11/10/2007
UArts Student Daniel Magro Writes, Directs Feature-Length Film

PHILADELPHIA – Under the watchful eye of writer/director and communication senior at The University of the Arts Daniel Magro, Portraits of Sari, a full-length romantic comedy motion picture, went from short story to the silver screen in the span of less than six months.

Adapted from local author Orla Loughlin’s short story of the same name, Sari depicts the journey of Steven McNarma (Ryan Windish), who is encountering the reigns of independence for the first time. As he leaves behind a sheltered, suburban home life for the prestigious urban Philadelphia Art Academy, Steven pursues his aspirations in the face of pressure and competition from his classmates, including the beautiful and astute Sari Phillips (Kristen Hermes).

At home, Steven’s mother Cynthia McNarma (Susan Hoare) struggles to deal with the first major separation from her son. She copes by trying to instill ambition and determination by helping him enter the university’s illustrious art contest with the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Through forced encounters, Sari and Steve learn more about each other, growing together into their new world. As pressure mounts and the contest date looms closer, Steve and Sari go head to head. Will Steve succeed and win or will Sari take everything he ever wanted?

“Film tells stories,” said Magro, who co-produced the University’s Web drama Paper Cuts and put the University’s inaugural senior class gift and its $4,000 cash prize toward financing the project. “Film creates images, starts trends, spins issues, promotes and creates change. Movies make people think and that’s something not many people can do for themselves today.”

A graduate of Bucks County Community College in 2006 with an associate’s degree in communications: cinema/video, Magro may have thought a bit too much when it came time to putting the finishing touches on Sari - he re-wrote the script eight times and re-shot the ending.

“What we've created with Sari is a distinctive hybrid of art and independent film forms,” said Mandy-Lee Tolton, who was the executive producer of the 90-minute, $5,000 project. “There is a strong emphasis on the visual style of our film, but just as importantly, we focused on a solid story first. Sari falls somewhere between a student film and an independent film, leaning heavily toward independent. The phrase ‘student film’ has a connotation for a certain style and form. This isn’t and never was considered a student work. Yes, we are students and we are learning, but this was something we initiated completely on our own; it wasn't an assignment or school project.”

The premiere – complete with red carpet and spotlights – on November 9 at Gershman Hall on the UArts campus served as a fundraiser for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

Visit the film’s official Web site www.portraitsfilm.com for trailers, music, a behind-the-scenes featurette and red carpet exclusives.

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