An independent film that was shot in Bruce County is getting its theatrical release this weekend.
Loathe Thy Neighbor, featuring Burlington-based actor and co-writer Brennan Clost, was filmed in Arran-Elderslie in 2023.
A preview was shown at Galaxy Cinemas in Owen Sound this week, and featured a question and answer period with those in attendance.
Clost, along with Director Sergio Navarretta spoke with Bayshore News after the film’s premier, sharing how refreshing it was to make a film in a rural setting instead of the big city like they’re used to doing.
“There were, I think, three weeks that I didn’t leave the property,” Clost chuckled. “And I just forgot what it was like to see a stranger.”
He added, “It felt so calm, and quiet and it really felt like how the movie felt, where you’re in a little bubble. And just filming in a big city is never like that.”
What also seemed like a calm, quiet setting, there was a new type of chaos — the cast and crew all lived on the property where they were filming for the entire 7-week shoot.
“It’s a team sport. It’s about camaraderie and when you’re all kind of living, working, and playing together in one space, a lot of really beautiful things can happen,” added Navarretta.
With a small cast and crew of eight people for the entire production, it had to be a team sport.
Both Clost and Navarretta also found the challenge of only a few hands on deck and a shoestring budget an enjoyable challenge.
“We just both love being fully immersed in whatever we’re working on, so it honestly felt like a dream, and I’m a huge control freak,” Clost chuckled. So I love [being in] as many places as I can be, how can I help? How can we get this done? I think the feeling of problem solving and just making things happen is something that I love [about] working on an indie film like this and getting to wear as many hats as possible, and getting fully immersed in the project is exactly how I like to work.”
The movie also features Guelph native Shaun Benson, and American actress Lauren Holly, who is known for her work in NCIS, and in the 1994 comedy Dumb & Dumber.
As for how this project came to be, Clost and Holly had worked together on the Netflix series Tiny Pretty Things, while Navarretta and Holly worked together on his 2019 film The Cuban. Add a 100-acre farm property that was made available through a family connection, and from modest beginnings comes a feature-length film.
The movie was also shown at the Toronto International Film Festival. Navarretta said that the reception for their small film was positive.
“It was very positive. Some of the surprises and takeaways were some of the things we didn’t think were funny, were funny. People laughed in the right places, they cried in the right places. TIFF audiences are super sophisticated cinema-goers, and we’re Canadian, and it was shot in Canada, so it makes sense.”
Clost was also asked what he’d like to work on next.
“The first thing that came to mind is I want to make a horror movie at the same farm, if they’ll give it to us. I just think that property lends itself so well to a dark comedy or a comedy… I think a horror would be fun.”
Actor Brennan Clost (left) and director Sergio Navarretta at the premiere of their film Loathe Thy Neighbor, which was filmed in Tara in 2023. (photo by Jill Charlebois)
