Social Guidance (2005)
"Formosa" (original title)

A struggling social guidance filmmaker spends his last dollars on a mysterious con man he mistakes for a Method actor.

Director:

Noah Kadner

Writers:

Noah Kadner (story), Jamieson Stern (story),

Stars:

Jamieson Stern, Jessica Kiper, Steven Gilborn

1 win.

Cast

Credited cast:
Jamieson Stern	...	Clay Crawford
Jessica Kiper	...	Anne-Marie Silver
Steven Gilborn	...	Sid Silver
Clayton Rohner	...	Ted Gregory
Cameron Bender	...	Hank Peterson
Richard Keith	...	Jimmy McNichol
Saginaw Grant	...	Red Hightower
Erik Holland	...	Sven Halleus
Tara Nulty	...	Virginia Selikovitz
Geoffrey Lewis	...	Lucky Marshall
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Ryil Adamson	...	School Board Chair
Evan Adrian	...	Timmy
Vincent Cordova	...	Speaking Role
Kevin Crum
Roxanne V. Hennig	...	Casting associate

Storyline

A struggling social guidance filmmaker spends his last dollars on a mysterious con man he mistakes for a Method actor.

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Taglines:

Sex... Drugs... and Bad Study Habits!

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Genres:

Comedy

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Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

Social Guidance

Filming Locations:

Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

High Road Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

86 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

Brandon Routh was considered for the role of Hank. Emilie de Ravin, Maggie Grace and Jenna Fischer were considered for the role of Anne-Marie.

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Connections

Spoofs Are You Popular? (1947)

User Reviews

Worth seeing...

I saw this film at the Reelheart film festival in Toronto in late June, and it was very funny. It's a light-hearted film which revolves around a group of social guidance filmmakers who have lost their touch. Add a mysterious loner, a desperate situation, and a few subtle jabs at Hollywood and you have a fun but predictable story. Like many big studio pictures, you know how it's going to end. Luckily, the journey is fun, with some surprising and witty moments. It's interesting how it pokes fun at how out-of-touch filmmakers can be with their audience. If you're a filmmaker or you just love Troy McClure, you'll like this movie.

The direction is well paced, I don't remember being bored at anytime during the film. Production values are good, with a fifties' dinerish style of production design and solid cinematography throughout. The acting doesn't go over the top with the comedy except maybe Ted Gregory as the villain. Good script, unexplored territory in some ways.

Trapped at a festival full of depressing documentaries about dying children and missing loved ones, this movie was quite refreshing. Go see it if you have a chance.

Formosa succeeds where many Hollywood comedies do not--it's entertaining.