With the news of his brother's death, Michael's world is turned upside down as he begins a journey of self-assessment, self-reflection, and self-discovery.

Interview with Director Joseph Matarrese & Producers Phillip Matarrese and Mandi Reno

Congratulations! Why did you make your film?

MANDI: Collectively, the three of us have been working on other people's films for a decade and wanted to make a film for ourselves.

PHILLIP: With Searching For Fortune, we saw an opportunity to make a film the way that we wanted to make it.

JOSEPH: We had a chance to tell a story rarely seen on screen plus make it how we wanted to, shooting on film and in real locations with our friends, so we jumped on it.

Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?

JOSEPH: We love to tell complex stories about interesting characters and their connection to each other. Searching For Fortune is all about the relationship the main character, Michael, has with his father, his friends, and the widow of his brother, and how fragile they can be. I think that is something that everyone can relate to.

PHILLIP: Ultimately, the film is about identity and everyone can relate to that.

How do personal and universal themes work in your film?

JOSEPH: The main character in the film discovers that he has a brother he never knew about who was very successful and is left living in his shadow with out ever knowing him. It's a unique sibling story with out the sibling. Being a twin, I can relate to both the support and the pressure you have with a sibling and I think many people can relate to it.

MANDI: It's a relationship story, and Michael's relationships with his father, friends, and Emily showcase different pictures of family and their imperfections. That imperfection is universal.

How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?

JOSEPH: We shot the film in real locations across Colorado using many non actors who interacted with our cast along the way. We kept the script very fluid so that we could adapt the script to the real locations and people we were involving. It was a very fun experience, almost like shooting a documentary we could somewhat control.

PHILLIP: I had always heard that the film is made in post, but because this was our first film I wasn't expecting how true that is. Working with Art, our editor, the film changed its shape through out the post process and it was a really eye opening experience for me.

What type of feedback have you received so far?

JOSEPH: A lot of my friends' fathers have come up to me to tell me how much they can relate to the film and how moving it was for them.

MANDI: I've been told that the joy and camaraderie our cast and crew experience while making the movie can be felt by the audience.

Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?

JOSEPH: The powerful reactions from my friends' fathers were very surprising because as a young man, I was directing from my own point of view, and I wasn't expecting how much the film would resonate with them. We owe that connection to the powerful performance by John Heard.

What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?

MANDI: Being first-time film makers, we are hoping that being featured on We Are Moving Stories will broaden our audience and show people who we are as story tellers. This film doesn't fit into a traditional box but we know that there is an audience out there that is searching for the types of complex stories like Searching For Fortune.

Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?

PHILLIP: We are looking for journalists to write about the film and an audience to watch and share the film: anyone who likes movies that are shot on film, shot on location, or deal with complex characters and relationships and any anyone who has ever questioned what they could have been.

What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?

JOSEPH: We would love this film to convey to people that we know how to make movies in our unique way (i.e. unique stories, shooting on film and on location) and use it as a spring board for our next projects.

What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?

PHILLIP: Could Michael have been more than what he is? Should you be happy with where you are in life or should you constantly try and achieve more whether you can or not?

JOSEPH: Is our identity our own or is it tied to other people's? Is Michael who he is before he finds out he has a brother or is he a different person from that moment on?

Would you like to add anything else?

MANDI: This is one of the last films John Heard was in and his character resonated closely with his own relationship to his son, as later shared with us by our lead actor Brian. Their friendship grew throughout filming and extended after wrap. John's performance elevated everyone around him and we hope this film will help him live on now that he is gone.

What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?

JOSEPH: Phill and I are developing a caper film that we are co-writing and co-directing to shoot in Venice, Italy.

Interview: June 2018

We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela

Searching For Fortune

With the news of his brother's death, Michael's world is turned upside down as he begins a journey of self-assessment, self-reflection, and self-discovery.

Length: 87 min

Director: Joseph Matarrese

Producer: Mandi Reno, Phillip Matarrese

Writer: Brian Smolensky

About the writer, director and producer:

JOSEPH and PHILLIP MATARRESE are film makers from the San Francisco Bay Area. They enjoy telling unique stories about interesting characters.

MANDI RENO has been working with the Matarrese Bros for the past ten years developing quality projects with stories worth telling.

Key cast: Brian Smolensky, Christina Moore & John Heard

Looking for: journalists & audience to watch and share the film.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SearchingForFortune/

Instagram: @mandireno OR @thematbros

Made in association with: Distant Thunder Films

Where can I watch it next and in the coming month?

It will be available to buy or rent on Amazon Video.