Pentwater Productions Presents

LOVE AND

NEAR-DEATH

🏆 Winner 🏆
Atlanta Women's Film Festival
&
Atlanta Comedy Film Festival

Love and Near Death

Storyline

In “Love and Near-Death” at the exact moment, Amanda Turner (Annie Watkins), a thwarted romantic, and down-on-her-luck elementary school art teacher finds out her best friend stole her boyfriend – by text message – she is blindsided by a traumatic near-death experience. As Amanda floats “In between” life and death, she encounters her soulmate, “Scott”. But, just as they’re about to share eternity together in the afterlife, Amanda is pulled back to the living world – and will now do anything to find her true love, in real life – only to find that in the real world, they are far from perfect for each other. What follows is an ambitious, humorous, touching, and twisted, exploration of whether love transcends the boundaries of mortality.

Rising Indy Film and Theater Stars

The film is led by the stunning performances of rising indy film and theater stars, Annie Watkins, who starred as Jan Brady in the Off-Bway production of “The Bardy Bunch”, and Alex Nicholson, who is currently captivating audiences as the Lead Swing for Alexander Hamilton, Burr, Washington, and King George in the National Tour of HAMILTON currently in Los Angeles at the Pantages Theater. Nicholson brings both gravitas and surprising comedic flair to his love interest role of “Scott”, while Annie Watkins delivers a tour-de-force comedic and dramatic performance as Amanda Turner, with her signature balance of charm and vulnerability. Together their chemistry ignites a captivating story that mixes the  genres of Comedy and Romance with twists and surprises, it promises to both melt hearts and tickle funny bones with its unconventional narrative. Rounding out the cast are Television and Broadway legends such as Vasthy Mompoint as the stern and feisty Psychic Medium, Geraldine – Ms. Mompoint has starred on Broadway in musicals such as SpongeBob SquarePants the Musical, The Prom, Rocky, Hot Feet, Ghost, Film/TV: The Prom, High School Musical: The Series), and Stephanie Hogan (Grinding Doubt) plays Katie, Amanda’s best-of-intentioned best friend – who always steals her boyfriends).

Supporting roles include cameos from many well-known New York Television, Film and Theater Actors, Chris D’Amato (Blue Bloods), Ramona Floyd (The Punisher, The Blacklist), Mike Timoney (Star Trek V: The Voyage Home), Lori Hammel (Rob Peace, The Other Two), Jacob Shull (Sesame Street S54); James Prendergast, Erik Ramos, among others.

 

Written by:Stephen Garvey

Directed and Edited by: Jay Stern

Produced by: Joshua Shull

Cinematographer: Alan McIntyre Smith

Composer: Logan Medland

Choreographer: Lorna Ventura

Executive Producers: Joshua Shull, Jay Stern, Annie Watkins, David Watkins, Stephen Garvey

Production Designer: Becca Gialanella

Costume Designer: Sara Frey

Hair, Makeup & SFX Key: Monique-Ann Shull

Post Sound: Noel Jasso

VFX Supervisor: David Piombino

Colorist: Oliver Eid

Original Songs recorded and engineered at Flux Studios, NYC:

Read more about the cast, crew, and reviews.

Cast in Order of Appearance:

Amanda: Annie Watkins

Brianna: Mei Smith

Katie: Stephanie Logan

Medic: Wilson Bienaime

Doctor Timoney: Erik Ramos

Nurse/Dancer 1: Mallory Pettee

Nurse/Dancer 2: Stephanie Young

Clumsy Nurse: Dan Renkin

Scott: Alex Nicholson

Mom: Lori Hammel

Dad: Mike Timoney

Principal: Chris D’Amato

Mrs. Wilcox: Tamar Schoenberg

AJ: Sam Shull

Life Saver: Zane Michael Powell

Geraldine: Vasthy Mompoint

Robert: James Prendergast

NDE Moderator: Ramona Floyd

Bruce: Josh Shull

Tired Kid in Support Group: Jacob Shull

Support Group Member 1: Stephen Garvey

Support Group Member 2: Amanda Wilson

Support Group Member 3: Renn Beard-Galati

Film Crew

1st AD: Thea Brooks

2nd AD: Nate Shull

Production Coordinator: Matthew Martinez

BTS Photographer + Key PA: David Tiger-Cortes

1st AC: Kunga Choephal

2nd AC/DIT: Emma Sabol

Key Grip: Riley Dun

Gaffer: Desta Mutisya

G+E Swing: Dylan Nowinski

Production Designer: Rebecca Gialanella

Set Dresser: Ella Friedman

Key Hair + Makeup Artist: Monique-Ann Shull

Hair + Makeup Artist: Alexis Santos

Wardrobe Designer: Sarah Frey

Wardrobe Assistant: Renn Beard-Galati

Location Managers: LOC8 NY

Sound Mixer/Boom Op: Samuel Perez

Sound Design/Post Engineer: Noel Jasso

Recording Engineer: Daniel Sanint

Colorist: Oliver Eid

Colorist Assistant: Adam Raikovich

VFX Supervisor: David Piombino

VFX Artists: Mila Pominova, T’Naige Wallace, Yeva Vyhovska, Jaydyn Murphy

Casting: Jay Stern, Annie Watkins, Joshua Shull, Thea Brooks

Graphic Design: Amanda Spielman

Music Credits

Original Songs recorded and engineered at Flux Studios, NYC:

“I’m Falling for You”

Composer: Logan Medland

Performed by: Annie Watkins and Alex Nicholson

Guitar: Kevin Kuhn

Produced by: Josh Shull and Jay Stern

Pentwater Productions, 2023

AWARDS

“A unique journey of love, fate, and deep connections will soon unfold with the upcoming 27 minute short film, “Love and Near-Death” by acclaimed filmmakers -Director and editor, Jay Stern; Writer, Stephen Garvey; and Sibling Producers, Annie Watkins and Joshua Shull.”

New York, NY

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