Noel Calloway’s Aurora’ is a whirlwind romance
A love Story with a tantalizing twist, Noel Calloway’s drama “Aurora,” centers on Kenny Gaines (Tobias Truvillion from “The Best Man: Final Chapters”) whose bride to be mysteriously disappears on their wedding day.
Mixing a lathered-up love story with secrets and lies, writer and director Noel Calloway (“Life, Love, Soul”) has gathered an eclectic cast for this whirlwind love story.
The film stars Wakeema Hollis (“Dynasty,” The Photograph” ) as Giselle who along with her fiancé Kenny descend on the island of Puerto Rico along with family and friends to tie the knot. What starts off as a celebration quickly turns into a nightmare when Giselle is kidnapped on nuptial day. This sets off a crazy chain of events that threaten to destroy the fairytale love story.
“She is imperfect and multifaceted like every Black woman I know,” shares Hollis on her character. “She has an idea of what she wants and then life and love happen, and it changes her in ways she doesn’t expect. She is fighting so much within herself and she is this complicated character.”
Filmed in 16 days in and around San Juan, wonderful characters keep the movie afloat. They include Kenny’s sister, Leah (Ambre Anderson), whose arrival on the island threatens to throw a wrench in the festivities.
Calloway sells the romance with a charismatic cast, chemistry and camaraderie which all translates beautifully on screen. It’s something he credits to casting director Elsa Lathan.
“The talent is unmistakable, and I am proud of the job that we all did in putting this together,” he shares. “Filming over the course of 16 days was a bit of a grind, but we became family there and love what we ended up with and what we created. As a filmmaker, writer and director, you never know how a movie is going to end up from the time you start writing it to the time people get to see it. There are so many people along the way, from the actors to the editors, makeup and hair who are part of it. You write it and it’s yours and then you have to turn it over to everyone else to help bring it to life and the film turned out amazing. I am grateful for the good, the bad and the ugly.”
The film also stars Marc John Jefferies (“Power”), and Julito McCullum (“The Wire”) and is produced by Jay Stern, best known for producing (“Rush Hour 1-3”, “Horrible Bosses,” and “Love and Basketball”).
“Aurora: A Love Story,” releases in theaters and on demand January 27.
By Samantha Ofole-Prince
