NIFCO’s PICTURE START program has launched the careers of many local filmmakers, and one of its latest products is Ian Foster’s film, Keystone

Picture Start helps emerging filmmakers enhance their skills with a hands on approach; Participants work with established film industry professionals, and the experience runs the gamut of intensive workshops  to mentorships throughout the development, production, and post-production phases of someone’s new project.

BTS 6-AdamPenney

Keystone’s Synopsis

Struggling with memory loss, Jack visits Keystone, an organization with an unlikely mandate: making your most important memories truly unforgettable. Jack begins to recount these moments in his interview, but rather than being a series of highlights, they reveal the bond he formed with one particular woman, and the importance he has placed on their story.

The Published Story Begged a Big Screen

“Keystone began as a short story about a year before it became a script,” says Foster. The short story version of “Keystone” was published in the April 2015 issue of Riddle Fence — a fabulous and local literary journal. The film was also shot in April of 2015. “I guess it was just its time to come down off the shelf,” Foster jokes.

“The format of the story is similar, with the interview scenes as pure dialogue, and the flashbacks as hyper-descriptive bursts of text aiming to capture what could be mere seconds in time in vivid detail.” He says the story was basically a “textual approximation of how we remember things.”

Keystone - Jack Medium Looking down

The Picture Start Experience Stepped Up His Sophomore Experience 

Keystone is Foster’s second film. “When I made One More Song in 2013, it was truly a labour of love – a very small crew of friends multi-tasking across various positions for free to make things happen. PictureStart allows you to hire a cast and full crew, and it’s a highly collaborative effort to reach the final product.”

He says he really enjoyed working with producer Mike Ciuffini, who shared the same vision for the film from the start, and adds that “Adam Penney once again did a great job capturing what I wanted the film to look like.” Penney and Foster worked together on One More Song.

“I enjoyed the challenges of working on a bigger production, and figuring out how to achieve the vision for the film with my crew, who were all excellent and completely dedicated to making something that would be really strong.”

He says, “I think the reward for our collective hard work is on the screen, and I’m pleased with the outcome. I hope viewers will be too!” A trailer is below, and here is a link to their website: http://www.keystonefilm.net

[kad_youtube url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SVOqtQoRHK0&feature=youtu.be” ]