AT LAST, OKEMAH!

It Ain't a Recession Without Folk Music...
AT LAST, OKEMAH! is a short film retelling the story of Don Quixote in the modern day world of folk music; an uproarious comedy that believes that a person can become whatever he wants to be, rise above adversity, and inspire hope in the hearts of the masses. It also believes that listening to enough ancient folk ballads will drive you insane.

Novelist Adam Selzer originally wrote the concept as a one act play in 1999 (Adam was in high school at the time; he wrote it during class while he should have been paying attention). Years later, he teamed up with independant filmmaker Michael G. Smith; the two knew each other from having attended several of the same Bob Dylan concerts.

In late 2008 Jeff-nominated stage actor Kevin Viol came on board to produce the film as well as play the lead role of Winston Thomas. Director Michael Smith says, "Having worked with (Kevin) before, I knew he was the ideal performer for this role. I knew I needed someone who could really play guitar and sing but who was also a gifted comic actor. He was the only one I knew who had the craziness, the charisma and the musical chops to pull it off."

The casting of At Last, Okemah! was completed in the spring of 2009 with Chicago music personalities Jon Langford, Mia Park and Suzy Brack cast as lightly fictionalized versions of themselves. Production began in late April with the filmmakers shooting in many locations near and dear to the hearts of Chicago music lovers, such as the Old Town School of Folk Music, The Hideout, Hard Boiled Records and Laurie's Planet of Sound. Winston's climactic concert scene, in which Viol performed a live set of "authentic" traditional folk music, was filmed at the legendary Hungry Brain (a club otherwise known primarily for its improv jazz performances).

The film was completed in June, 2009 and is scheduled to premiere in the Fall.