Seton Hall Professor and Film Producer Thomas Rondinella Screens New Feature Film at the Orlando Film Festival
Wednesday, December 4, 2024
Left to Right: Thomas Rondinella, Samatha Jay (POC), Mitchell Cole (Writer/Director/Actor), Tyler Shore (2nd AC), Wesley Chevillot (AD/EP), and Jack McClellan (DP)
Seton Hall Professor of Sound and Visual Media Thomas Rondinella’s recently produced film Against the Spread premiered at the Orlando Film Festival earlier this month. At this festival, Against the Spread was nominated for Best Feature, and it will be screened again in January 2025 at the St. Augustine Film Festival.
Against the Spread was written and directed by Mitchell Cole. It is inspired by William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice and, according to Rondinella, is “a drama/thriller about an uncle and his two nephews, and they get into some gambling trouble.” Rondinella went on to say, “Audiences like it; it moves fast, it’s relatable, and it’s got some twists and turns.”
The Orlando Film Festival was a fitting place for Against the Spread to premiere; it is where Rondinella met Mitchell Cole for the first time, four years ago. Cole and Rondinella reconnected last March when Cole reached out to Rondinella to invite him to work on this film. From March to August, Rondinella worked on Against the Spread remotely before traveling to Florida, where the film was shot, to secure locations for the film and later to be there for shooting in October.
Working on this project while still teaching visual and sound media courses in the College of Human Development, Culture, and Media required Rondinella to work a rigorous schedule, including traveling to Florida for film shoots, while still making it back in time to teach class. “It was hard, but it was gratifying. It was a labor of love and well worth it. I’m so glad I did it, and I look forward to doing it again,” he said. “It helps inform my teaching here, and that’s why it’s so important that professors stay active in the field.”
When reflecting on this experience, Rondinella also shared that he owes a lot of his success as a film producer to his time at Seton Hall. “I went to graduate school for filmmaking, but I learned how to make movies at Seton Hall.”
Against the Spread has been sold to streaming services and will likely be available for streaming this spring.
Categories: Arts and Culture
