{image1}The big day finally arrives for Milwaukee native -- and poet, performer and filmmaker -- Jeanne Spicuzza, whose film "Field Day" launches later this month in Hollywood.
Filmed last spring, "Field Day" screens Oct. 29 at Raleigh Studios in Hollwood and a DVD release is imminent, too, Spicuzza says. The two screenings that day are by invitation only and will be followed by a reception.
"I'm extremely excited!," Spicuzza enthuses. "I'm running on Sicilian adrenaline. It's funny how a dream coming true feels not so surreal, more like waking up. Very real, hyper-real, even. I'm glad I risked to get here."
When OnMilwaukee.com first reported on "Field Day" in April, Spicuzza had this to say about it:
"Most of 'Field Day' -- the characters, storyline, dialogue, even specific camera angles -- was actually a dream I'd had. George Bush Jr. had just been appointed president. In fact, there's a sound bite of a news broadcast in 'Field Day,' much like that of Fox News and Bush's cousin about the Supreme Court justice declaring his cousin's new position. I shelved the script for three years while touring performance poetry in the U.S. and Europe and developing the two feature films I mentioned.
"Then Jon Hemmings, a DVD producer from London, offered international distribution for any high definition short film that I'd written and would produce. Given the election year and the recent war, I thought it timely to produce 'Field Day.' Jon read the script and, finding it controversial, he boldly wanted to proceed."
Spicuzza, who has produced two films, "Naked" and "Labors," and appeared in the latter, is currently in pre-production with director Julie Dash's "Making Angels," due out next year.
Spicuzza's Web site is seasonsandamuse.com.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
