Midwest Movie Maker

Jason Woods' 'Copley Rd' A quick online search reveals dozens of haunted highways throughout the U.S. Spooky roads on which ghosts regularly appear, trying to hitch a ride or seemingly stuck in the place where they read their final chapter. Add another to that long list: Copley Road. Though this time the haunted throughway, which connects Medina County with downtown Akron, Ohio, is merely fictional, born from the imagination of filmmaker Jason Woods. “ Copley Road is a horror anthology about five strangers whose lives intersect when they all witness a paranormal confrontation between two supernatural entities,” Woods explains. “Each of the five strangers leave this experience with a dark presence now haunting them.”  Woods, who was born and raised in Akron, graduating from Buchtel High School, returns home from Los Angeles to shoot Copley Road on location. We had a chance to chat with Woods via email recently to learn more Woods and his new film: Mi...

From the set of '25 Hill'. Earlier this month, I had the opportunity to visit the set of  25 Hill ,  producer/writer/ director/actor  Corbin Bernsen 's tribute to the  All American Soap Box Derby . The film tells the tale of 12-year-old Trey Caldwell, who loses both his Army father to the Afghanistan War and the dream his father had for Trey, to race in a soap box derby. Trey eventually meets fellow lost soul Roy Gibbs, who has lost a lot himself: a son to 9/11 and the hope he once had for a bright future. Add to that a Soap Box Derby Championship cancelled because of financial problems, and you have a lot of uphill battles for Trey and Roy to overcome.  You could argue, though, that the story behind the story of  25 Hill  is more fascinating than the fictional story Bernsen's created. Reading a story about the real Soap Box Derby's financial troubles, Bernsen was inspired to write the story, make the film -  and save the Derby in the proce...

From the set of '25 Hill'. Early this month, I had the opportunity to visit the set of 25 Hill , producer/writer/ director/actor  Corbin Bernsen 's tribute to the All American Soap Box Derby . The film tells the tale of 12-year-old Trey Caldwell, who loses both his Army father to the Afghanistan War and the dream his father had for Trey, to race in a soap box derby. Trey eventually meets fellow lost soul Roy Gibbs, who has lost a lot himself: a son to 9/11 and the hope he once had for a bright future. Add to that a Soap Box Derby Championship cancelled because of financial problems, and you have a lot of uphill battles for Trey and Roy to overcome.  You could argue, though, that the story behind the story of 25 Hill  is more fascinating than the fictional story Bernsen's created. Reading a story about the real Soap Box Derby's financial troubles, Bernsen was inspired to write the story, make the film - and save the Derby in the process . Bernsen, along...