Tim Sukits

Category: Features

  • Diamond in the rough: The producers of Beautiful Noise are making Suncoast film production a top priority

    Diamond in the rough: The producers of Beautiful Noise are making Suncoast film production a top priority

    Published July 21, 2010 Visit beautifulnoisethemovie.com for more more information. When Steve Tatone hit his 50th birthday after a successful 30-year career as a concert promoter, he decided to take his life in a different direction. He had always had an itch to make movies, but had never taken the time. “I knew that at that age the only way I could break into the industry was through writing,” he says. “So I took a year and literally broke away from my fairly lucrative promotion business.” That one year turned into five and Tatone will soon see his second script, a true story of rise, fall and redemption based on a Boston Bruins hockey star from the ’70s named Derek Sanderson, released as a $25 million Hollywood production. Not bad for a first attempt at screenwriting. But it’s Tatone’s current production, a contemporary musical called Beautiful Noise, that is lining up to be highly beneficial for Sarasota. That’s the result of another decision: “I was walking the beach and it just came to me — ‘Why not make it yourself?’ So, I decided then and there we’re going to start our company and I don’t care if I have to shoot it with my little Panasonic or if I can find people to help me make it into a bigger thing, I’m going to make this movie and all the movies I write here.” (more…)

  • Publisher’s clearing house: Even with a drop in book sales, local authors still strive to get their work in the hands of readers

    Published June 23, 2010 The Suncoast has a lot of the usual components that writers look for when searching for a place to hunker down and break their writer’s block: pleasant weather, ocean views and a solid community of other writers to edit, critique and discuss their works. But getting your ramblings and rantings in print form, or that first novel in the hands of the masses, can be a difficult endeavor for both novice and experienced authors. That’s one area where Sarasota can offer more help than just a good working environment, but the classic advice to authors everywhere still holds true — don’t quit your day job. There are two types of publishing companies. Traditional publishers choose authors whose books they think will sell, usually footing most of the bills for printing costs, cover design, publicity and distribution, then taking the lion’s share of the profits from each book. Non-traditional publishers offer services that authors pay for and are usually reserved for the rejection letter-weary or those looking for a guide in their self-publishing escapades. (more…)

  • On the world stage: Acting troupes from 11 countries make their way to Venice for the 2010 International Theatre Festival

    Published June 16, 2010 American Association of Community Theatre’s 2010 International Theatre Festival June 22-27, Venice Theatre, 140 W. Tampa Ave., Venice, 488-1115 or venicestage.com/international, $230 for the entire event, $75 for single day passes including access to performances, workshops and parties, $25 show tickets for a block of three one-hour performances, visit website for more information. Every four years the American Association of Community Theatre holds a gathering of community and amateur theatres from all over the world to join for a week of cultural exchange in celebration of performance art. The site chosen for AACT International 2010 is our very own Venice Theatre, where 11 countries will showcase the traditional theatrical styles of their respective homelands. Appropriately dubbed “Festival in Paradise,” the event will host workshops, seminars and parties throughout the week. The festival will feature productions from Australia, Brazil, Denmark, Israel, Italy, Poland, Russia, Singapore, Spain and Zimbabwe, with the United States being represented by yet another local, The Players Theatre, with their highly acclaimed production of The Who’s Tommy. We asked some of the theatre aficionados making their way to Venice from far and wide about their community theatres and their expectations for the festival: (more…)
  • Cheap trick: A business model tailor-made for economic recession has allowed the Sarasota Guitar Company to thrive in a hurry

    Cheap trick: A business model tailor-made for economic recession has allowed the Sarasota Guitar Company to thrive in a hurry

    Published June 2, 2010 The case of Sarasota Guitar Company is a textbook example of how to launch a business in a tough economy. First, find a way to provide products for a fraction of your competitor’s prices. Next, give your customers everything they could possible ask for, before they even ask for it. And finally, watch the money start pouring in. Selling guitars out of a 10-foot by 10-foot booth at the Red Barn Flea Market last year, Sarasota Guitar Company owner Scott Cook could never have imagined what his business would look like today. In December he decided to take a chance in a highly unstable economy and opened a 900-square-foot retail store at 4333 South Tamiami Trail, Suite A. Fortunately, Cook was armed with a brilliant concept, which is why last Thursday, less than six months after opening, he moved two doors down to Suite C, effectively doubling his retail space. Cook’s golden idea was to sell factory-second guitars — instruments with small imperfections that guitar companies deem, for one reason or another, unworthy to sell at suggested retail prices. “Basically it’s a factory-second with a small blemish on it, and they’re cosmetic, nothing physical, so the guitars play correctly,” says Cook. “Sometimes we can’t find anything wrong with them. But because of that they’re saving quite a bit of money — usually anywhere from 50-70 percent off the manufacturers suggested list price.” (more…)

  • Local music: The Terry T. Trio deepens its family bond through music

    Published May 5, 2010 Terry T. Trio 7 p.m. every Wed., Mattison’s City Grille, 1 N. Lemon Ave., Sarasota, 330-0440 or mattisons.com; 6-9 p.m. every Tues., Ceviche, 1216 First St., Sarasota, 952-1036 or ceviche.com. Terry Pinkham’s son Josh didn’t just decide to walk in her and her husband Jeff’s musical footsteps. He chose to perform alongside his parents almost every evening as the mandolinist/guitarist for the Terry T. Trio, also known as the Pinkham Family Band. Terry and Jeff have been performing around the Tampa Bay area since they married over 26 years ago. Terry came from a musical family and grew up singing harmony with her mom while her dad strummed tenor guitar. Her grandfather Benny Thomasson is credited as a huge influence on the Texas fiddling scene; she would find herself singing at fiddling contests on the weekends growing up. Jeff plays guitar and fretted electric violin in the trio but his primary instrument was always mandolin, which he played on Bertie Higgins’ number-one Billboard-charting hit song “Key Largo” in 1982. (more…)

  • The horror film, the horror film: On the set of the eminently quotable Mangrove Slasher II

    Published April 28, 2010

    “DID YOU KNOW IT WAS ILLEGAL TO CUT DOWN THESE MANGROVES?”: The Mangrove Slasher II trailer

    After ducking out of an Emerson Point Preserve beach party, a young couple leans against a tree to make out. But as things get hot and heavy, a dark figure lurks in the muddy mangrove brush behind them. A sinister-looking man with filthy bloodstained overhauls emerges from the muck and slowly approaches the two unsuspecting teens. The metallic sching sound of two machete blades sliding across each other splits the air, followed by a shrill scream and a splatter of blood on the tree bark. The male victim thuds to the ground, holding his slit neck; the female gags as the killer grabs her throat. “Cut!” yells Sean Haitz, turning to his partner Chris Potter to review the footage. “That was perfect.” (more…)