SOUTHEASTERN N.C. — Though 2023 has been a slow year for film in the area, due to the writers’ and actors’ strikes, two movies that rolled in Wilmington in the last two years are getting a first look on the big screen.
“International Space Station” from LD Entertainment and Bleeker Street, and “Breakwater,” to be distributed by Vertical, dropped trailers in the last week. “I.S.S.” will open in theaters on Jan. 19, starring Academy Award-winner Ariana DeBose (“West Side Story”), Chris Messina (“The Mindy Project,” “Sharp Objects”), John Gallagher Jr. (“The Newsroom”), Pilou Asbæk, Costa Ronin and Masha Mashkova.
Directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite and written by Nick Shafir, the sci-fi thriller follows an American space crew living and working collaboratively at a space station with Russian astronauts. Yet, they receive news from Earth that international conflict has arisen and the two crews are instructed with the same orders: Take control of the space station by all measures necessary.
The film, which premiered in June at the Tribeca Film Festival, is shot primarily inside the space station. Film crews rolled cameras locally in 2021 at one location: then-EUE/Screen Gems’ studio, which sold to Cinespace earlier this year.
“I.S.S” received a rebate up to $3.6 million, according to the N.C. Film Commission, while “Breakwater” was awarded a little more than $1 million, as part of North Carolina’s incentive program. The state offers a 25% rebate on qualifying expenses and purchases and rentals made by productions for filming in the Tar Heel State.
“Breakwater” set up scenes in multiple locations across Wilmington in 2022, as well as shot in Aberdeen and Outer Banks, North Carolina. Another thriller, the movie opens in theaters Dec. 22. It stars Dermot Mulroney (“My Best Friend’s Wedding,” the locally shot “Along for the Ride”), Mena Suvari (“American Beauty,” “American Pie”), Darren Mann (“1923”), Alyssa Goss (“The Bobby Brown Story”) and Sonja Sohn (“The Wire”).
Directed and written by James Rowe (“Blue Ridge Fall”), the story follows Mulroney as Ray, an inmate who gets a newly released ex-con to go on the hunt for his estranged daughter — someone with her own dangerous past. The trailer reveals Ray eventually escapes prison while being transported in an EMS for unknown health reasons to make good on a vendetta. He heads to the Outer Banks, where his daughter is now expected to reside.
“Films about opposing forces converging in an unforgiving landscape, they’ve always stuck with me,” Stowe wrote in his director’s notes, citing flicks like “Deliverance” and shows such as “Better Call Saul.” “I love it when the setting isn’t just a backdrop, but also another sort of complication or antagonist.”
The trailer shows multiple bodies of water, from the ghost trees seen locally in marshy areas to the shoreline of area beaches. It’s indicative of the title name, as breakwaters are permanent structures in coastal areas utilized to protect against tides, currents, waves, and storm surges.
Scenes were shot in Wilmington on Kent Street and Wilshire Boulevard, according to permits submitted to Port City Daily during filming. The trailer also highlights locations such as Airlie Chapel and New Hanover County Detention Center.
“Breakwater” received the audience award at September’s Boston Film Festival, where Mulroney was also honored with a Film Excellence award after the film’s premiere.
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