Wesley Nielsen plays a homeless man in the locally shot drama "Present."

Street Wise
A LOCAL FILM PUTS A FACE ON HOMELESSNESS IN JACKSONVILLE

A scruffy; unshaven man sits in a wheelchair near the entrance of an office building. Men and women with cell phones and business suits stride past without a glance. All but one. Joe pauses for a moment and looks at the man before continuing on. His life is about to change forever.

The award-winning, locally shot short film "Present" revolves around the homeless man (played by Wesley Nielsen) and Joe (Chase Carle), an inner-city office worker. Joe befriends the nameless homeless man who, by film's end, gives Joe a gift he will never forget. It's an attempt by co-writer and director Mark O'Brien to put a face on the issue of homelessness. "It is important to understand that [the homeless] are people, not animals," says O'Brien.

With "Present," O'Brien and his co-writers want to dispel myths about homelessness, especially the idea that people are on the streets because they are lazy, unmotivated or criminal. Those stereotypes are all too prevalent, according to Audrey Moran, president and CEO of the Sulzbacher Center in downtown Jacksonville, which provides meals, shelter and health care to the homeless. "For many people, homelessness is the result of a catastrophic illness, the loss of a job or domestic battery;" Moran says. "The face of homelessness is changing here in America. In many instances, it's young mothers with very young children."

According to Moran, the Sulzbacher Center sees about 75 children pass through the center daily. Currently the center has more than 330 residents and reaches capacity every day. Moran says that the more the community understands how and why others become homeless, the more resources the city will devote to preventing homelessness.

For their part, O'Brien and Nielsen want people to open their eyes to Jacksonville's homeless situation. Whether the title "Present" refers to the physical presence of the homeless man everyone ignores or the gift Joe receives at the end is up to the individual viewer. "Everyone gets something different out of it," O'Brien says.

O'Brien, Nielsen and actor/songwriter Charles Beyer are all members of the Jacksonville First Coast chapter of the Florida Motion Picture and Television Association. The trio took home four awards at the 2008 Crystal Reel Awards for their work on the film, which they shot for the 2007 Jacksonville 48-Hour Film Project. Beyer won a Bronze Award for Best Musical Composition in a Short Film. O'Brien won two awards, a Bronze for Best Editing in a Short Film and a Silver for Best Directing in a Short Film. Nielsen won top prize, a Crystal Reel for Best Actor in a Short Film. It's recognition they hope will bring the film to a wider audience.

Beyer has been in the film industry for about two years. A geologist by trade, he has also been composing music for 15 years. In "Present," Beyer wrote and performed the song "Homeless," which is heard at the beginning and end of the film. Beyer also makes an appearance as an anchorman.

O'Brien has also been a member of the FMPTA since 2005. He is also a producer at Lazarus, a Jacksonville production company. Nielsen retired as a Navy pilot in 2003 and began to pursue a career in acting.

Though he understands the commercial viability of a film about the homeless may be limited, O'Brien still feels passionately about his subject. Joe, through his association with his homeless friend, discovers real people are living on the street. And it's this real person who offers him — and viewers — the film's important message.

"I believe film is the most powerful medium," O'Brien says. "Why make a film if you have nothing to say?"

And starring Teresa Arnold-Simmons

Chasing her dream

Local actress finds success during 2007

JAN ANDERSON
Special to The Record
Publication Date: 02/03/08

How many of us have let a dream, cherished early in life, get pushed too far away to rekindle?

How many of us creep quietly through each day, intent on bill paying and duties, forgetting the high-flying childhood exuberance of what we'll be when we grow up?

St. Augustine has the exception: A woman who chose to step out of the tried-and-true, to reach beyond the everyday and reclaim her dream, her passion.

Linda Bevilacqua, a St. Augustine resident for more than 25 years, has shown us that it's worth dusting off old dreams.

She was recently named Top Producer of 2007 by First Coast Talent Agency. Each year, First Coast Talent recognizes the acting professional who is the most requested and booked by clients of the agency.

This is the first time Bevilacqua has received this honor. In addition, she topped the existing record of the highest paid actor in the 10-year history of the agency.

"Linda's acting abilities and professionalism has made her one of the most requested actors this year," said Andrea Jones-Shiver, director of First Coast Talent Agency.

"She is an absolute pro in the commercial, voice over and film industry. Linda has been with FCT for nearly ten years and we are proud to represent her."

Regional talent agency

Established in 1998, FCT is a full service agency serving the North Florida and South Georgia film industry. First Coast Talent is the only regional area agency that exclusively represents professional acting talent.

While it does not handle modeling, scouting, promotional or production, it does actively seek individuals interested in acting and its related lines of business.

FCT currently covers the Jacksonville (and St. Augustine), Savannah and Gainesville market. Expansion plans include Tallahassee and Charleston, S.C.

First Coast Talent Agency has supplied talent for such highly visible national and regional clients as: HBO's "Recount," America's Most Wanted, Ford Motor Company, "Lonely Hearts" (film), Haverty's Furniture, "G.I Jane" (film), Walt Disney Cruise Lines, The NFL, Winn Dixie Supermarkets, Publix Supermarkets, CMT (County Music Television), Safe Harbor (WB series), Bono's Bar-B-Q, Faith Hill (International Recording Artist), Tommy Hilfiger, PGA Tour, Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, McDonald's, Wild Adventures Theme Park and Burger King.

Bevilacqua's acting career

Linda's specific credits include many of those just mentioned as well as a number of public service announcements. Because she is fluent in Spanish, she is in demand for Spanish and English voiceover presentations.

Bevilacqua has always had a passion for acting, and in that passion, she had found more meaning and satisfaction than any other undertaking she's done, except perhaps, surfing.

The catalyst for Bevilacqua to quit her part-time teaching job and focus on acting as a career came about through an unanticipated change in her life.

"I have chosen to bounce back and I have been richly rewarded," she said.

She has reason to believe in the correlation between visualizing a way of life and actually living it. There are many ways to describe this concept, but the most recently popular is the newly resurrected "Law of Attraction," what an individual thinks, feels and envisions comes to happen.

And indeed, for Bevilacqua, this philosophy works.

"I know what I want. It takes planning, effort and luck. I hold on to my vision of what I want to accomplish. Acting is hard work, but it's very fulfilling for me," she said.

"I have worked hard to establish my reputation. When people see me in a commercial or hear me in a voiceover, I feel like they think I'm real. I try to convey a part of me in each job. I love the work. I feel like people respond to that when they see the final effort."

Bevilacqua's Top Producer award was only part of a wonderful year.

She was also chosen to have a part in the HBO film "Recount." In one scene, she directs a line to film star Laura Dern. For Bevilacqua, working on the film set with Dern and actually having dialogue with her as part of the movie "was a dream come true." Bevilacqua went on to say, "Recount used a lot of the actors from First Coast Talent. It was a great opportunity for all of us."

Her path

Moving here from Plantation to attend Flagler College, Bevilacqua dabbled with acting and theater, and upon graduation in 1984, continued honing her skills with various playhouses in town. Bevilacqua recalls her days with local theaters such as Chameleon Theatre, Ancient City Theatre and the Limelight Theatre as "such crazy, wonderful fun."

She took a break for several years after her kids were born, but never lost total sight of her desire to act.

"Most people are not aware that we have such great opportunities in the acting business right here locally. We do excellent work, but we're not in the rush and hassle of the Hollywood or New York City lifestyle," she said.

"I can live and raise my kids in this beautiful, small, mellow place that is St. Augustine, yet still find extraordinarily good acting work."

She does add a caveat to those looking for the glitz and glamour of acting.

"I'm really glad I made the decision to follow my heart. But I can't say I'm making enough money at this point to support my family," Bevilacqua said.

"It's a fun job, but it's a lot of hard work and it's not a lot of money. I have to kick it up a notch and keep doing that if I want to really support us on this dream."

For information or to submit a resume to First Coast Talent Agency, go to www.firstcoasttalent.com or call 356-4244.

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