Stand Up Man filmed and set in Windsor takes on WIFF
'Windsor was a perfect place'
An Asian-Canadian story set in Windsor, Stand up Man, was directed and co-written by Aram Collier, based off of a personal experience.
The movie is about a man who is forced to move back to his hometown. His dream of becoming a comic derailed after having to take care of his family's restaurant. Things get a little more complicated when his teenage cousin from Korea comes to live with him.
Collier decided to film in Windsor, because the film's producer, Tony Lau, grew up here after moving from Hong Kong and suggested it could work for the film. It will make its local debut at WIFF on Thursday, November 2.
"Windsor was a perfect place because it has good connections and we were able to get a lot of locations you couldn't get from other cities," said Lau.
Friends, family and crowdsourcing funds helped put this film together. In 30 days, Lau said more than $20,000 was raised.
Those familiar with Windsor will see featured locations like the Windsor airport, Skippy's Restaurant, and Dillon Hall at the University of Windsor.
"We closed down Malden Park for a day. You would need a big budget for that for other cities for sure," Lau said.
Richmond Hill and Hamilton were other potential locations, but Lau said Windsor gave them the best options.
"The first time director Aram Collier came to Windsor he said 'people are really friendly here,'" said Lau.
That and the multiple potential location settings put Windsor at the top of the list.
There's a scene in the film that may ring true for others. It stems from driving on the overpass on Ouellette Avenue towards downtown.
"You can see straight into Detroit, so the character thinks maybe this city is a lot bigger than I thought it would, maybe it'll be ok," said Collier.
After he wrote that scene, Lau told Collier that's what he thought when he first came over from Hong Kong when he was 11.
The mission for Collier is to show stories about the Asian-Canadian experience, because "there's not a lot of Asian Canadian feature films."
Stand Up Man plays on Thursday at 8 p.m. Seats are sold out, but WIFF said there may be tickets available 15 minutes prior to the showing.