‘Home’ provides plenty of chills

The crew was shooting the independent film in Alamogordo in January 2011, when New Mexico was under a cold snap and highs were in the single digits.

“While we were filming, the pipes burst in the home we were filming in,” she recalls. “But we continued to shoot because we had to get it done. We worked for a couple days without running water.”

	If you go WHAT: “Home Sweet Home” WHEN: 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 17 WHERE: KiMo Theatre, 423 W. Central HOW MUCH: $10 at www.holdmyticket.com

Now the hard work is paying off. “Home Sweet Home” will premiere at the Albuquerque Film Festival on Friday, Aug. 17, and will screen at the White Sands International Film Festival on Aug. 24.

“It’s been a long road for us and we’ve finally got it done,” she says. “We’re just excited to be premiering our New Mexico-made film in New Mexico.”

In addition to Boylan starring in the film, she also served as a producer.

“Home Sweet Home” follows Gwen Stevens, played by Boylan, who has lost her job, parents, money and apartment. Seeking to regain control of her disintegrating life, Gwen returns to her remote childhood home to sift through her past and focus on a new life. After arriving, she finds that two psychotic squatters – played by Christopher Dempsey and Raquel Cantu – have taken over the residence and begin to terrorize Gwen.

“Gwen then begins to battle for her life and her home,” Boylan says. “It’s a very creepy movie and definitely will have people on the edge of their seat.”

The film was directed by John KD Graham and was written by Boylan’s brother, Andrew. The project of 28 days around Alamogordo, La Luz and a couple of days in Albuquerque.

Boylan says she took a leap of faith with the project.

“This was our first jumping-off-the-cliff project,” she says. “In addition to acting, this was the first feature-length film that I had produced. It was scary to take on, but I knew with the cast and crew that we had, it was going to be fine.”

As far as taking on a horror movie, Boylan says it made sense considering the budget was so minimal.

“There’s a huge audience in the horror genre and the movies usually do well in the market,” she explains. “I’ve learned that every major studio has a division dedicated to distribute horror movies and we’re hoping that we’ll find a home with one of them.”

Boylan says the anticipation is growing for the movie’s premiere at the Albuquerque Film Festival.

She says having a woman as a villain is such a great addition to the film.

“We’ve never screened the movie for more than seven people at a time,” she says. “So it’s going to be interesting to see how people respond to the film, and we’re hoping to take the film on the festival circuit for the rest of the year.

“There was a lot of hard work done behind the scenes. We worked in horrible conditions, but I think it added to the movie.”

Getting a deal: Albuquerque screenwriters Anthony DellaFlora and Michael Gallagher (a Journal investigative reporter) signed an option for their film, “Dead by Thursday.” The pair signed a deal with the Rio Grande Media Group, which is a group of industry veterans who promote the production of film and television in N.M.

“Dead by Thursday” tells the tale of two former drug smugglers who must come out of hiding to save the grandson of a former partner in crime, a Mennonite patriarch. The script calls for filming in several locations around the state, including Albuquerque, Deming, Las Cruces and Grants. RGMC also plans to option another movie script from the duo titled “Duke City,” which is based on an idea by Steven Michael Quezada.

SEND ME YOUR TIPS: If you know of a movie filming in the state, or are curious about one, email film@ABQjournal.com. Follow me on Twitter at @agomezART.