By Nancy Raskauskas
For the Democrat-Herald | Posted: Monday, July 21, 2008 12:00 am
CORVALLIS - On Sunday afternoon, those with aspirations of being in a feature film got their chance to audition for the big screen at the Majestic Theatre.
Local director Mark Donnell held an open casting call for "Extreme Used Cars: There Is No Hope," a dark comedy meant to be a sequel of sorts to 1980's "Used Cars," which starred Kurt Russell.
Donnell wrote the original screenplay for the project and will begin filming at locations around Corvallis and Albany next week.
Donnell has written 14 screenplays in all, as well as acting in commercials and working on numerous films, but this will be his first solo project.
There were a wide variety of bit parts available for casting on Sunday.
"We're looking for high-school graduates that still have their cap and gown," said Donnell. "Also, middle-aged couples and families for a montage scene."
Donnell has already signed veteran actor Ian Reid Kessler to play a supporting role in the film. Kessler, who lives in Los Angeles, will be the most high-profile actor in the film, with six sitcoms and 10 major movies to his credit.
One of the main orders of business on Sunday was to pin down an actor to play the film's main character, used car salesman Chip Douglas.
"He's a chemically imbalanced schizophrenic that was subject to the highest concentration of acid (LSD) you can be exposed to and still survive," said Donnell. "So, he daydreams about killing his customers and co-workers."
In all, the production crew will include 12 people behind the camera, including several University of Montana film students and about 40 characters in all.
The budget is less than $200,000 for the entire production, which makes it a "super ultra low budget Screen Actors Guild film," according to Donnell.
Most filming will be at South Pacific Auto Sales and Lakeshore Lanes in Albany, but there will also be several scenes filmed in Corvallis at undisclosed locations during the roughly 12 days of filming before principal photography wraps.