Interview:
Shannon DeVido,
actress,
Michael Parks Randa,
Lauren Smitelli,
cowriters/directors
"Best Summer Ever"
Featuring eight original songs cowritten by singer-songwriter Madeline Rhodes, the SXSW Online high school musical Best Summer Ever boasts a cast and crew of disabled and non-disabled people that is led by wheelchair user Shannon DeVido. She stars as Sage, the daughter of two weed harvesters (Holly Palmer and Eileen Grubba). Sage meets and falls in love with Tony (Rickey Wilson Jr.) at dance camp. When the summer comes to end, Sage and Tony go their separate. By chance, Sage's mothers decide to grow their next crop of weed in the same small Pennsylvania town where Tony goes to high school. True love wins, correct? Not so quick. A disappointed Sage learns that Tony lied to her about attending a dance academy in New York, that he is instead the star kicker for his high school football team. Worse, head cheerleader Beth (Madeline Rhodes) views Sage as a rival for Tony's affection and conspires to tear them apart. Best Summer Ever includes cameos by Maggie Gyllenhaal, Peter Sarsgaard, and Benjamin Bratt and his daughter Sophia Bratt. Jamie Lee Curtis, Ted Danson, Mary Steenburgen, and Amy Brenneman rank among the executive producers. Best Summer Ever represents the first feature produced by Zeno Mountain Farm, a Vermont nonprofit that hosts camps and retreats for people with disabilities. Best Summer Ever premieres 10 a.m. central March 18 during SXSW Online, which runs through March 20. Aired: March 18, 2021. Web site: https://www.sxsw.com/festivals/film/ https://online.sxsw.com/ https://www.bestsummerevermovie.com/ https://www.facebook.com/bestsummerevermovie/ |
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