TERRE HAUTE — A crowd packed the Indiana Theatre on Saturday afternoon for a Hollywood production with local ties.
“It was neat to see a local presence,” Union Hospital administrator Brendan Kearns said, leaving the Terre Haute film premiere of “Rock Slyde.” “Oh, yeah,” he said when asked if he liked the film. “It was funny.”
The theatre at Seventh and Ohio streets was decked out with Christmas decor as more than 200 film fans crowded into the seats.
Produced by 1996 Terre Haute South Vigo High School graduate and California transplant, Milan Chakraborty, “Rock Slyde” stars a number of well-known Hollywood players including Patrick Warburton, Andy Dick, Eric Roberts, Lea Thompson, Jason Alexander and Tom Bergeron.
A portion of the proceeds from the screening will benefit a memorial fund in honor of the late Sgt. Dale Griffin, a fellow Terre Haute South Vigo High School graduate killed in Afghanistan earlier in October.
Chakraborty, a classmate and close friend of Griffin, said he was glad to sponsor the connection.
Before the screening launched at 3 p.m., Chakraborty said he was excited and hopeful for a good crowd. His first movie, he said he hoped the audience laughed when they were supposed to.
“I’m just your typical accountant,” he joked. A Certified Public Accountant, the William and Mary College alumnus got his first job with Time Warner, crunching the numbers on Hollywood blockbusters such as “Batman Begins,” “Superman Returns” and “Dukes of Hazzard,” some of which had budgets exceeding $200 million. Along the way, Chakraborty learned the ropes about how to finance movies, and in some cases, less expensively than is some by the major studios. A full-time producer since February of 2008, Chakraborty, 31, said he already has plans in motion to bring a movie production to Terre Haute.
California, he said, is the land of opportunity and “a dream come true,” complete with 70-degree weather yet this week. But even though his parents, Meera and Murali Chakraborty, have since moved to Georgia, he’ll always consider Terre Haute his home.
Among those buying a ticket on the way in was Bernie McGee, the 2009 Wabash Valley Idol winner and professional singer. McGee noted he came to support the Griffin Memorial and with the hope that Chakraborty can generate enough interest to bring filming production to Terre Haute.
In addition to Chakraborty, Hauteans involved in “Rock Slyde” included actor Jose Pablo Cantillo, writer and actor William Tanoos and production manager Andrew Mardis.
The comedic film centers around Warburton’s character and his struggles to avoid a quasi-religious cult known as BART. Along the way, people close to him get dragged into the ensuing entanglements.
“It was really, really good. It was funny,” Caleb Johnson, 17, Farmersburgh, said on the way out the door as the credits rolled. Meanwhile, other viewers packed up, on their way to the after party hosted at The Copper Bar on Wabash Avenue.
Brian Boyce can be reached at 812-231-4253 or brian.boyce@tribstar.com.
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