Lakes High students make film

A group of young filmmakers is working hard to make the jump from Lakes Community High School to creating a full-length movie in time to share it with viewers as far away as the Sundance Film Festival.

Filmmaking is a passion for recent Lakes graduate Aaron Sauerland, who said he and friend Danny McGrath worked on projects such as “Resident Pevil,” a parody of the movie “Resident Evil.”

A lot of work goes into making a movie, Sauerland said, but the result can be gratifying.

“I like the way film can make you feel. It evokes emotion. When I watch something that is beautifully shot, I love that,” he said.

Sauerland had an idea to create a throwback film to old horror classics. “I have this dying passion for giant mansions and cheesy graveyards,” he said.

That idea has blossomed into “MAE,” a modern suspense thriller that has gained the attention of Lakes students and alumni.

“MAE” centers around Cameron, a struggling writer and college dropout. To cast Cameron, the script was sent to Lakes graduate Patrick Adamek.

“I got halfway through the script and said it was so good,” Adamek said.

“MAE” begins as Cameron is robbed at the bar where he works and is left in a coma. When he wakes up three months later, a cop believes he is somehow involved.

To get away from chaos, Cameron travels to a town called Bellview. There, he starts working on a novel. But the more he writes, weird things happen. People start quoting lines from his novel and buildings from his work start appearing, Sauerland said.

During a family trip, Sauerland discovered the location where they would film — Cedarburg, Wis., about 45 minutes north of Milwaukee.

“We started walking up and down the street. I said I need to make a movie here,” he said.

The story continues as Cameron meets a girl named Mae, played by Erin Ruskin, also a recent Lakes graduate. Everyone in the town refuses to acknowledge the girl exists.

“She’s extremely complex,” Ruskin said of Mae. “You don’t see that right away. She has a dark history. She’s a private person who does not let many people in because of her past.”

Adamek said the thrill is figuring out Mae.

“Cameron’s journey is figuring out who she is, why does the town act so weird when he makes reference to her,” Adamek said. “He also becomes friends with a journalist, Nick (played by Marino Korellis) who has insight into who Mae is but does not give information.”

A website has been created at www.maefilm.com that include details about the film.

Cast and crew have arranged schedules in order to film during the past eight months. Balancing filming, school and work has made for long days.

“The entire time we are all just having fun,” McGrath said. “We are all doing something we love. I am satisfied. I don’t have any regrets about it at all.”

Much work remains to be done behind the scenes. Bryce Ring, who works as sound designer at Lakes, works as the film’s composer and sound designer.

“I like freedom to do what I want with the music, so that way it makes the image on screen that much better,” Ring said.

And making a movie takes money. That is where another new graduate, Steven Cowles, works hardest as the business manager. They raised $3,200, which Sauerland said they will use toward building sets and buying props.

“When it was over, we sat down and said ‘wow, we did it. We succeeded,” Sauerland said. “It goes to show what you can achieve when a group of people puts their minds to something.”

While filming slowed through the spring as many on the team planned for graduation, Sauerland said filming is now running full steam. And, while the school year is done, Lakes is still providing support, allowing use of the school theater where the crew is building sets and plan to shoot some scenes.

“It was amazing to see we’re still getting help from our school,” Sauerland said.

The goal now is to complete a rough cut of the film by mid-August, so they can take it to festivals this fall. Sauerland hopes to enter the film at Sundance in Park City, Utah, but they plan to start closer to home. Cowles said the funds raised will further the goal to travel and apply to festivals.

“Let’s make sure it pays off for everyone that is involved and get it out and let people know it’s there and a great piece of work,” Cowles said.

“We’ve gotten feedback that it will become a great piece of work just by the amount of money that has been donated.”

Sauerland said there are those who doubt they will complete the project, but they are kids from Illinois with a dream.

“Let’s prove you wrong. We will become something one day. We are determined. We are ambitious. I believe we can do this. Nothing is going to stop me from making films,” he said.