ACTION! A dedicated director and an eager cast have their sights set on the big screen for "Crossing the Rubicon"

Grant Olson is a seasoned veteran when it comes to the world of theater. Now, he is taking his talent to the big screen.

Olson wrote and is directing "Crossing the Rubicon," one of the first locally written and shot feature-length movies. With a cast of Valley Performing Arts veterans, shooting of the film is about three-quarters complete, and Olson is excited about the work so far.

"With digital video and the technology that is out there, this is doable for just about anybody," Olson said. "But you have to have a good story, good actors and the confidence of your crew, and that's what we have."

"Crossing the Rubicon" was not written as a movie originally. Olson wrote it for the stage, and it was performed last summer through Valley Performing Arts.

"After the first reading, someone said it would make a good movie script, and I thought, 'That's interesting,'" Olson said. "I started to explore how to open it up for film, and decided to go with it."

The story is about a genetic mutation (Trevor Harrington, played by David Mead) who is so brilliant he has been identified as a new human species. In order to continue his species, he seeks and finds the perfect female specimen (Ruby Crawford, played by Kelsey Myrvold). In spite of a laboratory-like beginning, their romance blooms, but trouble follows when their relationship is leaked to the press.

The reason the script was chosen, Olson said, is because it is a unique script, set in Alaska, with a small cast -- three things that make the project economical yet marketable.

There are no chase scenes or fight scenes, either, which keeps the story simple, yet interesting. With fight scenes or chases, Olson would have been required to carry insurance, which raises the cost of the project.

In addition to Mead and Myrvold, theater veterans Steve Treacy, Rachel Underwood, Cynthia Lee, Craig Sorrie, Andrew Goodwin and Latoya Lewis round out the cast.

Behind the scenes, Gini King-Taylor is serving as the unit production manager, Rod Mehrtens is the director of photography, Jennifer Raney is the production designer, Mary Putnam is the costume designer, Jeff Parks and Jeff Babcock are the cameramen, Danny Hansen is the sound mixer, Steve Cuthbert is the grip and Helen Dewart is the script supervisor. Larry Bottjen will edit the film upon completion of filming.

Making the leap from the stage to the screen has been a transition for the crew.

"I wouldn't have thought film was different than theater, but it really is. Mainly, it requires so much focus because your rewards are put on the back burner until you are in a movie theater with an audience," Olson said.

The film is being shot entirely in mini-DV format. Olson said Bottjen will edit the film into roughly a two-hour movie, which will be transferred to VHS and DVD technology to make the film festival circuit.

Olson said they are currently shooting about a 15-1 ratio in terms of tape shot to tape used in the movie, while 35 millimeter movies shoot at a 2-1 ratio.

"We are hoping to distribute our film to the festivals, and if they want to show it on the big screen, we will have some decisions to make financially," Olson said. "Our hope is to keep it in the video format with a film effect, and have a distributor see it and pick up the $35,000 tab to convert it to 35 millimeter. But that is our pipe dream. We know there is a lot of competition out there."

Getting financial backing for the project has been an ongoing process. Locally, many businesses have offered locations for the scenes to be shot, but getting solid financial backing has been difficult.

Olson is looking for more investors for the project, and said he is shopping the film to venture capitalists through other sources, such as the Internet.

"We would love to have more local funding, but I realize we have to chart new paths to find funding," Olson said.

The film will be at film festivals early next year, and Olson said he is hoping to have a finished, "rough cut" available to the public late this year.

"We are going to fine-tune it very quickly and hopefully have something ready in late November or December," Olson said.

As filming wraps up on "Crossing the Rubicon," Olson is already thinking to the future with another movie project.

"I already have the synopsis in my mind. It is certainly doable now that I have all the equipment," Olson said.