UPDATE: The Raven film premiere event on July 31 will be postponed until next year, according to event producers Hannah Levin and Okalani Luna.
In a statement to SoCoNews, Levin and Luna said of the postponement, “We regret to announce that we will be postponing the premiere of ‘Mary-Anne: Barnhouse Dames.’ With the COVID-19 delta variant spreading in Sonoma County and with the risk it poses, especially to children 12 and under, it would make more sense to aim the event for next year when we hope it will be safer to bring the whole community together.”
Two recent Bay Area high school graduates who filmed a short film at a local Healdsburg farm in 2019 are now set to premiere their film at The Raven Performing Arts Theatre on July 31. All ticket proceeds will go to Reach for Home.
The short film, “Barnhouse Dames,” is the second in a series titled “Mary-Anne,” created by Design Tech High School graduates Hannah Levin and Okalani Luna.
The series takes place in the 1930s and follows two sisters, Mary and Anne, who have recently gone bankrupt and have to adjust to a life without riches.
According to Levin and Luna, the series was born out of their student Era Club at Design Tech High in Redwood City. Over a summer break, the two were trying to think of ways to get more students interested in the club and they came up with the idea of filming skits.
With help from other students, the five-minute skit eventually turned into a 15-minute film and the duo set their sights on creating a second short film.
“We had this idea that we wanted it to be set on a 1930s-looking farm with a barn and we really wanted a pig,” Levin said. “We had a list of around 20 farms and we emailed, called and left voicemails to all of those farms that we researched and none of them really worked out for what we were looking for.”
Levin then met Healdsburg resident Gail Jonas during a camping trip at Yosemite National Forest in the summer of 2019.
The two got to talking and Levin mentioned their film and that they were looking for a farm where they could shoot their film and Jonas suggested a Healdsburg farm location.
“We came over Labor Day weekend and filmed it here in Healdsburg and we involved the community with a bunch of extras of local Healdsburg residents,” Levin said.
Levin and Luna both served as producers, script-writers and actors for the film. Levin played Anne and Luna played Mary.
They used camera equipment from another fellow student filmmaker, Gialina “Kate” Messiana and audio work was done with a boom mic provided by a school parent.
Now that their film is complete and that COVID restrictions have relaxed, the two filmmakers can finally wrap up their “Mary-Anne” journey with a fun-filled premiere that aims to not only raise money for Reach for Home, but to encourage and inspire youth artists, creators and filmmakers.
“Now we just really want to give back to the community. We want to premiere it here where it all started,” Levin said.
Premiere details
“We have a lot of activities planned. The main feature event is our premiere of the film, it’s 20 minutes,” Levin said.
The entire premiere event will be from 6 to 9 p.m. and a laser show produced by one of the film crew members will kick off and close the show.
Levin — who’s also a competitive ballroom dancer — will perform with her partner during the premiere.
“I was just so impressed with her dancing,” Jonas recalled of the night she met Levin at Yosemite National Forest where Levin happened to be camping and doing an impromptu performance.
Jonas said she’s glad the event will showcase young talent and she hopes others will be inspired.
“My take on this is we are showcasing (talent) and bringing young people with energy and talent here to show what can be done to inspire others and then in turn, help our people and the shelterless residents,” Jonas said.
Reach for Home serves Windsor, Cloverdale and Healdsburg.
“This will be for Healdsburg residents for their day to day expenses, there’s no fund for that. The really important one for the community is that we get them camp grills and fire extinguishers, because their campfires cause more fires, so that is a big focus of our fundraising effort,” Jonas said.
“I really hope we can get the youth to come to the event … I just really hope that we can inspire people (in the arts),” Levin said.
With the idea of wanting to attract more youth and families, Jonas created a Healdsburg “Stay and Play” flyer for folks who attend the premiere.
The flyer features an activity guide for folks and suggested activities include visiting the Healdsburg High School “Hopeful Monsters” exhibit at the Cerri site; riding a bike; kayaking down the Russian River; hiking at Riverfront Regional Park; going to a Prune Packers baseball game; going on a guided tree walk around Healdsburg and visiting Dragonfly Farms, or the Healdsburg Museum and the Hand Fan Museum.
For “Barnhouse Dames” event and ticket information, visit the Raven website, where ticket information and prices will be announced soon.
