Written and Directed by Maria Capp and Starring Seth Gilliam, Nia Sioux, Emery Kelly, Larry Saperstein, Del Zamora, Steven Thomas Capp, The Psychological Thriller Features Themes of Family, Love, Loss, and The Legend of The Lake
The new Film from Cappricielli Productions “The Legend of Lake Ronkonkoma: The Lady Of The Lake” is currently wrapping up production in and around Yaphank and Lake Ronkonkoma, NY – the film’s namesake city. IMDB
The cast includes Seth Gilliam (The Walking Dead, Teen Wolf), Nia Sioux, (Dance Moms, Runnin From My Roots), Emery Kelly (Alexa and Katie, Big Shot), Larry Saperstein (High School Musical: the Musical: The Series), Del Zamora (True Blood) and Steven Thomas Capp (Fat Camp, Reach, How I Met Your Mother) with Sera-Lys McArthur (Outlander), Julie Dove, Clio Contogenis, Veronica Kelly, sisters Raffaela Capp and Natasha Capp (Four Cousins and a Christmas), Chris Roach (Kevin Can Wait), Tori London (The Waitress) rounding out the cast; and introducing Taylor Red Fox as Tahoma.
The intriguing psychological thriller tells the story of Jamie (Nia Sioux), a fresh out of high school graduate who wishes to enjoy her last summer home and her 18th birthday at the Lake with her friends. Overshadowed by the one year anniversary of her brother’s drowning, her estranged relationship with her father (Seth Gilliam), her mother’s mental health issues (Sera-Lys Mcarthur), and unexplained supernatural occurrences that haunt the once happy Schultz family. Jamie certainly will not get the summer she was hoping for, or expecting. Dare to take a dip?
“As a filmmaker, I’ve always wanted to share my experiences growing up on Lake Ronkonkoma and in line with my interest in identity formation and personal experience with grief’s effect on the family; I wrote a psychological thriller. The main character, Jamie Schultz, happens to have lineage that is traceable to the original people of the Lake. I combined the supernatural component with a family suffering from a tragic loss while being haunted by this so-called “Legend”, said Maria Capp, writer, director, and producer of the film.
Most recently, Maria produced and co wrote the feature film, “Reach” and had her directorial debut with the holiday feature “Four Cousins and a Christmas”. She is represented by Sean Pope at Ramo Law and Michelle Zeitlin at More Zap Productions and Management.
The Producing team includes Maria Capp, Kristi Kilday, Donna Drake and Steven Alan Capp as Producers; Rick Eberle, Leif Easterson and Chris Schmidt as Associate Producers; Jay Klaitz and Gayle Waxenberg of NewYorkRep as Executive Producers. This project was cast by Liz Lewis Casting Partners.
Gilliam’s most recent notable credits include The Walking Dead, Teen Wolf and Starship Troopers. He is represented by The Gersh Agency and McGowan Rodriguez. Sioux is most known for her appearance on the show Dance Moms but more recently has starred in the feature Runnin’ from My Roots. She is represented by A3 Artists Agency and Scope Entertainment. Emery Kelly is most known for his role on the Netflix show Alexa and Katie. He is represented by Hyperion Talent Agency. Zamora has been cast in numerous notable pictures including True Blood and Robocop. He is represented by Ideal Talent Agency. Steven Thomas Capp is known for his work as a child actor in the feature film, Fat Camp and the final season of How I Met Your Mother. Steven is repped by Kreativ Artists. Raffaela Capp known for most recently working on Reach and Four Cousins and a Christmas, both in front and behind the camera. She is represented by McGowan Rodriguez Management. Known for the TV Series Outlander, McArthur is represented by Noble Caplan Abrams and Kern Management. Veronica Kelly is known for Saving Grace and is represented by Roger Paul Talent. Natasha Capp is most known for her stand up comedy act in LA and NY and Four Cousins and A Christmas. She is repped by FireStarter Entertainment. Clio Contongenis is represented by Eris Talent, Chris Roach is represented by and known for his stand up comedy and Kevin Can Wait, Tori London is repped by The Robb Company and Julie Dove is represented by Smith, Young Talent.
Full Cast Biographies:
Seth Gilliam (Adam Schultz) just wrapped eleven seasons playing ‘Father Gabriel Stokes’ on AMC’s cultural phenomenon “The Walking Dead.” This iconic character from Robert Kirkman’s graphic novel has garnered attention across the globe. Gilliam has appeared at San Diego Comic Con, Paley Fest, and many Walker Stalker Conventions to meet his fans. Most recently Mr. Gilliam returned to his role as ‘Dr. Alan Deaton’ in the Teen Wolf: The Movie, which is currently in post production. He also guest starred on CBS’s episodic “Bull” and Showtime’s episodic “City on a Hill.” In 2018 he shot the feature film Silver Lake written and directed by Sean McGinly. Gilliam is best recognized for his role on HBO’s critically acclaimed series “The Wire,” opposite fellow “The Walking Dead” cast mates Chad Coleman and Lawrence Gilliard Jr.; Starship Troopers with Casper Van Dien and Neil Patrick Harris; and Courage Under Fire with Denzel Washington, Meg Ryan and Matt Damon. Gilliam landed his first recurring television role portraying ‘Aaron Dexter’ on the classic hit series “The Cosby Show.” Gilliam’s additional television credits include “Oz,” “Teen Wolf,” “Assault On West Point,” “Bronx Is Burning,” “The People vs. Leo Frank;” and guest starring roles on “Homeland,” ”Damages,” “Nurse Jackie,” “Law & Order,” “Law & Order: Criminal Intent,” “CSI: Miami,” “Person of Interest,” “Criminal Minds” and “The Good Wife.” Gilliam’s additional feature credits include Did You Hear About the Morgans?, Punks, Jefferson in Paris and the Sundance Grand Jury Prize-winning film Personal Velocity: Three Portraits. No stranger to theatre, Gilliam has also appeared in numerous stage productions including King Lear, Othello, Father Comes Home From the Wars, Top Dog/Under Dog, Romeo And Juliet, Girl Gone and Richard III, to name a few. Gilliam is a graduate of S.U.N.Y. Purchase.
Nia Sioux is a multi-hyphenate performer, skilled entrepreneur and social justice advocate. Nia has entertained across the globe since the age of 8, as an original cast member of Lifetime’s docu-series, Dance Moms, and continues to evolve as an entertainer in film, television and music. With an established impressive resume, Nia’s most recent work includes the lead in an original Lifetime movie, Imperfect High, and a critically acclaimed original Facebook Watch series, Dance with Nia, in which she stars in. Nia released her first children’s book, “Today I Dance,” in 2021 and is currently working on original new music and upcoming film projects. After graduating high school in the spring of 2020, Nia’s focus and determination rewarded her with an acceptance into the UCLA Bruin family. She is currently a full-time college student. With her many passions, Nia continues to break the mold with her outlets of creative expression, entrepreneurial endeavors, and active stance on social issues that she believes in. Being a strong role model to young women is important to Nia, and she often speaks to kids about how they can “star in their own lives,” a message dear to her. Nia started a weekly #RoleModelMonday tribute on her social media to recognize those that are making a difference and social impact. She is passionate about raising awareness for reflex neurovascular dystrophy (RND,) anti-body shaming, and anti-bullying. Nia is currently based in Los Angeles but frequently visits her hometown of Pittsburgh. Represented by Victoria Kress at A3 Artists Agency Managed by Angelyna Martínez-Boyd at Scope Entertainment
Emery Kelly (Rocky) is from Long Island, New York and began his career competing on X Factor where he formed the pop trio Forever In Your Mind in 2013. In 2015, he began venturing into acting with guest roles on Disney Channel’s Dog with a Blog, Best Friends Whenever, and Lab Rats: Bionic Island. In 2018 he landed the lead role of Lucas Mendoza in Netflix’s Original comedy series Alexa and Katie. Since, he has starred in the feature film Max Winslow and the House of Secrets as Aiden and recurred in the role of Dylan on the TV show Big Shot.
Larry Saperstein (Scott) is from Long Island, New York and has been acting since he was 3 years old at his community theater with his parents. He has also been dancing since he was 6 years old and is still a talented tap dancer. He attended Pace University and graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Production and Design for Stage and Screen. In his early career he starred in short films and ABC Television’s 2015 film Fan Girl as Lucius. In 2019 he landed his breakout role in the Disney+ series High School Musical: The Musical: The Series as Big Red. He has also starred in: The First Wives Club on BET (Timmy), Late Night with Seth Meyers Teen Slang Sketch on NBC, and Boardwalk Empire (Featured) HBO
Del Zamora (Andy Schultz) was born and raised in the Southwest of the United States and he is Mescalero Apache and Chicano Native American. Del was offered admission at the University of California, Los Angeles on a full scholarship but turned down school to pursue a computer job. After four years, Del chose to walk away from his successful computer job and pursue his acting career. After studying acting in New York City for a year, he returned to Los Angeles where he lived in his van and acted and crewed in 94 student films. He reapplied to UCLA and was accepted with his full scholarship intact. During his time in school, he was cast by Alex Cox in Repo Man (1984). He was then cast in RoboCop (1987) and Born in East L.A. (1987). Most recently, Del is known for his work in True Blood as Don Bartolo.
Steven Thomas Capp (Erwin) is an American actor with Italian heritage who grew up on Long Island and Manhattan, and enjoyed his summers in the beautiful Berkshire mountains and on Fire Island. Currently resides in Los Angeles. He has had the good fortune to work alongside Vivica Fox, Chris Redd, and Anabelle Acosta in the BET / Universal comedy “Fat Camp”, directed by Jen Arnold and written by Chuck Hayward, which had its world premiere at the LA Film Festival. Co-star and guest star roles in Adam Pally / FOX’s “Making History”, the iconic last episode of ABC’s “How I Met Your Mother” and “Speechless”, as well as TVLand’s “Teachers” and Nickelodeon’s “Ricky, Dicky and Dawn”. Proud to have worked with Garrett Clayton, Jordan Doww and Joey Bragg on the teen drama, coming of age feature “REACH” about the power of kindness and teens coping with mental health issues.
About Cappricielli Productions
Cappricielli Productions is a multi-faceted production company that creates a wide array of entertaining and socially conscious film, video, theater and music content. Cappricielli’s mission is to bring meaningful and entertaining storytelling to audiences while providing opportunities to emerging professionals above and below line with a laser focus on women, Bipoc, and Lgbtq+ communities.
Full Cast List: Seth Gilliam, Nia Sioux, Emery Kelly, Larry Saperstein, Steven Thomas Capp, Del Zamora, Veronica Kelly, Sera Lys McArthur, Raffaela , Capp, Natasha Capp, Clio Contogenis, Taylor Red Fox, Julie Dove, Chris Roach, Sharlize True, Sheldon True, Shariah True, Tori London, Jackson Gill, Dyani Brown, Miles Roe, Shane Weeks, Donna Drake
Quotes from the Producers and other integral crew
“We loved being a part of this special project. We can’t wait to sit on the edge of our seats and see the multi -talented cast under Maria’s vision bring this psychological thriller to life on the screen.” Liz Lewis – Liz Lewis Casting Partners
“The Legend of Lake Ronkonkoma is a beautiful and mystical film that entertains and reminds us that so much of the land we live on, do business on and profit from was taken from Native Americans. I personally and professionally, as the Founder of NewYorkRep, whose mission is: to inspire and compel social change . . to illuminate ethical questions by telling stories that expose our humanity . . all through provocative art that promotes empathy, compassion and inclusion, am proud to be part of this film.” Gale Waxenberg – Producer, Founding Executive Director NewYorkRep
“I am in awe of Maria’s work as an independent filmmaker, and the incredible grit & determination she has to make it happen. Upon first reading the script, it was clear what a well constructed and haunting story she had created. It’s Inspiring to see an artist step up as an ally to the indigenous people to whom the land where she herself grew up belongs. I know she will honor the story, as a powerful female voice in independent film.“ Jay Klaitz – Producer, Board Member NewYorkRep
“When I heard about the concept, read the script and knew that Maria Capp was leading this project, I asked how I can be involved. I’ve known Maria for many years and everything she touches has so much passion behind it… and it’s always successful!” Donna Drake – Producer, Drake Media Network, Drake Media Studios, The Donna Drake Show
“While indigenous self-representation is the ultimate goal, I believe that it is our duty to be present when non-natives attempt to depict indigenous culture. Throughout most of American history, we have been intentionally left out of this process. So when producers like Maria Capp invite us to represent ourselves with authenticity, we must take this as a micro-opportunity for self-representation that serves to pave a way for the tapestry of our 578-plus American Indian cultures to be seen and included” Dyani Brown – Consulting Producer
For More on the Upcoming Feature Film “The Legend of Princess Ronkonkoma”, Visit: www.Cappricielli.com
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