Three Way Collision Hits Big Screen

Right Question and Wrong Answer Twists Lives of Couple

Sometimes a man and a woman have an understanding, only they understand.  But in most relationships, it’s a sure bet a woman dating a man will lose her composure, when condoms fall out of her boyfriend’s jacket and another woman leaves the man a seductive voice mail. Instinctively the woman becomes a detective and the man is certainly guilty as charged.

Photo courtesy of Julian Renner

In Julian Renner’s film “The Three Way,” which recently screened at the Reel Independent Film Extravaganza in Washington, DC, 20-something Tasha and Mike, a young couple makes life-changing decisions about their relationship. Throw in a secret pregnancy, a marriage proposal and infidelity and Renner has the perfect emotional gumbo that keeps viewers interested and glued to the screen. “I just started writing a movie about a guy who was cheating on his girlfriend and how he was going to keep it going and not get caught,” says Renner. 

Julian Renner & Maniko Barthelemy at the West End Cinema host of the Reel Independent Film Extravaganza

Tasha loves Mike and they share a cozy apartment, living like a married couple. Their lives seem quite predictable both work a decent job and on some level share the bills. You pull for the two to make it in the beginning because there are so many similarities and they honestly make a cute couple. “This is a movie you have to see from beginning to end otherwise you miss the love connection that could come between the two actors,” says Renner.

The ugliness that unravels after Tasha surprises Mike by coming home early to fix dinner pulls you into a world that’s a healthy balance of a soap opera and a reality show, starring people who are lot like you and me.  Tasha finds condoms in Mike’s work shirt, so she picks up the phone and calls her two most trusted friends. Mike counters Tasha’s plan with his own by calling a gay male co-worker to come over and explain the condoms drama to Tasha.

Film production photo courtesy of Julian Renner.
Shane Jacobsen (Sam) and Delance Minefee (Mike)

Everyone in this film learns a valuable lesson; never ask a piercing question about life and love, if you’re not really prepared to deal with the answer. 

Film production photo courtesy of Julian Renner.
 Sofia Rodriguez (Fiona) and Medina Senghore (Dee)

Here’s a link to the Web site for “The Three Way,” http://thethreewaymovie.com/THE_THREE_WAY_MOVIE/CAST_WAY_4.html and keep your eyes peeled for the film coming to a theater near you. Of course, don’t forget to like the Facebook page here, https://www.facebook.com/Threewaymovie, and leave a comment on the page for the cast and crew.

Sofia Rodriguez (Fiona), Maniko Barthelemy, Spencer Johnson (RIFE founder) and Karma Berry (Tasha)

You can e-mail your comments about this article directly to Maniko Barthelemy at NewsHeels@gmail.com.

Film Shows Gift as Burden and Blessing

Can you forgive someone who devalues you? Is your spouse a gift from God that you appreciate or marginalize? Is your talent more important than your gift? Film producer and director Harold Jackson III  poses and answers those conscious piercing questions in his latest film, The Gift.

The Gift clears the static and puts a microscope on the turbulent life of best-selling author, Ezekiel Anderson, who’s so successful he sees life through eyes wide shut. Anderson’s ambition to score the next big book deal clouds his judgment and puts him at a spiritual crossroads.

Through the escalating twists and turns as Anderson strives to reach for material stars, everyone sees the glitter and gold mask tarnish his foundation. His wife and marriage take a backseat as Anderson’s popularity grows.  A chance meeting with a fisherman points the author in the right direction but it may be too late. Perhaps appreciation for those who love us the most is the subliminal lesson in Jackson’s film.

Here’s a link to trailer for The Gift, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VtZ_RGBvDHk.

Jackson is also the producer of Burn, a documentary that takes an in-depth and emotional look at a little known race riot in 1921. Here’s the link to the trailer for Burn.

Recently, in Washington, D.C. the third annual Reel Independent Film Extravaganza held at West End Cinema, rolled out the red carpet for Jackson and a host of independent film producers who beat the competition for a coveted opportunity to screen in the nation’s capitol. The Gift, The Three Way, and The Pharmacist, are a few of the short narrative films that made the cut. Over the next three days on this blog, we’ll bring you a short review of all three films and link you to the trailers. Hopefully, you’ll be able to watch one or all at a theater in your city. For more information about the Reel Independent Film Extravaganza, log on to http://www.reelindependentfilm.com/films.cfm.

(photo courtesy of Julian Renner)

Join us tomorrow for a look at The Three Way, a feature film written and directed by Julian Renner. It’s full of drama, comedy, and reality. Don’t assume anything by the title because your perception may be completely wrong.

Please e-mail your comments directly to Maniko Barthelemy at NewsHeels@gmail.com. 

Gay, Straight and Living in the Middle of the Debate

When voters across the country head to the polls November 6, Maryland residents will vote on something just as important and vital as selecting the president of the United States. What’s the definition of marriage? Is gay marriage a civil rights issue or something different? From politicians to activists, professional athletes, clergy, and entertainers, everyone has an opinion or the perfect answer to all the questions.  

In the coming weeks Marylanders will undoubtedly get hit with a flood of television, radio and Internet ads supporting and opposing the legalization same-sex marriage. But how does it fill to live your life in the middle of the reality that hides behind some traditional marriages? Reportedly there are nearly two million people married to someone who’s secretly gay.

In “I Thought It Was Forever,” a soon-to-be released documentary, seven people remove the convoluted opinion static that routinely arises and periodically results in shouting matches on both sides of legalizing same-sex marriage. The cast candidly reveals the emotional, mental, physical and sexual turmoil that forced them all to face a decision they’d avoided, some for more than 30 years. Below is an introduction to two cast members.

Photo courtesy of Melissa

Melissa, like many women, wants to know and treasure the feeling of peace, passion and protection that comes with a marriage. “Sometimes you don’t love someone forever,” says Melissa.  For years, her life was like an emotionally detached marathon full of potholes, every one bigger than the other. “He threw me so hard one day I hit the door and the hinges fell off,” says Melissa. She says the extreme and escalating physical violence she endured at the hands of her ex-husband was the result of him hiding a secret. “He kept it hidden for 20 years because he knew what my father had said,” says Melissa.  How did Melissa tell her two young daughters what was happening to their father and what his change meant for the whole family?

Photo courtesy of Marc

Marc is a father of four children and he’s comfortable as a gay man but for nearly 20 years he was not. “I struggled with what to do with all of those feelings and I was scared mostly of losing the woman I’d loved since I was 12,” says Marc. Marriage counseling, sex addiction therapy and holding out hope for the thoughts to “work themselves out” failed.  So how did Marc keep his secret affairs away from his family? When did he finally decide it was time to tell his wife? Are they friends today?

You can see the “I Thought It Was Forever” trailer, find out the answers more questions and meet the entire “I Thought It Was Forever” cast on the film’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/pages/I-Thought-It-Was-Forever/266635793379198.

Photo courtesy of Jeff Ray

“I Thought It Was Forever” is a Southern Belle Productions film, directed by Maniko Barthelemy and Lawrence Dortch. We invite you to leave a comment on this page or e-mail Maniko Barthelemy directly at NewsHeels@gmail.com.