Downtown Elgin Plays Co-Starring Role in New Film

On Thursday, February 9th, the Marcus Theatre Elgin will host the world premiere of the new Blue Damen Productions film, Dark Before Dawn. The film is scheduled to begin at 7:30 pm, with a Q&A with the director and cast immediately following the showing. A post-premiere party is being hosted at the Tilted Kilt afterward.

According to the producers, about 95 percent of the film was filmed in downtown Elgin, using locations including the National Street Metra Station, Festival Park, Villa Liquors and Walton Island.

Choosing Elgin as the location for this film didn't happen by accident. At the inaugural Elgin Short Film Festival in 2009, Dark Before Dawn director Gwydhar Gebien walked away with the third place trophy for her short, The Visionary. "We'd been to quite a few film festivals but the Elgin Short Film Festival really stood out as being something special, Gebien says. This was an event that the community seemed to be excited about and it was celebrating short film as its own art form and that is rare."

"Walking around Elgin is like walking through the backlot of a studio, Gebien says. One minute you're on Main Street Americana, the next minute you're in a park, you turn the corner and you're in front of Victorian mansions, a few yards down the block you're in front of several storefronts. As a filmmaker it is like stumbling on a hidden treasure trove of raw material: there's so much story being told just in the city itself that you can't believe no one has pounced on it already."

I think when people see this film who havent been to Elgin in a while, or ever, they will be surprised by how beautiful this city is, especially by the scenes at night, says one of the stars of the film, Pete Garlock, an Elgin resident. There are many things people have taken away from seeing this film, and one of them is how impressed they are by the Elgin scenery.

Adds Gebien, "I always say this because it is always true: the best part about working in Elgin is that everyone gets excited about the project and wants to get involved. "Dark Before Dawn" is a tiny film in terms of budget, but we still had great support from the city, the police department, local merchants, and residents and their help made a huge difference in the kind of film we ended up with."

The Marcus Theatre Elgin is located at 111 South Randall Road, Elgin, IL, 60123 (847-622-1000). Tickets are only $5.00 for the film, which will also get you in to the post-premiere party, being held at the Tilted Kilt Elgin, located at 2300 Bushwood Dr, Elgin, IL, 60124 (224-359-5458). Tickets for the post-party only are also only $5.00.

For more information on Dark Before Dawn or the Premiere night please visit the website at www.darkbeforedawn-movie.com.