Indie favorite Kevin Corrigan (Kicked in the Head, Walking and Talking) stars in Eric Mandelbaum’s Roberta, the story of a Manhattan computer specialist who goes out on a limb to help a childhood friend.

The emotionally constrained Jonathan (Corrigan) is shocked when a trip to the mean streets of Long Island City reunites him with Roberta, an old friend who’s now working as a prostitute. Honest charity prompts Jonathan to help Roberta. He invites her to move in with him and attempts to find her a job, but he’s ill-equipped to deflect the incredulity of his girlfriend. Soon, Jonathan’s compassion mutates into obsession and disaster ensues. Mandelbaum says several established indie actresses were hot to nail the title role, but he opted to cast unknown Daisy Rojas. Also in the cast are Hal Hartley star Bill Sage and Amy Ryan (The Naked Truth).

A 1982 SUNY Purchase film grad, Mandelbaum is best known for his 1993 short, Bum Deal, starring Corrigan and Isiah Washington. Along with writing credits on two made-for-cable features and some 40 documentaries for the likes of National Geographic and The Discovery Channel, he’s collected credits as production manager or coordinator on some 50 commercial shoots. David Kashkooli, Roberta’s producer, launched his career as a journalist out of Berkeley and honed his film skills producing shorts before heading east for a stint in development at Barwood Films. Kashkooli and Mandelbaum shot Roberta in Super-16mm and used an LLC to raise Roberta’s south-of-a-million financing through private investors.

Roberta shot in Manhattan and Long Island City for 26 days beginning late last October. At press time the filmmakers were inching towards a final cut with editor Sam Adelman. Roberta will be blown up to 35mm this summer; all rights remain available.

Cast: Kevin Corrigan, Daisy Rojas, Amy Ryan, Bill Sage, Johnny Tran, Brian Tarantina, Edward Vassallo. Crew: Producers, David Kashkooli, Eric Mandelbaum; Screenwriter/Director, Mandelbaum; Cinematographer, Kevin Murphy; Production Designer, Katherine Szilagyi; Casting, Stephanie Klapper; Editor, Sam Adelman; Costumes, Lisa Padovani. Contact: David Kashkooli, Moving Parts LLC, 169 West 74th St, #2B, New York, NY 10023. Tel/Fax: (212) 799-5823.

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