Written & Directed by Gabriel Barbaro

Cecil

00:25:30 minutes, 2004

written & directed by Gabriel Barbaro

Short Synopsis

In this gothic comedy, an abused, eccentric young man makes good use of his mean Aunt's expiration (sometimes death can be a blessing in disguise). But it takes the help of a unique friend to realize-it's okay to be strange!

Filmmaker Bio

Gabriel Barbaro hails from Amherst, Massachusetts. After graduating from Amherst Regional High, he attended Sarah Lawrence College, where he did his junior year abroad, studying acting at the British American Drama Academy. In 1999, he graduated with a BA in Liberal Arts, having “concentrated” in acting.

After pursuing acting in New York City for several years, Gabriel shifted his focus to writing and directing. His first short, TEAM ONE: Pure Combat (2001), premiered at The Arlene Grocery Picture Show in New York City, where it won a “Grocery” Award.

Moving back to Amherst at the end of 2002, Gabriel directed, 24 to 30: The Crazy Years (2003), which premiered at The Amherst Short Film Festival, winning Second Prize. Cecil (2004) is his third, and best, short.

Gabriel is currently writing a feature length script, which he will direct in 2005.

Complete Credits

Cast

Narrator

Tim Curry

Cecil / Rob Gennet
Aunt Clara / Jeannine Haas
Xavier / Dr. John Cavazos
Cecil’s Mother / Susan Barbaro
Cecil’s Father / John Barbaro
Passerby 1 / Jeannine Jones
Passerby 2 / Andy Moore
Passerby 3 / Tashina Bowman
Passerby 4 / Timothy Bowman
Passerby 5 / Gabriel Barbaro

Executive Producers

Eric Froom

Jesse Lovell

Nancy & Peter Gennet

Written & Directed by

Gabriel Barbaro

Narration Co-Written by

Rob Gennet

Dramaturg

Erica Nagel

Script Editor

Cara Parravani

Lighting & Set Manager

Jeannine Jones

Lighting Consultant

David Rabinovitz

Titles and Additional Editing

Mario Cuomo Jr.

Director of Music & Sound

Rob Gennet

Recording Engineers

Rob Gennet

Thomas Johnson

Opera Selections

Rachel Mahloch, Soprano

Richard Gordon, Piano

Laudate Dominum

Vesperae solennes de confessore

W.A. Mozart

O Zittre Nicht

Die Zauberflote

W.A. Mozart

Cara Nome

Rigoletto

Guiseppe Verdi

Symphony #9 in D Minor

Opus 125

Ludwig Van Beethoven

Dianne Pope, Conductor

Mankato Symphony Orchestra

Classical Selections

Sonatina

Opus 36, Number 1

Muzio Clementi

Rob Gennet, Piano

Sonatina

Opus 55, Number 2

Friedrich Kuhlau

Rob Gennet, Piano

Moonlight Sonata

Ludwig Van Beethoven

Richard Gordon, Piano

Minuet

L. Boccherini

Richard Gordon, Piano

Minuet in G

Ludwig Van Beethoven

Richard Gordon, Piano

Converto in A Minor

Antonio Vivaldi

Richard Gordon, Piano

Forest Theme, Wreck Yard Theme

& Classical 80's Theme

Written & Performed by

Rob Gennet

Synthetic Manipulation 1 & 2

Written & Performed by

Eric Froom

Cecil's Favorite Book

Casebook of a Psychic Investigator

by Dixie Yeterian

Stein and Day, 1982

Xavier's Favorite Book

Tao Of Jeet Kune Do

by Bruce Lee

Ohara Publications, 1989

Special Thanks to

John Gorrie

Jenny Hollier

British American Drama Academy

Mrs. Melnechuk

Lila Brountree

Richard Britt

The Amherst Boys & Girls Club

Gordon Palley

Amherst-Oakkham Auto Recycling

Peter Marvin

ACTV

Lisa Abend

Irene Starr

John & Susan Barbaro

Alex Weider

Rachel Mahloch

Ben Hindell

Geoffrey Orens

Rosalie & Gerald Weider

Chip Roughton

Joey Napoli

Laura Cohen & Arik Ahitov

Marie Beauchamp

Anthony Hanna

Matt Pittenger

Arthur Quinton

Aaron Mason

Buddy Halligan

Catering by

Susan Barbaro

Narration Recorded at

Bell Sound Studios

Hollywood, CA

Editorial Consulting

Stefan Pildes

Production Anecdotes

"Finishing Cecil"
After recovering from a thrown-out back, Rob, my co-writer and sound designer, had just finished the audio file we needed to finish Cecil-- the end was in sight! So, we took a break while he took his boxer, Lola, out for a walk. I decided to relax in the living room, soon I'd have the DVD I had wanted for so long!
Suddenly, Rob rushed in stating, "I have to go to the hospital!" He showed me his left forearm. There, on his arm was a one and one-half inch, bloody puncture wound! He had slipped and fallen on the spiked, wrought iron security fence outside! So, while he rushed to the hospital for two layers of stitches, I freaked out thinking that Cecil would never be finished!

"A Rental Car"
When Rob and I arrived in LA, to record the narration for CECIL, I was really getting into it: "People just live like they're a producer or filmmaker but they don't actually do anything. They drive around in their BMW convertible and stuff. What they are, is addicted to the movie lifestyle, not the work! It's all show."
We arrived at Hertz and got ready to drive away in our reserved Ford Focus.
"Wait, why don't we rent a Mustang convertible", Rob suggested.
"What color would you like?" the Hertz gentleman asked.
"Well, silver is nice," Rob answered, "it's not too ostentatious."
"No," I said automatically, "Red... it has to be Cherry Red!"
Rob laughed at me.

Production Stills by Jeannine Jones

(Higher resolutions are available)

Directing under the bridge…

Shooting…

Gabriel takes a quick break

John and Rob take in the scenery

Contact Information

Gabriel Barbaro (director, writer, producer of Cecil)

44 High Street

Amherst, MA 01002

Cell: 413-537-0872

Fax: 413-253-0703

Email:

Website: