9-11 Feature Film by Former Grand Strand Playwright Screens at Market Commons in Myrtle Beach

“Above The Fire” will be screened at the Grand 14 Theatres at Market Commons on Thursday, Feb. 12 at 7:30 p.m. to be followed by a panel discussion with former resident Greg Paxton and members of the local creative community, to be announced soon.

Paxton wrote and directed the feature film about the tenth anniversary of the 9-11 tragedy and how it affects the lives of those who lost loved ones. The end result is a mass cathartic healing that is of a spiritual nature.

Paxton’s production company, Masque Entertainment, co-produced the film with Greene Leaf Productions, both headquartered in Charlotte. The feature film has been picked up for national distribution by the Tugg Company in Austin, Texas. They list it on their website tugg.com with other well-known titles featuring popular actors. Tugg plans to screen “Above The Fire” in cities across the country during the next 18 months. The premiere in Myrtle Beach is the first of these events and was announced at the South Carolina Writers Workshop (SCWW) Annual Conference, which was held at the Hilton Hotel in October.

The area promoter is Linda Cookingham of Murrells Inlet, the 2014 conference chairperson for SCWW and Murrells Inlet Community Theater board member.

“I’m proud to be associated with such a talented writer and director as Greg Paxton. The film is in remembrance of a tragedy that changed America for all times. ‘Above The Fire’ is uplifting, inspiring, and offers an insight to be cherished,” says Cookingham about her involvement with the film.

Tickets for this event are available at tugg.com at $12. “Above The Fire” is listed under the drama category or under upcoming events. If there are still seats available, tickets can be purchased at the theater on the evening of the event.
Running 112 minutes, it was filmed in high definition and will be shown with Blu-Ray technology. For more information about the film, which was shot in Carolina cities including Charlotte, Rock Hill, Fort Mill, and Lancaster, visit the website abovethefire.com and an IMDb page at imdb.com.

Many actors in the diverse cast, from New York City, Los Angeles, and the Carolinas, are of different ages and ethnic backgrounds, and had actual connections to the 9-11 tragedy. Included are Emmanuel Barbe (who played George Marciano in Lifetime’s “Anna Nicole”), Berry Newkirk (“Under The Dome”), Phil Markert (David Lynch’s “Blue Velvet” and with Sissy Spacek in “Marie”), Gina Jones (“Hick” with Alec Baldwin, “Carrie II,” and “American Gothic”), Myrtle Beach actress Suzanne Feeheley (“Wesley”), among a cast of thirty.

There is original music, including the hauntingly beautiful theme song “Blue Lights,” performed in the film by Gina Stewart and Brenda Lee Gambill of Volatile Baby, plus instrumental compositions by Chris English Pittman and Phil Markert.

Paxton says, “My observation during a test screening at the Charlotte EpiCentre Theatre was that the packed audience clearly became hooked after the first four or five scenes. As the story unfolded with rapid pacing, there were emotionally tender performances and exquisite original music eliciting tears, and even humor, before an uplifting denouement of peace.” ###