The Michigan Daily: How would you describe “Dreammaker”?
Christina Morales Hemenway: Usually when people ask me, I say it’s about a psychic who manipulates her Hollywood clients. I say that because I don’t want to give away too much. But it is a dramedy – it’s played straight but you can laugh out loud about it. Basically, it’s all these people who met this psychic, and at first, you’re not sure how their stories are intertwined and eventually you come to understand how they are all related. And eventually, there is a twist ending.
TMD: What inspired the film – perhaps a bad Hollywood experience?
CMH: Well, yes and no. I grew up here in Ann Arbor, and then I left straight out of high school; I was out there for 17 years. I really tried to make it my home – I was struggling in the business and then I finally convinced my husband to move back to Ann Arbor. After I was home, I went to visit – and all the trials and tribulations I had been through suddenly became very funny – So it was a combination of experiences I had in L.A.
TMD: Why did you choose to open the film first in Ann Arbor?
CMH: We did have a cast-and-crew premiere out in Los Angeles, where we shot it, and I’m living out here in Ann Arbor. I also have a relationship with the Michigan Theater, and they agreed to show the film, so I was very excited. The company that we brought together for this film (has an) intention – to create film company (that is) – basically a bridge between the L.A. film community and the Ann Arbor film community. We would like to shoot another feature here in the spring, “Naked Angel.” – I think that (Ann Arborites) have such a great artistic sensibility – they do art for art’s sake.
TMD: What’s next for you and the movie?
CMH: We are submitting to film festivals and we’re also in negotiations with a distributor. I’m hoping we’ll also be able to sell DVDs from our website. Basically, I’ve had about eight projects I’ve (always wanted) to get going. My mom is a poet, and she likens it to being a poet without a piece of paper. It’s so frustrating to have all of these ideas in me for so long and no way to express them, because film is such an expensive medium. But (now they’re) like ‘Okay, we believe in you, we believe in your projects, we’ll just finance them.’ If it were up to me, I’d be like churning them out right now, but I have to wait for the premiere and then go back to it.
– “Dreammaker” opens tonight at 7 p.m. at the Michigan Theater.