“Islander,” a feature film starring Mainer Tom Hildreth and filmed last summer on Vinalhaven, will have its Maine Coast premiere at Rockland’s Strand Theatre July 15.
Not surprisingly, the film and Hildreth’s role in it focus strongly on the lobster fishery and the communities that rely on it; Eben, the island fisherman Hildreth portrays, gets himself in trouble through his hot-headed response to mainland fishermen’s intrusion on his island’s fishing territory. Violence ensues, a boy drowns, Eben lands in jail and can’t re-establish himself as the island high-liner when he gets out.
Most of the story concerns what happens next to Eben — the end of his marriage, his relationship with his young daughter, a new love interest, perhaps a way back into the island’s fishery — in short, a new life, forged in a tight-knit community.
Local talent that Hildreth, a Vinalhaven summer resident, recruited for “Islander” includes Walter Day, a prominent Vinalhaven fisherman who plays — no surprise — a fisherman and member of the harbor “gang.”
Hildreth also produced the film, which was directed by Ian McCrudden and also stars Amy Jo Johnson, Mark Keily, Larry Pine, James Parks, Ron Canada and Judy Prescott.
Tickets to the July 15 premiere went on sale June 1 and cost $25. The event at the Strand Theatre will include a “Filmmakers Reception” for the first 125 ticket-buyers on a first come-first served basis, including a complimentary round-trip van shuttle from a parking lot at the Rockland High School.
Event planners were obliged to provide the shuttle service because of potential conflict over parking with the North Atlantic Blues Festival, which is taking place in Rockland at the same time.
The film’s Maine premier will be screened at the Maine International Film Festival in Waterville on July 15, and Hildreth has also arranged a private showing on Vinalhaven for members of the community at Smith Hokanson Memorial Hall at 7:00pm on July 16. q
Proceeds of the July 15 screening in Rockland will benefit the Island Institute’s Vinalhaven Island Fellowship. For information call (207) 594-0070 or visit www.rocklandstrand.com.