Independent Film turns the spotlight on terrorism

Room 13-How to kill a Terrorist brings to the screen a tense drama of a society trying to come to grips with terrorism. The good, the bad, but primarily the ugly sides of combating terrorism are brought to the screen in a tough, realistic film.

(PRWEB) March 30, 3004--William Lee is one angry black man. His inner tension is focused on what many consider to be the most dramatic event in American history since Pearl Harbor: 9/11. It happened in my hometown, not far from where I was born and raised," he says as he jabs an index finger in the air for emphasis. How anyone can not be outraged, or do nothing but rationalize what happened is beyond me." He refuses to keep this fury inside and wants others to think more about how terrorism has altered society and public policy.

William Lee is an independent filmmaker in Columbus, Ohio. He has translated his feelings about 9/11 into a screenplay and feature film: Room 13-How to kill a Terrorist. The plot centers around a hypothetical government program intended to drastically handle terrorism. The results are anything but politically correct.

The main character, Vincent Kamiglia, is a lone agent in the mold of Vic Mackey who has the task of directly dealing with terrorist agents. Things go out of control as Kamiglia becomes obsessed and starts to eliminate anyone he considers being evil, or just in his way. The dialogue is of the movie is gritty and runs the course of the post-9/11 debate.

The reasons for and against dealing with terrorists are all voiced at one point or another, and that is just fine with the director. Sometimes, we shouldnt lead the audience to reach a conclusion we would like them to have," says Lee. Moviegoers are pretty smart and they can reach their own conclusions. We, as filmmakers dont need to spoon-feed them."

Shot entirely in Columbus, Ohio, filming has just finished on Room 13. In keeping with the tradition of independent filmmaking, the actors are unknown. Their passion for the project, however, transcends the low pay they received and the long hours they worked. We had actors come from as far away as Alabama to work on this project," said Lee with obvious pride. None of them were compensated for travel; it all came out of their own pockets." When asked why people would travel hundreds of miles to work for little more than film exposure, the director isnt hesitant with his answer. Each and every person on this project feels strongly about terrorism, one way or another. We had one guy come up from Atlanta to do a walk-on, non-speaking role. He works for the airlines and terrorists have cut into business. The dude told me that this was his way of getting back at those who have put the airlines in financial hard times. Aint that something?"

Room 13 is a disturbing look at post 9/11 reactions to terrorism and Lee is not apologetic about how the movie might make some viewers uncomfortable. Too many people have overanalyzed 9/11 and tried to make it into just another history lesson," he explains. "My God, folks lost friends and family! There was terror, fear, anger and outrage when people learned of the Twin Towers coming down. Those emotions lead to decisions, some good and others bad, but whatever happens, the whole thing is more than just some dull topic on a talk show. If all you have are disinterested emotions and feelings about what happened, dude, you are in a coma!"

The drama of terrorism permeated the film sites, both in front of the camera and all around it. It was purely coincidental, but an anti-war demonstration took place on one of the days that Room 13 was being shot, and Lee was able to capture some of it on film. The testimony of the 9/11 investigations was just getting under way when the final frames of the movie were being recorded. As the film goes into post production, with an anticipated public release sometime this summer, its director is as determined to get the message about terrorism to the public as he was when he first started writing the screenplay.

We cant just let the subject of terrorism turn into a political game of 'gotcha'," says Lee as he sits behind his computer where the film editing will be done. Put the urge to blame someone aside and lets think about how this has changed the way we live and how we will live in the future. Things are a whole lot different than they were on September 10, 2001. Like it or not, and no matter who is charge of the White House, terrorism is a part of our existence and its consequences, and how we deal with them, are going to be with us for a long, long, time."

Room 13-How to Kill a Terrorist is being produced in conjunction with Westbridge Entertainment of Los Angeles, California. For more information, visit these websites: Http://www.cinemalexzikon.com for information on William Lee and Cinema Lexzikon; and WWW. Westbridgeentertainment.com for information on Westbridge Entertainment.

Mr. Lee is available for interviews, and those interested are welcome to contact him directly at (614) 471- 5512. Trailers and publicity photographs for Room 13-How to kill a Terrorist are available upon request.