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This interview transcribed
from the March 11, 2005 publication of Callback Michele
Fiore-Kaime, Crazy Like A Twentieth-Century Fox They say there's a fine line between ingenious and insanity. When I first met Michele Fiore-Kaime, I suspected she was the latter. About six months ago she calls me up and asks, "Is this Phil Valentine, the acting coach?" "Yes," I answered. " "I need a private acting coach," she responded. Now normally I only do private lessons for professional actors if they're preparing for a specific role. So I asked, "How long have you been acting?" "I've never acted," she says. So I explain that unless she's preparing for a specific role I don't do privates. Then she says, "I'm in a movie." "Really," I asked, "is it a big part?" "I'm the star," she responds. Now I'm thinking she got herself into a small indie film and she wants to do a good job. How cute. Normally I know about every film in or coming to town. So I asked, "Who is producing this film?" and she says, "I am". This is where I started to go from thinking she was insane to pretty sure she was. Then Michele goes on to tell me her story. I think it was the passion in her voice that got me curious enough to meet with her. Big mistake, because I was hooked. Michele has this ability to spin her web of enthusiasm and get you to believe that, with your help, we can accomplish the impossible. I read the script, co-written by her and well known Hollywood screenwriter, Robert Gosnell, and it was really good. Then, because Michele is a successful self-made businesswoman, she is able to bankroll her own film. And she's smart enough to surround herself with people in the industry who are the best at what she needs done...like making a movie. Michele had me so captivated that I called the best film director I know; Pat Kerby of Kerby Brothers Productions. He met her and ended up calling Emmy Award winning producer Barry Green to get involved. Then Michele needed a musical director and called Anthony Gourdine of "Little Anthony and The Imperials" to perform in the film. Now one thing I warned Michele about was Hollywood. I said, "Just be prepared that everyone in Hollywood will want two things. One: that you take yourself out of the lead role and let a well-known actor take the wheel. And two: everyone in Hollywood will want to justify their job by putting their thumbprint on your script. In other words, they will insist on making changes." This was something Michele was dead set against. That's when she decided that she could make a Hollywood quality production in Las Vegas. Michele's passion and professionalism has convinced Las Vegas businesses like Hofbrauhaus, The Bootlegger and the producers of "Tony & Tina's Wedding" at the Rio to get involved. There isn't a wall Michele can't climb, knock down or tunnel under. So what is the film about you ask? It's a universal story told through a woman named Storm who used to sing in a local band when she was seventeen. She met a boy, fell in love, got married and had a kid. Fast forward twenty years later when the kid is going off to college and Storm finds herself alone in her house, while her husband goes off to work, making cookies for...herself, which accounts for the fifty pounds that somehow found their way to her hips over the last couple of decades. During a business meeting at a Karaoke Bar with her husband, Storm is convinced to get up and sing on a dare. Not only does she bring the house down, but she rekindles the passion for music that has lain dormant all these years. That night Storm tells her husband she wants to sing again. He thinks it will be nice for her to have a hobby singing at weddings on weekends but Storm has much bigger plans. But those plans are crushed after a day of auditioning and being turned down by every type band from Lawrence Welk to Led Zepplin. Storm's husband returns home to find her sobbing over a size two picture of herself in her high school yearbook. Then her husband says, "Why don't you start your own band?" Which is all Storm needs to hear and she's off to seek fame and fortune. But fame and fortune does not come without a price and Storm finds herself in the predicament of choosing between the dream she had and the life she has. It's about the choice between fame and family. But more than that, as Michele would tell you, it's about not giving up on your dream no matter how old you are, or how many people tell you it can't be done. Michele's real life is reflected in the movie. This mother of two, homemaker and businesswoman always wanted to make movies. So she took a leap of faith, with the support of her family, and is going to make and star in this film. The film is also looking for more local talent. Michele wants to feature local bands in the Battle of the Bands segment of the film. Not only will her dream come true but she plans on fulfilling the dreams of as many others as she can. The name of the film is "Siren" and the woman behind it will be heard! |