stage Company have commissioned Brad to write his next play, Cold Meat Party.

“I’m often accused of being intentionally shocking and courting controversy for its own sake,” mused Brad. “Certain audience members and some so-called critics seem to think that the use of nudity, authentic (often shocking) language and violent or sexual imagery are simply tools of sensationalism designed to create a fuss aimed at publicizing the show. Nothing could be farther from the truth. While I have never denied the more sensational aspects of my work – some people call it theatricality- I have always maintained that my real objective is to create theatre or film – or whatever- that honestly and accurately reflects the world we live in. That doesn’t sugarcoat the truth. That doesn’t lie. That doesn’t let the audience off the moral hook at the end. Given the current state of what passes for entertainment this is not only a radical thought – it’s somewhat suicidal.”

Brad’s plays have won numerous awards, including The London Evening Standard Award for Most Promising Playwright, the L.A. Critics Award, The Dora Mavor Moore Award and London’s Time Out Award for Best New Play. Brad is a five-time winner of the Alberta Culture Playwrighting Competition and a two-time winner of the prestigious Chalmers Award.

PRODUCER/EXECUTIVE PRODUCER

Kim Todd, Original Pictures

Kim Todd is the President and CEO of Original Pictures Inc. in Winnipeg, Manitoba. She has produced numerous movies, miniseries and series television in her twenty-year career. Her work has appeared on CBC, CTV, CanWest Global, YTV, A-Channel, Superchannel, Showcase, ABC, CBS, PBS, Showtime, Disney, BBC and many international broadcasters. Her awards include several Geminis, a CableAce and a collection of international prizes.

Kim produced the feature film The Quarrel (Cineplex Odeon/PBS), the award-winning television movie The Diviners (CBC), the mini series The Sound and the Silence (CTV/TNT), the television movies Paris or Somewhere (CanWest Global), Harvest (Family/CTV) and Almost Grown (CBS). Her other credits include The Prom (CBC), Pray for Me Paul Henderson (CBC). She recently completed work on the television movie Framed (TNT). She also produces television series. She was the show runner, producer and sometimes director of the series The Adventures of Shirley Holmes (YTV/Fox/BBC). Kim produced the series My Life as a Dog (Showtime/TMN), Men (ABC), Almost Grown (CBS) and Ramona (PBS). She is currently in production on Guinevere Jones, a series for YTV and on the CBC movie The Many Trials of One Jane Doe.

Kim founded Original Pictures Inc. in January 2000. She had previously been a Vice President and Producer at Winnipeg’s Credo Entertainment since 1993. From 1985 to 1993 she was a producer with Atlantis Films . Leaving Metropolis is the first feature film for Original Pictures. Kim’s current projects in development include the feature films Republic of Love, Ruby, A Boy of Good Breeding and Stirfry and the television series The Trib and Emma.

PRODUCER

Ken Mead

Currently, Ken is Senior Director for CHUM Television's, The New VI (CIVI) in Victoria BC. The New VI is Canada's most sophisticated broadcast set-up to date.

Ken began his career 15 years ago with Edmonton's ITV (Allarcom) in VTR. He moved to STV (Global) in Saskatoon and rapidly advanced to become STV'S Chief Videographer/Editor. Ken was a key member of a young production team that won many Canpro awards in News, Sports and Documentary. In 1990 he moved to Edmonton and started a commercial production department for Videotron Communications Ltd. Of Ken’s corporate and commercial clients for Videotron Productions, some highlights were: Shooting forest fires for Alberta Forestry's fire training simulator. Directing, shooting and digitizing the video elements for Intuit Canada's Quicktax product, a nationally distributed CD Rom. A commercial produced for the Edmonton Journal. Exclusive production work for the Citadel Theatre and Director General Robin Philips, which won a number of ACE Awards (Advertising Club of Edmonton). As Producer for a documentary entitled "Operation Mop Prop" Ken won a CCTA Award for excellence in programming.

As a freelancer, Ken has shot for Barbour/Langley (Long Beach, California), Five Star Productions (Boca Raton, Florida), Creative Broadcast Concepts (Biddeford, Maine), Global Television (Winnipeg, Manitoba), Madison Square Gardens TV (New York, New York) and MuchMusic/City TV (Toronto, Ontario). Ken is also a hard-camera operator and has shot live sports events for CBC Sports and ESPN-2. Ken also landed a contract with Canadian Learning Television and Access TV as Producer and Director for Help TV (a nationally broadcast daily hour of infotainment), and Careers TV (a weekly 1/2hr magazine show).

As a Cinematographer, Ken has photographed many music videos, commercials, and projects for The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, Canadian Learning Television, Access TV, and Videotron Communications Ltd. Ken is a member of the Canadian Society of Cinematographers.

PRODUCER/EXECUTIVE PRODUCER

Paul Stiles

Paul has worked for more than twenty years in the television industry as a producer, executive producer, writer and director.

Over his career, Paul has won awards from the Television Bureau of Canada, The Chicago Film Festival, the US Commercial Film Festival, the SAM Awards Edmonton’s ACE Awards.

realtime films

Paul Stiles, Ken Mead

In 1995 Ken Mead and Paul Stiles formed Realtime Films inc. Since fall of 1995, Realtime Films has produced many different projects including regional and local commercials, for clients like Ridgewood homes, The Satellite Bingo Network and CKUA radio. Corporate work for the City of Edmonton, Chieftain International and the Edmonton Public Library. Realtime Films inc. designed and installed the production equipment for, a daily satellite broadcast. The program is a closed circuit Las Vegas style interactive game-show broadcast live and played by thousands. In November of 1997 Realtime Films inc. designed, installed, then launched another, similar model in Phoenix for broadcast to Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma, California and Nevada.

Ken and Paul have also taken Realtime Films inc. into dramatic production. Currently Realtime Films inc. is in development of a number of projects for television and theatrical release. Leaving Metropolis was the first to go into Production.

A NEW CINEMATIC PROCESS

DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY

Daniel Vincelette

Director of Photography Daniel Vincelette grabbed more than a few headlines when he started shooting Leaving Metropolis in Winnipeg in the summer of 2001. The Montreal native was the first person in Canada to use Multivision 235, an Australian process where shooting is done with modified 35mm cameras running at the rate of two perforations per frame instead of the usual four. Vincelette describes the process as “similar to the old Techniscope format of the 1960’s.

Multivision 235 is a 35mm, two-perforation pull-down process and uses exactly half the linear footage of the conventional four-perforation system. The process was developed by Movie Lab and the Aranda Group in Australia. With the modern advantages of exceptional film emulsions and sharper lenses, Multivision 235 offers filmmakers large cost savings with the screen quality of 35mm and for a budget only approaching that for Super 16mm.

“The words 'cost saving and quality', were music to our ears when we first stared investigating the Multivision 235 process,” comments Executive Producer Kim Todd. “We knew we wanted this film to have a bold, strong look. Brad referred to it as a “Pop Art” style. He and Daniel wanted to build the film on bright reds, blues, oranges, greens and yellows. And the Multivision process allowed us to achieve that theatrical look at a fraction of the cost of 35mm. Producers couldn’t ask for more.”

“The difference is almost imperceptible to the laymen,” continues Vincelette. “A DOP would see the difference, it is a little grainier, but overall the look is very good.”

FILMOGRAPHY (selected)

Undressed (Supervising DP),TV Series, Prod. MTV, CinéTaurus

Le Marais, feature film, Prod. Productions Thalie, Dir. Kim Nguyen

Leaving Metropolis, feature film, Prod. Original Pictures, Dir. Brad Fraser

The Tunnel, feature film, Prod. Critical Mass, Dir. Daniel Baldwin

Paparazzi, T.V. Series 10 x 1hr, Prod. Prisma, Dir. Alain Chartrand

Le Masque, T.V. Mini-Series 4x 1hr, Prod. Prisma, Dir. Richard Roy

Caboose, Feature Film, Prod. Stock Films, Dir. Richard Roy

Memories of P.E.Trudeau, Documentary 6 x 1hr, Prod. La Fête, Dir. Brian McKenna

Stilletto Dance, MOW HBO, Prod. TVA International, Dir. Mario Azzapardi

ABOUT THE FILM

Leaving Metropolis takes the impact of the play on which it is based and adds to it," says producer Kim Todd. "We knew when we read the first draft of the screenplay that this was a challenging film that would upset and offend some people, but it is tells a real story. People fall in love. People have sex."

The story is about how a straight and apparently ordinary man, Matt, falls into a passionate love affair with a gay man, David. "It's not as if he doesn't have a passionate relationship with his beautiful wife," says Producer Paul Stiles. "He does, and we see that and what it means to him, but love and sex between two men is different. Matt is swept away by his feelings for David. He is introduced to a seductive new world."

Todd says that those who have screened the film come away asking questions about their own relationships and the way they see and react to their own and the opposite sex.

"This is a film that challenges our preconceptions of physical attraction and intimacy," says Todd. "Is one's passion for their spouse necessarily threatened by their passion for someone else?"

This film challenges assumptions. It provokes questions about gender and how men and women feel about who they are and how they relate to each other. "It deals with relationships, straight and gay and how all people relate to one another."

And it does so in a very straight ahead and dramatic way. "We could not have made this film without actors who were prepared to enter into explicit love scenes. Violet, Matt and David all have to show their intense physical passion for one another. To not have portrayed the physical side of the relationships would have been irresponsible because some of our most important moments occur during erotic moments," says director and writer Brad Fraser.

"I wanted to have actors who were capable of having convincing orgasms, actors who were prepared to put their own raw emotions up on the screen.''

The demands of the film required closed sets, careful shooting and a great degree of trust between actors, director and crew.

"Director, cast, director of photography and editor were all committed to creating an environment that was both convincingly sensual and non exploitive. It was emotionally draining for all involved but the film will speak for itself. It was emotionally draining for the actors, and at times, for me too."

One of the hardest challenges was the casting of Shannon, the transsexual. After many auditions Brad finally cast Thom Allison. The first time Allison appeared on set in costume the universal response of the crew was "who's the babe".

ABOUT THE FILM (continuing)

With the portrayal of Shannon, director/writer Fraser is challenging preconceptions about gender and about how people perceive themselves and one another." Is Shannon a man or a woman?" The answer is she's both.

For some people, this film may be uncomfortable, but , says Fraser, it is a love story and of understandings and awakenings, of how life is rarely predictable and how we surprise ourselves into new beginnings.

"In all departments, from lighting to design to shooting, this film tries to break ground," says Stiles, "and I think it succeeds".

The art direction uses the bright colours of comic books that reflect the vivid vibrant world as seen through a painters eyes. The camerawork reflects the subtlety of the acting which had to switch from naked passion to naked emotion without, ever going over the top.

"These are people you believe in and care about," says Stiles. "You want to know what happens in the end. Who ends up with who. Who forgives who. What each character learns."

"In some ways it is bolder than the play," says Fraser, "There are things you can show with lighting and effects on screen that you just can't do on the stage. I tried to use the medium to maximum effect without giving up the strength of the stage script. I wanted the film to have a strong visual style but I also wanted to retain the smart snappy dialogue that makes the characters so engaging. I guess the audience will decide how well I have succeeded."