DaytonDailyNews.com

The Dayton Woman's Club at 225 N. Ludlow St. in downtown Dayton has gone Hollywood.

Alex Creager, a senior at Columbia College Chicago, used the historic club as a setting for a wedding reception in a short film he has directed and produced.

Creager, who is from Miamisburg, calls his film "Best Friends" and said he began developing the script last April.

"It is a dark comedy which is set around a wedding," Creager said. "The groom gets a call two hours prior to the ceremony by the best man demanding help with a personal problem or he won't show up to the wedding.

"Because the bride has a temper, the groom is faced with the decision of what he fears more, a missing best man or his fiancee's temper."

Creager, 22, said when he was planning his Dayton schedule, he needed to find a reception hall for the final scene of his movie.

"I kept thinking that the Dayton Woman's Club would be an ideal setting for the wedding reception. When I contacted them they were overwhelmingly receptive. They not only let me shoot there, but they set up tables and chairs to accommodate the extra actors in the film."

Creager said he thanks his art teacher at Dayton Christian High School, Chris Niemiec, as the person who first got him interested in filmmaking.

"Aside from my family he was really the guy who encouraged me and got it all started," Creager said.

"Then in 2003, Chris Niemiec married my Spanish teacher, Lisa Stackhouse, and when their wedding reception was held at the Dayton Woman's Club, I was invited to be their videographer."

Then his grandmother, Vicki Jo Boyer, of Miamisburg, a dance teacher, held a reception at the Woman's Club to celebrate her five- year cancer remission.

"It was a black-tie affair and a beautiful night, and grandma asked me to say a few words that night. The club was so beautifully decorated and again I was so impressed with the historic facility."

When he filmed the final scenes of his movie earlier this month, Vicki Jo and her husband, Dwight, who will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary in June, performed as extras.

The five actors who play leading roles in the movie are Chicago actors and about 35 extra parts are all played by Dayton-area residents.

Creager said he has found that some movie directors are "control freaks" by nature. "My style is much more open. I love to hear input from my actors and crew, and if I hear something or agree with a new idea, I'll give it careful consideration."

Creager has lined up a position as an intern at Warner Bros. Studios in Hollywood after earning his degree at Columbia College Chicago.

"It's not my style as a director to beat the audience over the head with a message," Creager said. "My goal is to entertain. I like fun movies."

Dale Huffman wants your ideas. This column is for you. Send e-mail to dhuffman@DaytonDailyNews

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