St. Louis director Jay Kanzler’s latest film, 23 Minutes to Sunrise, will premiere Monday, July 9 at 7:15 p.m. at the Tivoli Theatre as part of the St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase.
Filmed primarily in Sauget, IL, the film also shot some scenes in the St. Louis University Law School. According to Kanzler, the project appealed to him because it could be shot in a limited number of locations on a relatively low budget.
Much of the movie takes place in a small Sauget diner, which had to be largely remodeled to fit the film’s purposes. Despite the renovations, however, Route 3 Diner carried on with business as usual throughout filming.
“We ripped up pretty much everything in the diner to get the look we wanted,” Kanzler says. “We’d shoot at night and customers would come in for breakfast and lunch, then we’d be back and film until around six in the morning.”
With a local casting agency, Kanzler reached out to Hollywood for actors with St. Louis connections, gathering what he calls “a brilliant cast” that includes Eric Roberts, Nia Peebles, and Bob Zany.
In 2004, Kanzler founded the independent, St. Louis-based production company Day of Fun Pictures. He directed A Magical Life: Circus Flora the following year, offering a behind-the-curtain look at the famous one-ring circus and highlighting performers from the Flying Wallenda Family. Kanzler’s 2009 documentary, St. Benedict’s Rule, won several awards for its portrayal of northwest Missouri monastery Conception Abbey in the aftermath of a 2002 shooting that claimed the lives of two monks there.
Setting Kanzler apart is the fact the he has had essentially no formal training in filmmaking.
“I took a few film classes in college, but that was just so I didn’t have to take math,” he says. “I was a huge film fan and was going to a fair number of film festivals, and I just always wanted to do something with film.”
In addition to making movies and running a film production company, Kanzler also works as an attorney and an Episcopal priest.
“Lots of people are very busy, and I just happen to be busy with these things,” he says. “I have passion for all the things that I do, so you just try to find time around your family. Family comes first.”
23 Minutes to Sunrise is Day of Fun’s first full-length narrative movie, and Kanzler is proud of the accomplishment.
“We found people who really have a passion for the project and brought something special,” he says. “People went way above and beyond to make a great film.”
The St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase runs through July 12; tickets are $12 general admission and $10 for students with valid IDs. for more information, visit http://cinemastlouis.org/st-louis-filmmakers-showcase.
