Ryan O’Toole and Sam Kamras share a relationship that’s worthy of the big screen.
The two are working on a film titled On The Last Day that will premiere at the New Brunswick Silver Wave Film Festival in November. O’Toole wrote the script, directed and starred alongside Kamras as his leading lady.
“Artistically we are on the same level. We understand each other creatively and that’s rare,” said O’Toole.
Kamras was accepted into the New School of Drama in New York to attain her Masters of Fine Arts last year but stayed in Fredericton for personal reasons. The 2012 St. Thomas grad plans to go to New York and continue her education. O’Toole is in his last year at the University of New Brunswick.
They’re relationship began last summer when the two became close friends during filming for That Cowboy Kid. The short film was in the Silver Wave film festival last year.
“It’s about this kid [Dirk] who dresses up as a cowboy and has a crush on a girl,” said O’Toole.
Dirk was played by St. Thomas student David Cheney who went to high school with O’Toole and is good friends with Kamras.
The film won excellence in art direction for O’Toole and best actress for Kamras’ portrayal of the character Molly.
“She [Molly] was fun, vibrant and full of laughter. She bounced on her feet as she walked,” said Kamras.
“It was a lot of fun. There were five or six of us on the set. It was just making a movie with friends. I loved it,” said Kamras.
A constant theme in O’Toole’s film career is working with friends. He said he loves that he can do both, work in filmmaking and work with friends.
Another friend and STU student, Cedric Noel, did the soundtrack for That Cowboy Kid and his now working on the music for On The Last Day. The front man for Fredericton’s Redwood Fields is Kamras’ roommate.
The new film is about facing death and being in love. Kamras and O’Toole take on the lead roles.
O’Toole’s knack for creating complex characters is brought to the forefront in the leading character’s relationship, said Kamras.
“He has an entire history for these characters which is why I think the chemistry that you see on screen is so precise,” she said. “When he started talking to me about On The Last Day I got very excited. We’d go for wings and beer and talk about the script, talk a lot about my character because she’s fairly complicated and not like me in anyway.”
Michel Guitard, the director at CinemaTick in Fredericton, picked up on O’Toole’s talent at last year’s festival. Guitard volunteered his time and equipment for On The Last Day and filmed the entire short.
“It has made On The Last Day a lot more technically appealing,” said Kamras. “Technically, the movie is stunning. Bruce and Michel have done some crazily-creative things and rigged some ridiculous shots for us. It’s been wild.”
The film runs 25 minutes. O’Toole is enthusiastic and eager to make much longer films but for now enjoys the NB short-film scene.
“There’s a definite scene for young filmmakers in Fredericton,” he said.
He said he’s inspired by directors like Paul Thomas Anderson, “Sofia Coppola, Mike Mills and Martin Scorsese.”
