Chicago – Five years after earning praise for his directorial debut, “…Around,” indie filmmaker David Spaltro has returned behind the camera to deliver his second feature. The film, “Things I Don’t Understand” may be many things, but a sophomore slump it is not. Its assured craftsmanship, fine performances and provocative themes have made it one of the most buzzed-about pictures on the festival circuit.
Molly Ryman stars as Violet, a jaded grad student who develops a friendship with two outsiders—a mysterious bartender, Parker (Aaron Mathias), and a cancer-stricken teen, Sara (Grace Folsom). Meanwhile, Violet’s eccentric roommates, Gabby (Meissa Hampton) and Remy (Hugo Dillon), struggle to avoid getting evicted from their cozy loft. Beautifully lensed by cinematographer Gus Sacks, the film explores faith, doubt, friendship and the beauty that can be found in catharsis. Spaltro served as writer, producer, director and editor on the picture, which has already garnered various awards this year.
Molly Ryman stars as Violet, a jaded grad student who develops a friendship with two outsiders—a mysterious bartender, Parker (Aaron Mathias), and a cancer-stricken teen, Sara (Grace Folsom). Meanwhile, Violet’s eccentric roommates, Gabby (Meissa Hampton) and Remy (Hugo Dillon), struggle to avoid getting evicted from their cozy loft. Beautifully lensed by cinematographer Gus Sacks, the film explores faith, doubt, friendship and the beauty that can be found in catharsis. Spaltro served as writer, producer, director and editor on the picture, which has already garnered various awards this year.
- 7/25/2012
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
David Spaltro's Things I Don't Understand is a wonderful independent film set in New York City that has been selected at numerous film festivals and won a number of prestigious awards over the past few months. The film's lead actress Molly Ryman gave a wonderful performance, for which she was recently awarded Best Actress at the Northwest Ohio Independent Film Festival. I sat down with Molly to talk about acting, life and independent filmmaking. Can you tell us a bit about yourself? Oh goodness. Well, I am originally from Minnesota. I have an incredible family though I have always felt like the odd ball. I've always been a bit of a daydreamer so my family has been good at keeping me (somewhat) practical. I...
- 7/17/2012
- Screen Anarchy
Things I Don’t Understand
Written by David Spaltro
Directed by David Spaltro
USA, 2012
Of the many unanswerable metaphysical questions that surround life, the most confounding, ironically, are those that concern death. Humanity’s pathological and evolutionary imperative to survive has driven us to try and rationalize our collective eventualities, in hopes to both understand and maybe, just maybe, bring about some kind of curative. An endeavor first taken on by philosophers, their eloquent scribblings only conciliate the fact that we still don’t know the nature of death.
Some filmmakers, whom are, what some would argue, our modern philosophers, still strive to enlighten by using cinema as a breakthrough meditative medium. Writer and director David Spaltro comes from this particular school of thought, but, like his forbearers, his contributions to the discourse are fairly nominal.
A film peppered with macabre musings à la Richard Linklater, his aptly titled Things I Don’t Understand,...
Written by David Spaltro
Directed by David Spaltro
USA, 2012
Of the many unanswerable metaphysical questions that surround life, the most confounding, ironically, are those that concern death. Humanity’s pathological and evolutionary imperative to survive has driven us to try and rationalize our collective eventualities, in hopes to both understand and maybe, just maybe, bring about some kind of curative. An endeavor first taken on by philosophers, their eloquent scribblings only conciliate the fact that we still don’t know the nature of death.
Some filmmakers, whom are, what some would argue, our modern philosophers, still strive to enlighten by using cinema as a breakthrough meditative medium. Writer and director David Spaltro comes from this particular school of thought, but, like his forbearers, his contributions to the discourse are fairly nominal.
A film peppered with macabre musings à la Richard Linklater, his aptly titled Things I Don’t Understand,...
- 6/19/2012
- by Justin Li
- SoundOnSight
Hugo Dillon and Molly Ryman in "Things I Don't Understand"
Someday, everyone you know won’t exist. Tomorrow doesn’t matter until it’s today. No one makes it through life unscathed, in one way or another.
These are just a few of the lessons found in “Things I Don’t Understand,” a small indie rumination with big pretensions. In his follow up to his debut feature “…Around” (2008), director David Spaltro gets ambitious and tackles life’s essential questions: what happens when we die? why are we here? what does it mean to love? how can we accept death?
Violet is an aloof grad student hoping to discern life’s indiscernible mysteries through her study of death and beyond. Along the way she’s befriended, challenged and enlightened by a terminally ill woman and a cagey bartender, and faces the realities of adult life with her boisterous artist roommates.
As in his debut “…Around,...
Someday, everyone you know won’t exist. Tomorrow doesn’t matter until it’s today. No one makes it through life unscathed, in one way or another.
These are just a few of the lessons found in “Things I Don’t Understand,” a small indie rumination with big pretensions. In his follow up to his debut feature “…Around” (2008), director David Spaltro gets ambitious and tackles life’s essential questions: what happens when we die? why are we here? what does it mean to love? how can we accept death?
Violet is an aloof grad student hoping to discern life’s indiscernible mysteries through her study of death and beyond. Along the way she’s befriended, challenged and enlightened by a terminally ill woman and a cagey bartender, and faces the realities of adult life with her boisterous artist roommates.
As in his debut “…Around,...
- 5/2/2012
- by Eric M. Armstrong
- The Moving Arts Journal
I believed we ought to support this film! Watch the trailer below and you'll know why. tMF will post a review asap.
Says Indie filmmaker David Spaltro:
Last year I completed my first feature film "...Around", starring Rob Evans and Molly Ryman, a labor of love about a young man with a dual life "living" out of Penn and Grand Central Station while going to film school, based on my own personal experiences a few years ago in this city. 21 shooting days, 190 locations all over the city, self-financed and done for $175,000 or 40 credit cards... no, seriously.
- - -
In the meantime, here's more about the movie...
About the film: Around, a film about "finding home" and a real love-letter to the city of New York. Doyle Simms grows up across the Hudson from NYC and flees his toxic family to attend a film program there. After a bumpy first...
Says Indie filmmaker David Spaltro:
Last year I completed my first feature film "...Around", starring Rob Evans and Molly Ryman, a labor of love about a young man with a dual life "living" out of Penn and Grand Central Station while going to film school, based on my own personal experiences a few years ago in this city. 21 shooting days, 190 locations all over the city, self-financed and done for $175,000 or 40 credit cards... no, seriously.
- - -
In the meantime, here's more about the movie...
About the film: Around, a film about "finding home" and a real love-letter to the city of New York. Doyle Simms grows up across the Hudson from NYC and flees his toxic family to attend a film program there. After a bumpy first...
- 2/19/2010
- by modelwatcher@gmail.com (Jed Medina)
- The Movie Fanatic
I believed we ought to support this film! Watch the trailer below and you'll know why. tMF will post a review asap.
Says Indie filmmaker David Spaltro:
Last year I completed my first feature film "...Around", starring Rob Evans and Molly Ryman, a labor of love about a young man with a dual life "living" out of Penn and Grand Central Station while going to film school, based on my own personal experiences a few years ago in this city. 21 shooting days, 190 locations all over the city, self-financed and done for $175,000 or 40 credit cards... no, seriously.
- - -
In the meantime, here's more about the movie...
About the film: Around, a film about "finding home" and a real love-letter to the city of New York. Doyle Simms grows up across the Hudson from NYC and flees his toxic family to attend a film program there. After a bumpy first...
Says Indie filmmaker David Spaltro:
Last year I completed my first feature film "...Around", starring Rob Evans and Molly Ryman, a labor of love about a young man with a dual life "living" out of Penn and Grand Central Station while going to film school, based on my own personal experiences a few years ago in this city. 21 shooting days, 190 locations all over the city, self-financed and done for $175,000 or 40 credit cards... no, seriously.
- - -
In the meantime, here's more about the movie...
About the film: Around, a film about "finding home" and a real love-letter to the city of New York. Doyle Simms grows up across the Hudson from NYC and flees his toxic family to attend a film program there. After a bumpy first...
- 2/19/2010
- by modelwatcher@gmail.com (Jed Medina)
- The Movie Fanatic
I believed we ought to support this film! Watch the trailer below and you'll know why. tMF will post a review asap.
Says Indie filmmaker David Spaltro:
Last year I completed my first feature film "...Around", starring Rob Evans and Molly Ryman, a labor of love about a young man with a dual life "living" out of Penn and Grand Central Station while going to film school, based on my own personal experiences a few years ago in this city. 21 shooting days, 190 locations all over the city, self-financed and done for $175,000 or 40 credit cards... no, seriously.
- - -
In the meantime, here's more about the movie...
About the film: Around, a film about "finding home" and a real love-letter to the city of New York. Doyle Simms grows up across the Hudson from NYC and flees his toxic family to attend a film program there. After a bumpy first...
Says Indie filmmaker David Spaltro:
Last year I completed my first feature film "...Around", starring Rob Evans and Molly Ryman, a labor of love about a young man with a dual life "living" out of Penn and Grand Central Station while going to film school, based on my own personal experiences a few years ago in this city. 21 shooting days, 190 locations all over the city, self-financed and done for $175,000 or 40 credit cards... no, seriously.
- - -
In the meantime, here's more about the movie...
About the film: Around, a film about "finding home" and a real love-letter to the city of New York. Doyle Simms grows up across the Hudson from NYC and flees his toxic family to attend a film program there. After a bumpy first...
- 2/19/2010
- by modelwatcher@gmail.com (Jed Medina)
- The Movie Fanatic
I believed we ought to support this film! Watch the trailer below and you'll know why. tMF will post a review asap.
Says Indie filmmaker David Spaltro:
Last year I completed my first feature film "...Around", starring Rob Evans and Molly Ryman, a labor of love about a young man with a dual life "living" out of Penn and Grand Central Station while going to film school, based on my own personal experiences a few years ago in this city. 21 shooting days, 190 locations all over the city, self-financed and done for $175,000 or 40 credit cards... no, seriously.
- - -
In the meantime, here's more about the movie...
About the film: Around, a film about "finding home" and a real love-letter to the city of New York. Doyle Simms grows up across the Hudson from NYC and flees his toxic family to attend a film program there. After a bumpy first...
Says Indie filmmaker David Spaltro:
Last year I completed my first feature film "...Around", starring Rob Evans and Molly Ryman, a labor of love about a young man with a dual life "living" out of Penn and Grand Central Station while going to film school, based on my own personal experiences a few years ago in this city. 21 shooting days, 190 locations all over the city, self-financed and done for $175,000 or 40 credit cards... no, seriously.
- - -
In the meantime, here's more about the movie...
About the film: Around, a film about "finding home" and a real love-letter to the city of New York. Doyle Simms grows up across the Hudson from NYC and flees his toxic family to attend a film program there. After a bumpy first...
- 2/19/2010
- by modelwatcher@gmail.com (Jed Medina)
- The Movie Fanatic
I believed we ought to support this film! Watch the trailer below and you'll know why. tMF will post a review asap.
Says Indie filmmaker David Spaltro:
Last year I completed my first feature film "...Around", starring Rob Evans and Molly Ryman, a labor of love about a young man with a dual life "living" out of Penn and Grand Central Station while going to film school, based on my own personal experiences a few years ago in this city. 21 shooting days, 190 locations all over the city, self-financed and done for $175,000 or 40 credit cards... no, seriously.
- - -
In the meantime, here's more about the movie...
About the film: Around, a film about "finding home" and a real love-letter to the city of New York. Doyle Simms grows up across the Hudson from NYC and flees his toxic family to attend a film program there. After a bumpy first...
Says Indie filmmaker David Spaltro:
Last year I completed my first feature film "...Around", starring Rob Evans and Molly Ryman, a labor of love about a young man with a dual life "living" out of Penn and Grand Central Station while going to film school, based on my own personal experiences a few years ago in this city. 21 shooting days, 190 locations all over the city, self-financed and done for $175,000 or 40 credit cards... no, seriously.
- - -
In the meantime, here's more about the movie...
About the film: Around, a film about "finding home" and a real love-letter to the city of New York. Doyle Simms grows up across the Hudson from NYC and flees his toxic family to attend a film program there. After a bumpy first...
- 2/19/2010
- by modelwatcher@gmail.com (Jed Medina)
- The Movie Fanatic
Trailer for "...Around", which is directed and written by David Spaltro and inspired by his experiences attending the film program School of Visual Arts (Sva) in NYC from 2001-2005.
The film stars Molly Ryman, Marcel Torres, Ron Brice, Berenice Mosca, Veronica Heffron and Robert W. Evans in teh lead as Doyle Simms.
"one of the most powerfully moving and genuinely uplifting films I’ve seen in a very long time." ... PulpMovies
Review at LateMag
www.aroundthefilm.com
Read More
tags: drama, independent film, low budget...
The film stars Molly Ryman, Marcel Torres, Ron Brice, Berenice Mosca, Veronica Heffron and Robert W. Evans in teh lead as Doyle Simms.
"one of the most powerfully moving and genuinely uplifting films I’ve seen in a very long time." ... PulpMovies
Review at LateMag
www.aroundthefilm.com
Read More
tags: drama, independent film, low budget...
- 4/6/2009
- by Leigh
- Latemag.com/film
Like many other film critics of my generation, I learned the ins and outs of my unpaid trade at film school (Emerson College in Boston, to be specific). Being thrust into a snake pit of not-yet adults competing against one another with their poorly constructed ideas sharpens you in a way that merely watching films cannot, so I am optimistic about film criticism’s future. If, however, you are unable or unwilling to attend film school, but would still like to know exactly what I’m talking about, I suggest that you get your hands on a copy of the film …Around. While it’s not an especially good movie, it is perhaps a perfect representation of the so-called ‘film school instinct,’ or that youthful artistic compulsion that causes so many misguided, unilluminating, self-indulgent short films to be made. Except this isn’t a short. It’s a whole damn movie.
- 3/13/2009
- by Anders Nelson
- JustPressPlay.net
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.