Hillsborough Local Inks Deal With LA Film Company To Make Movie

HILLSBOROUGH, NJ — Hillsborough director Thomas Baldinger and director Lenny Venito's dramedy "Hook'd" — which sheds light on the opioid crisis in the country — has been picked up by a Los Angeles film financing and production company, Samaco Films, LLC.

Baldinger's "624 Productions, LLC" and Venito's "Stoopball Productions" signed the multifaceted development, financing, and production deal last week.

"I was completely captivated by the filmmakers' [Venito and Baldinger] skillful storytelling prowess combined with their delicate and artful expression surrounding an important narrative pertaining to the struggles of opioid addiction and the common everyday man that this film so masterfully achieves," Executive Producer and Owner of Samaco Films Franco Sama said.

Samaco Films has produced more than 20 independent feature films starring Gary Oldman, Christian Slater, Chris Klein, David Arquette, and Vivica A. Fox.

The feature film version of "Hook'd" is currently in the late stages of development and is slated to enter into pre-production as early as the Spring 2020.

It is set in Staten Island, New York, and is poised to begin principle photography in the Big Apple by the Summer of 2020.

The comedy-drama, "Hook'd", was co-written by Baldinger and his writing and directing partner and film and television actor, Venito of Brooklyn, New York — who has been on shows including the Sopranos, The Blacklist, NYPD Blue, Law & Order SVU, and more.

"The story is centered around an out-of-work actor named David Larino, who has not had a serious acting gig since starring in a successful sit-com titles "Average Alien" more than 20 years ago," Baldinger said. "True to his desperate nature, Larino fakes his way onto a celebrity rehabilitation reality show in order to reinvigorate his fledgling career. Although the film is chock full of full-on belly laugh hilarity, it also delves into some serious issues revolving around drug addiction, in particular, opioids."

Most recently "Hook'd" was among the films to be shown at the inaugural VilleFest in Somerville this past October. (See Related: Hillsborough Director's Dramedy Brings Awareness To Opioid Crisis)

The short film has already garnered a multitude of awards including: "Best Indie Short," "Best Actor," (for Venito,) and "Best Original Story" by the IMDb (International Movie Data Base) Independent Shorts Awards Committee; it was also recently nominated a "Best Short Film" at the SOHO Film Festival.

In a recent interview, Baldinger remarked, "this has been an incredible labor of love and an exhilarating journey already, but I believe that the best is still yet to come."

To learn more about Baldinger and his production company visit 624-productions.com.

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