BEHIND THE LENS #479: Featuring Greg Porper, John Schimke, Jon S. Baird and Steven Rogers

This week on BEHIND THE LENS, we've got a lotta laughs thanks to director/writer/producer GREG PORPER and co-director/co-writer/ and editor JOHN SCHIMKE, who talk about their new, and often side-splitting comedy that opens this Friday, DON'T TELL LARRY. And who doesn't love musical theater, especially fresh off last week's exhilarating Tony Awards? Also on hand talking about their new film and first collaboration, EVERYTHING'S GOING TO BE GREAT, are two filmmakers whose work I have long admired, director JON S. BAIRD and writer/producer STEVEN ROGERS. Kicking things off is my exclusive interview with director JON S. BAIRD and his partner in crime for EVERYTHING'S GOING TO BE GREAT, writer STEVEN ROGERS. EVERYTHING'S GOING TO BE GREAT is a love letter to the theater and everyone who had a dream. A dramedy at heart, as we hear with the rousing opening strains "There's No Business Like Show Business", we meet the Smart family. Led by Buddy and Macy Smart, theirs is an unpredictable life of regional theatre while trying to raise their sons, Les and Derrick. Les dreams of nothing but a future in the theatre (and dare I say that his dreams also include conversations with Tallulah Bankhead, Noel Coward, and Ruth Gordon) while Derrick wants only to stay in one place, go to school, have friends, and play football. Often living on a shoestring, if even that, Buddy refuses to give up on his dreams for the family, while Macy has to try and keep the family together and afloat. A true journey of self-discovery while grappling with identity and belonging, each member of the Smart family learns the power of owning the spotlight, no matter what stage of life you're in. Shifting gears, we move on to laugh-out-loud hilarity with DON'T TELL LARRY, a film that I like to describe as "I Love Lucy" on crack, and my exclusive conversation with co-director/co-writers GREG PORPER and JOHN SCHIMKE. John also serves as the film's editor. Talking with them, I understand completely how the comedic tone of this dark comedy arose. Greg and John are a barrel of laughs themselves. DON'T TELL LARRY is the story of Susan, who tells a harmless little white lie about an office party to her truth-obsessed co-worker Larry in order to secure a promotion. It doesn't take long before she finds herself in over her head when tragedy strikes, and all signs point to Larry as responsible. Terrified her secret will be exposed, Susan ropes in her well-meaning but clueless co-worker Patrick to help cover up her tracks—but every move they make unleashes a whirlwind of chaos. From random drug tests and car explosions to a suspicious detective and a rising body count, Susan's workweek spirals into a full-blown clusterf*ck. http://eliasentertainmentnetwork.com