(Featured photo: Actors and filmmakers from The First Step were in Augusta Jan. 20 for a film premiere)
Augusta rolled out the red carpet on Jan. 20 for an independent film with a score written by a Thomson teen.
Created by Texas filmmakers Julie and Jerry Loncon of Studio 220 Films, “The First Step” focuses on a man dealing with a tragedy that rocks his faith to its core.
Although Jerry Loncon has worked on other films, “The First Step” is the first he and his wife have done on their own. And its title represents where the studio is headed. By making “The First Step,” the Loncons have taken their own first step to making other movies.
A goal, said Julie Loncon at an investors’ dinner Jan. 19, is to show that “Christians are real people.”
They have struggles and have to face challenges
Read more: Thomson teen writes first film score; premiere set for Jan. 20
“God is not a rainbows-and-unicorns type of God,” she said. Yet through the struggles “He loves and cares for each of us.”
She said the audience for their movies isn’t the church, per se, but she hopes to reach others outside the church walls who might resonate with messages of faith and hope.
“The First Step” was filmed in 2023 in the Beaumont, Texas area using local actors; some of whom visited Augusta for the premiere.
Chad Illa-Petersen, who plays the lead role in The First Step, has spent most of his life acting on stage, and it’s something his family is passionate about. He met his wife through theater and their children have gone on to arts-related pursuits. Their son worked for Disney and their daughter is involved in costuming in Utah.
Being in a movie was a different experience for him.
On stage, he said, you follow a character’s complete arc from beginning to end in the span of about two hours, and in that time, as an actor, he immersed himself in making that character as real as possible.
“I did Scrooge a couple of years, and when I came out of the dressing room, people knew Chad was gone,” he said.
In a film, scenes aren’t shot in order, and they are shot multiple times from different angles. That requires producing emotion on demand, which is not an easy task.
For Illa-Petersen’s character, he has to cry.
“We couldn’t get tears,” said Jerry Loncon. “We tried cutting up onions.”
They tried multiple tricks, but nothing worked until Illa-Petersen showed just how dedicated he was to his craft.
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“I put Buffalo wing sauce in the corners of my eyes,” he said.
Josmery Mulvahill, who plays Illa-Petersen’s wife in the film, also comes from a non-film background. A classically trained musician and music teacher in Beaumont, she was excited to be part of the film for multiple reasons.
Being around Jerry and Julie Loncon, she said, was a boost to her own faith. Several years ago, she auditioned in Los Angeles with her music and received a lot of call backs from agents, but they all wanted to know when she was leaving Texas to move to Los Angeles, New York or Atlanta.
Knowing that wasn’t in the cards for her as a mom, she said she put her trust in God that he had plans for her creativity.
“Dreams can be scary,” she said. “It’s amazing what God is able to do with a ragtag group of people saying ‘yes.’ It increased my faith.”
Not only was her faith in God increased, but so was her faith in the Loncons and their visions.
The main reason to hold a premiere in Augusta was to highlight the work of the 18-year-old composer Joseph Caudill. He was unable to attend the premiere because his grandfather died, and the family had to go to Mississippi.
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However, Jerry Loncon said he will never make another film without using Caudill for the score.
Loncon has already filmed a proof of concept scene for his next movie called “Chasing Faith” about a police officer whose life is radically changed after she shoots and kills a teen robbery suspect. He’s currently raising money for its production.
While in Augusta, the Loncons met with representatives from Film Augusta about the possibility of shooting a future project in the area.
Charmain Z. Brackett, the publisher of Augusta Good News and Inspiring: Women of Augusta, has covered Augusta’s news for 35 years. Reach her at charmain@augustagoodnews.com. Sign up for the newsletter here.
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