Under These Same Stars Movie

Under These Same Stars - The Celadon Affair is a remarkable community model of filmmaking. Volunteer actors, writers, musicians, and crew were drawn from across Illinois and Missouri. According to Dan Johnson, "It took hundreds of volunteers to make this film." Beyond the efforts of the cast and crew, friends came forward to loan us use of their houses and horses, costumes, maps, guns, and even their dogs -- you name it. It was an amazing communal effort and we are deeply indebted to all those who lent us a hand. We have been enriched by the experience of making this film and the opportunity to work with the great community of generous, talented, and interesting people that it brought together.

WSIU Public Radio Interview with Dan Johnson and Bob Streit, Jr.
Fall 2009

	Stealing Indian Women (University of Illinois Press), by Carl Ekberg is a scholarly history book that details the story behind the Céladon affair, which is the basis of the movie, Under These Same Stars. The book includes testimony from 1773 found in the archives of Ste. Genevieve, Missouri and Seville, Spain.
	Carl Ekberg, Historian and Author of Stealing Indian Women Dr. Ekberg, professor emeritus at Illinois State University is a renowned expert in French Colonial history along the Mississippi River valley. He has written many books about the period, including Colonial Ste. Genevieve and French Roots in the Illinois Country: The Mississippi Frontier in Colonial Times.
	Anne Johnson, Producer Anne is a semi-retired family therapist. Under These Same Stars is the first film she has ever produced. As the first draft editor of many of her brother, Carl Ekberg's, books, Anne recognized the significance of the Celadon and Marianne story from her first encounter with it nearly 20 years ago. A champion of her brother's historical work, Anne conceived of the making of Under These Same Stars as a means of bringing the story to a national audience. She worked behind the scenes not only to fund, insure, and staff the film, but to feed the cast and crew, sew costumes and lend editorial insight to our writers, actors and editors from conception to completion of the process.
	Rod Johnson, Co-Producer Rod, Anne's husband, provided moral support for this project from the beginning. His contributions included helping his wife cut material for costumes, holding back traffic, arranging for police barricades, setting up lunch, editing consultation, keeping the books for Celadon Films LLC, and all-around schmoozing. He was also the unofficial photographer on set.
	Anne Johnson with her brother, Carl Ekberg, noted French historian, researcher and the author of Stealing Indian Women.
	Dan Johnson, Director Dan is the son of Anne Johnson and nephew of Carl Ekberg. He is a free-lance sculptor who works primarily with metal, glass, concrete and ceramics. He has recently taken on the challenge of film. Although he has created a few documentaries and a narrative short, Under These Same Stars is his first feature length movie. In addition to serving as director, cameraman, production director, film extra, special effects technician, and sole editor, Dan also made many of the props used in the movie. Dan built one of the boats and the period billiard table seen in the film; he welded the shackles, threw the tafia jugs and some of the dishes, and also blew many of the glasses used in the film; he even built cranes and steady cam equipment out in his studio which allowed us to make our film look good on a tight budget.
	Bob Streit, Screenwriter and Associate Producer Mr. Streit is a writer, actor and songwriter based in Carbondale, Illinois. He is a past member of the New Tuner's Theater Writing Workshop in Chicago and a former Board Member of southern Illinois GreyLight Theater. A veteran of over 2 dozen regional theater productions, Bob also wrote and performed 1-man shows featured in the Arts Across Illinois TV series on WTTW, Chicago and later recorded live at the Liberty Theater and broadcast on WDBX FM in Carbondale. Mr. Streit wrote the screenplay and the songs, Under These Stars and Missing You for the film. You can see him as Cpl. Juan Oliver on screen in the film.
	Screenwriter, Associate Producer and actor Bob Streit doing double duty as altar boy and dolly grip for director and cameraman, Dan Johnson.
	Hilary Chandler, Assistant Director Ms. Chandler brought an extensive background in film and theater to her work on UTSS, Early in her life she studied at Emerson College's Theater for young performers in Boston. Arriving in the midwest at Lake Forest College she joined the Garrick Players there and as a troupe member of the Hayward Summer Playhouse in multiple repertory plays. A founding member of Chicago's Center Theater Ensemble company, later reformed as The Artistic Home, she appeared in numerous productions. As a former member of the SIU Theater Department staff, Hilary taught beginning acting, voice and movement, and assisted in the directing of plays.She is a member of the IlliNowHere performance collective, and the Treehouse Studios, where she performed two one woman performance pieces last fall in Art Around The Square.
	Molly Johnson, Associate Producer and Production Coordinator Molly, Dan's wife, works as a nurse practitioner in "real life." She took on the role of Costume Director, which quickly expanded to production coordinator, film extra, boom operator, grip, occasional caterer, and Marianne body stand-in. She reached out to the communities of re-enactors in the local area and citizens of Ste Genevieve, who generously responded with loans of most of the period props and costumes for over 60 cast members. Her sewing and knitting skills enabled her, Anne Johnson and their small team to make any additional costumes that were needed.
	Brian Smith, Actor (Céladon) Brian works as an engineer during the week but is a seasoned re-enactor on weekends, as part of the British regiment in Southern Illinois. He brought his extensive knowledge of colonial era hunting and survival techniques and his experience as a re-enactor to his portrayal of Celadon in the film. He provided consultation regarding period clothing and props, drew the maps featured in the movie and made the moccasins many characters wore. He also made most of the clothes he wore in the movie. Brian's wife, Nancy, portrays Margarite Valle and their children can be seen as extras in the film as well. This is Brian's first film.
	Karen Fiorino, Actress (Marianne) As comfortable piloting a canoe as she is in gutting a doe, Karen brought a down to earth grace and years of work as a field biologist to her portrayal of Marianne.A hunter, camper, long distance cyclist, fitness instructor, award winning ceramicist and small business owner (Clay Lick Creek Pottery), Karen's physical toughness and intimate knowledge of the local landscape prepared her well for the demands of playing Marianne. Over the past 4 years, Karen has been known as a comedienne in local theater circles for her humorous character portrayals with the Murder Mystery Theater Company. This is her first dramatic film role.
	Carl Ekberg and Bob Streit conferring over historic documents and the script.
	Dan Johnson filming at the Bolduc House.
	David Addison with his sound recording equipment hiding in the woods for the sugar camp scene.
	A detail of one of the maps created by Brian for the film
	The Bolduc House, Ste. Genevieve The filming site for Valle's home and office, Oliver's room in the barracks, and Marianne's yard. Courtesy of The National Society of the Colonial Dames of America in the State of Missouri.
	The Greentree Tavern, Ste. Genevieve Our filming home, which served as the Widow's house, Villar's office, La Rochelle's Billiard Hall and where we also stored all the costumes, props, lights and filming equipment, ate, drank, and often slept. Many thanks to Hilliard and Bonnie Goldman for the generous use of their unique and historic home.
	The Bequette-Rebault House, Ste. Genevieve Where Celadon rented a room from DeGuire when living in Ste. Genevieve. Courtesy of Donna Charron.
	Dennis Stroughmatt, Musician Dennis is the leader of Creole Stomp, the region's pre-eminent cajun/ creole band and a Swallow Records recording artist. When not touring nationally, Dennis is a featured speaker and performer with both the Illinois Arts Council and the Missouri Humanities Council for whom he lectures on French colonial music and culture in the Illinois Country. His unique knowledge of the era's music and language was gathered in the graduate program at Missouri State University and in Old Mines, Missouri, the last archaic French speaking enclave left between New Orleans and Quebec. The elders in Old Mines taught Dennis their songs and their particular brand of French. As a result he is one of the very few people yet living who could have brought us the specific music and speech of St. Genevieve circa 1773. Dennis portrays the Fiddle Player in the film.
	Les Petits Chanteurs of Ste. Genevieve recorded at Misunderstudios, in Murphysboro, Illinois.