Poor Greg Drowning
Film poster
Directed byJeffrey Scott Collins
Written byJeffrey Scott Collins
Based onGlimpses of Greg
Produced byJeffrey Scott Collins, Jessica Kraby, Andrea Topper
StarringGraham Sibley, Marguerite Insolia, Ajay Mehta
Narrated byCedric the Entertainer
Music byGary Lionelli
Nicole Churchill
Distributed byComedy Dynamics
Release dates
  • April 27, 2018 (2018-04-27) (Sunscreen Film Festival)
  • August 11, 2020 (2020-08-11) (digital)
Running time
77 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Poor Greg Drowning is a 2018 comedy film from writer and director Jeffrey Scott Collins, adapted from his short film Glimpses of Greg. It stars Graham Sibley, Marguerite Insolia, and Ajay Mehta, and was narrated by Cedric the Entertainer. An initial cut of the film premiered at the 2018 Sunscreen Film Festival in St. Petersburg, Florida.[1] Comedy Dynamics released the film via multiple digital platforms on August 11, 2020.[2]

Plot

A writer from New York named Greg Drowning falls in love with a new tenant renting a room in his Los Angeles home.[3]

Development

Poor Greg Drowning was adapted from director Jeffrey Scott Collins's short film Glimpses of Greg, and some footage from the short film was used in the feature. Collins mainly filmed Poor Greg Drowning on weekends. The animated sequences in the film were created by animator Steven Kamakanda, and were inspired by Collins' drawing of Greg as a stick figure used as a title card for Glimpses of Greg. The sequences were added after an early cut Poor Greg Drowning had played at festivals, with Cedric the Entertainer, who Collins worked with on Why Him?, agreeing to narrate the scenes. Some of the dialogue was improved by the actors on-set. The soundtrack was composed by Nicole Churchill, although Collins chose not to use music in several key dramatic moments throughout the film, as he felt it may distract from the comedy.[4]

Filming began in June 2015 and ended in September 2016, and the film was shot with a small crew. After the early cut played at festivals, the final cut of the film was completed in March 2020. As the crew did not have a dedicated props department, they needed to mix together an assortment of foods in the kitchen at the location where they were filming to create the fake vomit for the scene where Greg vomits over his trainer’s feet. The final scenes in the film were filmed over a period of six days after the crew received additional funding to finish principal photography.[5]

It was confirmed on April 27, 2020 that Comedy Dynamics had acquired Poor Greg Drowning and would release the film onto video on demand services on August 11.[6]

Reception

David Gelmini of Cultured Vultures awarded Poor Greg Drowning a score of 8 out of 10, praising the screenplay and the performances of the cast, and calling the film a “moving and powerful story about one man’s desperate attempt to find meaning and companionship in his life.”[7] Markos Papadatos of Digital Journal awarded it 4.5 out of 5 stars, saying “The cast in this film is solid, and so is the directing.”[8]

It won the People's Choice for Best Feature Film at the 2019 Borrego Springs Film Festival.[9] Best Comedy Feature at the Queens World Film Festival,[10] Best Director, Best Actor, and Best Actress awards at the Los Angeles Comedy Festival, and a Jury Prize at The Florida Comedy Film Festival.[11]

References

  1. ↑ "Poor Greg Drowning". Sunscreen Film Festival. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
  2. ↑ "Comedy Dynamics To Release Poor Greg Drowning On August 11, 2020". Short Fire Media. April 28, 2020. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
  3. ↑ Papadatos, Markos (August 9, 2020). "Review: 'Poor Greg Drowning,' starring Graham Sibley, is a pleasant film". Digital Journal. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
  4. ↑ Gelmini, David (March 19, 2020). "Interview: Jeffrey Scott Collins Talks Poor Greg Drowning". Cultured Vultures. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
  5. ↑ Papadatos, Markos (July 30, 2020). "Jeffrey Scott Collins talks 'Poor Greg Drowning,' Graham Sibley". Digital Journal. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
  6. ↑ Dino-Ray, Ramos (April 27, 2020). "Cinema Guild Acquires Hong Sangsoo's 'Yourself And Yours'; 'Poor Greg Drowning' Lands At Comedy Dynamics". Deadline. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
  7. ↑ Gelmini, David (March 18, 2020). "Poor Greg Drowning Review – A Different Kind of Romantic Comedy". Cultured Vultures. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
  8. ↑ Papadatos, Markos (August 9, 2020). "Review: 'Poor Greg Drowning,' starring Graham Sibley, is a pleasant film". Digital Journal. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
  9. ↑ "Best Film Winner "Hawaii"". Borrego Sun. February 2, 2019. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
  10. ↑ "Poor Greg Drowning Queens World Film Festival listing". Queens World Film Festival. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
  11. ↑ "Comedy Dynamics To Release Poor Greg Drowning On August 11, 2020". Shore Fire. April 28, 2020. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
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