''Grown Up Movie Star'' is a 2010 Canadian drama film written, directed and co-produced by

Adriana Maggs Adriana Maggs is a Canadian film and television actress, writer and director, best known for her debut feature film ''Grown Up Movie Star''.Mongrel Media Mongrel Media is an independent Canadian film distributor established in 1994 by Hussain Amarshi. It is the exclusive Canadian theatrical distributor for Sony Pictures Classics, Neon, and Lionsgate and titles from A24, Amazon Studios, Saban Film ...

Plot

Ray is a former ice hockey player who is convicted of drug charges for smuggling drugs following his first game in the

NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

. After he comes back to his Newfoundland home, his wife Lillian leaves to seek fame in Hollywood with another man. Ray is left with his daughters, high schooler Ruby and her 11-year-old sister Rose. Ray pursues a homosexual relationship with gym teacher James, while avoiding the advances of Jennifer. After Ruby catches her father with James, she explores her sexuality with newly arrived American student Will, her best friend Laura, and Ray's best friend Stuart. Stuart is a paraplegic, shot in a hunting accident by Ray (causing Ray to import the drugs to help Stuart make money). The drama examines the dynamic of the strained and uncertain relationships of all parties.

Cast

Shawn Doyle Shawn Doyle (born September 19, 1968) is a Canadian actor known for his roles in ''The Expanse'', '' The Eleventh Hour'', ''Big Love'', '' 24'', ''Desperate Housewives'', and '' Star Trek: Discovery''. Early life and education Doyle was born an ...

as Ray Fry *

Tatiana Maslany Tatiana Gabriele Maslany ( ; born September 22, 1985) is a Canadian actress. She rose to prominence for playing multiple characters in the science fiction thriller television series ''Orphan Black'' (2013–2017), which won her a Primetime Emmy ...

as Ruby Fry *

Jonny Harris Jonathan Harris (born September 22, 1975) is a Canadian actor and comedian from Newfoundland and Labrador.Mark O'Brien as Will * Steve Cochrane as James * Andy Jones as Bill *

Sherry White Sherry White is a Canadian film and television actress, writer and filmmaker, best known for her work as a producer and writer for the television series ''MVP'', ''Rookie Blue'' and ''Saving Hope''Susan Kent as Jennifer * Mary Walsh as Receptionist

Production

The film was produced by St. John's based Pope Productions. Filming was conducted in

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

at Flatrock and St. John's. The cast included every member of comedy team Dance Party of Newfoundland. The soundtrack was written by

Elliott Brood Elliott Brood (often stylized as Elliott BROOD) is a Canadian three-piece, alternative country band formed in 2002 in Toronto, consisting of Mark Sasso on lead vocals, guitar, banjo, ukulele, harmonica, and kazoo, Casey Laforet on guitar, lead vo ...

. The province of Newfoundland provided over in funding support.

Telefilm Canada Telefilm Canada is a Crown corporation reporting to Canada's federal government through the Minister of Canadian Heritage. Headquartered in Montreal, Telefilm provides services to the Canadian audiovisual industry with four regional offices in V ...

provided another $440,000 in funding. The Harold Greenberg Fund and the Canadian Film or Video Tax Credit provided additional budgetary support.

Presentations

The film was shown at the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,66 ...

in January 2010 and at the festival it won the "World Cinema Special Jury Prize for Acting".2010 Sundance Film Festival
sundance.org It was released to general audiences in Canada on 29 January 2010.

References

External links