Copyright M Live Michigan
KALAMAZOO, MI — Given the recent resurgence in the popularity of alien-themed entertainment, one might see a few extraterrestrials this Halloween weekend. But what if aliens invaded Kalamazoo and Jackson counties? That’s exactly what happened this August and September when a Hollywood crew landed in Michigan to film “The Crawling,” scheduled for release early next year. RELATED: Horror movie being filmed near Kalamazoo, Jackson as Hollywood producer returns home For Ryan March, one of the film’s co-producers, it was a return home after more than two decades on Hollywood sets as an actor, editor and producer. When March spoke with MLive this summer about the forthcoming film, he couldn’t share who was acting in the film due to contractual reasons. Now that the film is in post-production, the three lead actors have been revealed: Will Brittain (Kong: Skull Island, Haunt), Katherine Hughes (Tell Me Lies, Echo 3) and Robert Lewis Stephenson (Landman). March, 46, called the opportunity to work with the leads an “absolute gift.” “Their performances didn’t just meet our already high expectations for ‘The Crawling,’ they surpassed them and elevated the entire film,” he said. Brittain, who portrays a disgraced cop named Mike, travels with his wife, Emma, a therapist portrayed by Hughes, to a remote farmhouse set on a 30-acre farm in Jackson County. That’s where the alien encounter begins. March, a graduate of Portage Central High School and Western Michigan University, won’t share much else about the plot for the Indie horror thriller. The film, which he co-produced with writer/director Christian Everhard and Nick Donadio, is one he expects will do well with audiences, however. “It’s really an elevated thriller,” March said. “The film is a lot deeper than just an alien invasion.” For viewers, it might flip traditional masculine and feminine roles on their heads, he suggested. “I don’t think it could have gone better, to be honest with you,” March said of filming in Michigan in late summer. “Everything down to the weather played in our favor.” Among the highlights of filming in his home state was the ability to bring on local actors from Kalamazoo’s Farmers Alley Theatre in what March called “crucial, supporting roles.” Those actors included Jeremy Koch, the theater’s managing artistic director, along with Lisa Abbott, Atis Kleinbergs, Dwandra Lampkin and Emily Brady. “All of the local actors totally killed it,” March said. “Will and Katherine were beyond impressed with the talent level … and had an extremely wonderful time working with them.” Another Michigan-based crew member that elevated the film’s production included Spencer Haydo of Ascension Light out of Grand Rapids, he said. March anticipates the film will be ready for screening by the first of the year. “We have an eye on either a Valentine’s Day theatrical and streaming release or a festival run, starting with Tribeca Film Festival in New York,” he said. Other film fests on the radar for “The Crawling,” include South by Southwest, Toronto Midnight Madness, Fantastic Fest and Fantasia. March, who has worked on numerous projects over his career, thinks the film has larger distribution potential than any other work he has been chosen or hired to do. Once it’s out, there will be special screenings in both Michigan and Los Angeles, he said. The Michigan screening aims to be a red-carpet affair in Lansing, where he hopes to showcase what the Michigan film community can do and lobby to bring film incentives back to the state. “I think people are going to be blown away when they see what we were able to do without any tax incentive program in place for filming,” he said. In addition to Ascension, March and his team also brought in “prestige level” production crew out of Detroit, Ann Arbor and Kalamazoo to flesh out the crew. “I have worked in Hollywood for going on 25 years and these guys are as good, if not better, than anyone I’ve ever worked with in Hollywood,” he said. “These guys were unbelievable.”
