Action comedy mini-movie “The Big Break” debuts online on Vice on Thursday, January 17

With aspirations of fame, two actors Will Kavanaugh (Gil Freston) and Jon Lieberman (David Shabtai) meet for lunch at a prototypical health restaurant in West Hollywood during pilot season, that golden period for successful actors to audition for new TV shows.  Unfortunately, their meeting spirals into a deadly altercation with a spin class instructor that escalates into a shootout with Lieutenant Ramirez (David Arquette) and the police.  VICE Media, the world’s leading global youth media brand, will premiere action comedy mini-movie THE BIG BREAK, written and directed by Gil Freston (Paladar) and starring David Arquette (Scream), on VICE.com tomorrow, January 17.

A struggling actor, a delusional director, a two-faced talent agent, and a Gen-X cop collide when they realize that they and everyone around them are spinning a web of lies. When friends and aspiring actors, Will and Jon meet for lunch at a prototypical health restaurant in West Hollywood, their meeting spirals into a deadly altercation with a spin class instructor that escalates into a shootout with the police. The duo battle their way across Los Angeles with the media and social media influencers capturing their every move and arrive at their talent agency where they take their agent hostage. In a blockbuster finale atop Runyon Canyon, the aspiring power players realize that ultimate survival in Hollywood often comes at the high price for fame and…their egos.

The cast includes David Arquette who plays Lieutenant Ramirez, David Shabtai (The Amazing Spider-Man 2) as Jon Lieberman, Gil Freston as Will Kavanaugh, Michael Vlamis  (CW’s Roswell) as Michael Glazer, Isabelle McNally (A&E’s Bates Motel, Frances Ha) as Grace Barnett, Thomas Cocquerel (Billionaire Boys Club, Table 19, In Like Flynn) as Officer Eckhart, Brittany Furlan (social media star appearing in Netflix’s American Meme,) as Fable Rae, Ammar Kandil & Thomas Brag aka YES Theory (Social Media Stars)  Jude B. Lanston (Magic Funhouse) as Sergeant Bates, Elizabeth Turner (Social Media Star) as Kate Davenport, stunt performer Eddie Davenport (Logan) as Matty, Alexis Beckley (Room for Improvement) as Chloe Perkins, Richard Kohnke (The Billionaire Boys Club) as Brooks Weaver the Waiter,  Aaron Jay-Smith (You) as Writer, Frank Mercuri as LAPD Officer, Deina Torres as LAPD Officer, Angelique Yalda as LAPD Officer and Al Burke as LAPD Sergeant. For select scenes from film, see photos below.

Director Gil Freston’s vision was to bring an epic scale narrative into a short mini-movie format, and he did just that.  Inspired by the films The Player, Heat and True Romance , visual effects, and stunt teams from Lethal Weapon, Blade Runner 2049, Hereditary, and Cloverfield created the 90’s blockbuster movie effects.  The film screened as an official selection at the 22nd Annual LA Shorts International Film Festival 2018.

Last night, I had the opportunity attend the LA screening of the film at the United Talent Agency in Beverly Hills and chat with director Gil Frenton along with the cast which included David Arquette, David Shabtai, Jude B. Lanston, Isabelle McNally, Elizabeth Turner, and Eddie Davenport.  Producers Jack Heston, Loren Herbert and Will Meldman also joined the cast during the screening.

Laughter filled the room as characters Will and Jon had to deal with a heightened version of “pilot season”, such as trying to get the attention of their agents, their angst at having to compete with social media influencers, and the pressure to be spectacular.  So for you non-actors, what is pilot season? It’s the time of year from January to March when the hunt for actors to fill roles in new television shows for network TV i.e. ABC, NBC, CBS occurs.   Although pilot season have changed over the years with the dawn of streaming channels such as Netflix and Hulu, pilot season is still that magical time for actors who aim to be cast in the hottest new TV show.  Competition is fierce for directors and actors as Will and Jon try to climb their way to the top.  And networks typically want stars, but one can dream, right?

Don’t be fooled by the comedy. Things take a sharp turn when an accidental death (or was it accidental?) at the talent agency occurs. There’s a reason this is called an action drama!  As Lieutenant Ramirez seeks retribution, expect to see helicopters, gun shootouts, and police chases.  As Will and Jon try to escape the wrath of the LAPD and Lieutenant Ramirez, it makes you wonder–is the price of fame worth it?  It was a well made action packed film which I thoroughly enjoyed, and I know audiences will too.

Stay tuned for interviews with the director and select cast online with Eclipse Magazine.

And make sure to go to www.vice.com tomorrow, January 17 and catch the premiere and full film of “The Big Break” online at https://video.vice.com/en_us/video/vice-shorts-the-big-break/5c3e3f6fbe407779091d4b9d!

Instagram:  @thebigbreakmovie

Courtesy of Vice Media