Cadbury Creme Eggs, Les Blank and a telephone exchange.
What’s the connection? “Goodnight, Operator,” a movie made locally by two 23-year-old, newly minted graduates of the University of Texas.
Kate Mansberger and Oscar Labovich, producer and director respectively, spent 14 days, from Oct. 25 to Nov. 10, filming in and around Patagonia. Mansberger hails from Portland, OR, and Labovich from San Francisco, although he’s spent time here with grandfather, Quentin Lewton of Sonoita, and uncles, Patagonia residents.
When a location was needed for their mystery/murder movie, what better place than the Sky Islands? Dramatic landscapes. Crystal clear skies. And near perfect weather—more on this later.
“Goodnight, Operator” is based on an original script upon which the two collaborated. Their seven-member cast included family, friends and a local, Ted Piper, of Patagonia. The budget: $30,000, raised from family and friends. Mansberger’s grandmother, Wendy Benjamin of Queen Creek, stitched the costumes. Her uncle, Rio Rico native Rick Feeney, erected sets and built the switchboard. The ‘55 Bel-airs were borrowed. Labovich’s sister, Sidney Pippin, plays the lead. Mansberger’s cousin, Luke Van Buskirk, is in the cast. All actors performed gratis.
Now to the storyline:
Time: October 1961. Place: a telephone exchange. Protagonist: Barbara Liebowitz, a woman who is as physically closed off at work (one room with a switchboard) as she is in life, polio limiting her mobility. The event in question is the murder of a friend, which she is determined to solve.
To that end, the streets of Patagonia become the backdrop. What cars were parked in and around her friend’s house at the time of the killing? What did the neighbors see? Barbara uses cords and switches to do something her legs cannot—track down a murderer.
Eighty minutes later, thanks to the magic of film, the case is solved.
“We’re probably the youngest people who know how to use a switchboard,” Mansberger chuckled in an interview conducted at a Patagonia eatery.
As director, Labovich borrowed from actors he watched with his father as a boy—Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton and Lon Chaney. And he brings that knowledge, along with his academic experience, to “Goodnight, Operator,” especially in tight-action scenes, which a switchboard lends itself to. Shots of hands yanking and plugging are accentuated by lights rigged to that board.
“We planned out everything,” said Mansberger. Important for a production with no financial backing from a major studio. And that planning went deep, down to the unexpected.
Josh Kuzo, who was connected to their college program, served as director of photography. “He was a new friend we met through the project,” Mansberger said. “It was amazing to work with him and learn from all of the wisdom he has gained.”
Also on hand for the shoot was Harrod Blank, son of the late documentary filmmaker Les Blank and also a filmmaker in his own right. Harrod, who lives in Southern Arizona, was connected with Mansberger and Labovich through a family friend, and ended up making a cameo in the film. “A lot of productions have some interesting person” who makes a cameo, Labovich said.
Harrod also generously offered the use of his camera but Mansberger and Labovich declined, preferring to use their own equipment to make the 16mm film.
Film editing should be done by late February. Sound work by late April. Which means the movie will be rolled out in May or June. Then comes submission to film festivals. And hopefully, viewings on areas screens—Benson, Patagonia and Cochise. Also, The Loft in Tucson.
Back to the weather and Cadbury Creme Eggs. Being on a tight budget means limiting takes and days spent on location. On the first day of production, Labovich ate a Cadbury Creme Egg and everything went swimmingly—particularly the weather.
But on the 13th day, Labovich forgot to consume the candy, and let’s just say the weather wasn’t good. With only one shot needed.
The crew, good sports all, endured the cold and wet, with umbrellas dispatched for human and equipment protection.
And at the end of the day, the film was in the can on time and on budget.
That’s a wrap.
Carrie White can be contacted at CarrieWhitePRT@gmail.com.