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INTERVIEW

AMC Alum Alicia Minshew On New Project

Alicia Minshew (ex-Kendall) is starring and serving as a producer on a series called ELTINGVILLE, which is current fund-raising on Kickstarter. “This friend of mine, Eddie Cordiano, is the writer/creator/producer of ELTINGVILLE, which is based on a place in Staten Island,” Minshew reports. “He happens to be friends with Melissa Claire Egan [Chelsea, Y&R; ex-Annie, AMC] as well, because it’s such a small world. I met him doing a pilot together and he is the most charming, awesome, cool Italian dude and we hit it off. We decided to become producing partners a few years ago and we’ve been shopping this script around and getting great responses. We finally decided, ‘Let’s just produce this ourselves.’ So, we got some investors, hired a casting director, and we’re going to film it in May in Staten Island and parts of New Jersey, and we’re so excited to tell this real, amazing story, which is kind of Eddie’s story, a coming of age story about an Italian family in the 1980s on Staten Island and this kid who feels the loss of a parent and is trying to figure out who he is, and there’s a connection to organized crime. It’s about how he deals with his life and friendships and family and loss, all the while being very drawn to being a part of the mob, which was huge in Staten Island in the ’80s. He lived this, Eddie, and now he’s telling this story and I am so fascinated by this story. When I read it, I immediately was like, ‘Oh, my God, I want to be a part of this!’ We’ve been securing locations and figuring out shoot dates and I’m helping to cast it and I’m working with hair and makeup. With my hair, I’m already to play an Italian from the ’80s! My character, actually, is a mother whose son gets involved in the mob and gets hurt. She is a pissed-off Staten Island chick, hardened, rough around the edges, a widow, and she’s trying to keep her son from going down the wrong road. Eddie is playing one of the main characters, and if you go on the Kickstarter page, Eddie has written all about what the show’s about. It’s being directed by a fellow Italian, which is another thing that connected us — Eddie’s Italian, I’m Italian, we were raised with the Italian side of our family so we have this mutual love for our families and the Italian Sunday dinner and the director is another lovely Italian dude. He’s amazing! He actually has a movie out on Amazon [Prime] now that he wrote and directed called SAME BOAT and I feel really lucky that I’m working with these guys. They’re such artists and sweet, family guys and we all have mutual respect for each other. It’s a family drama but there are definitely funny moments with the characters, for sure, and we’ve had a lot of laughs together. I love the project and the people connected to it and it’s such a good, authentic story. We all really appreciate everyone’s support and interest.” To learn more about the show and to make a donation to the production, click here

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