‘Gemini,’ a Film Shot in Columbiana, to Premiere at Main Street Theater

COLUMBIANA, Ohio – “Gemini,” a sci-fi action film by Nicole Ice of Columbiana, will premiere Saturday, Feb. 10, at Main Street Theater.

The film, which was shot in the Columbiana area last year, is based on a script Ice adapted from a novel by Jimmy Taaffe of Struthers.

It revolves around twin sisters who grew up on separate planets after one of them was left on Earth as a baby. When the sisters finally meet up on Earth, they are forced to decide whether to split up or stay together.

The cast includes Angela Cole and Cara DeChurch as the sisters, plus Scott Schwartz, Tammy Tsai, Paul Worley and Erich Offenburg. Kevin Kent is the stunt coordinator.

Taaffe is the executive producer, and Josh Menning is director of photography.

Tickets for the premiere, which starts at 7 p.m., are $15 and can be purchased in advance at columbianaculturalcollective.com.

Filming for “Gemini” took place in April at several locations, including Firestone Park, the Dutch Haus Best Western Hotel, South Main Street and Firestone Farms Town Square in Columbiana and the Corner Pocket bar and the Leetonia coke ovens historical site in Leetonia.

The shoot at the latter site caused a stir because residents didn’t realize it was just a movie being shot, Ice said.

“We had a lot of [actors portraying] FBI agents in coats and hats, and talk was going around all over Leetonia,” she said. “People were saying they found a dead body at the coke ovens. It was crazy. Some were saying they found a stash of cocaine and fentanyl there.”

Later, the Youngstown bomb squad came to the scene to investigate an item that was found at the coke ovens.

“We must have left a prop there,” Ice said. “They shut down the park. I’m not sure what they found. I’m told it looked like a gun, but it could have been a piece of the scaffolding.”

Ice is part of a group of active filmmakers and actors centered around Columbiana. She was a producer of Menning’s 2023 film “Angel Mine.”

A native of Aurora, Ohio, who has also lived in California, Ice is currently working on funding her next film, “Iniquity,” which she also wrote.

She loves making movies in the Columbiana area, citing the cooperativeness of officials who are eager to help and the availability of state tax credits.

“It is so great to film here,” she said. “If you have to ask to close a road, they’re like, ‘For how long?’” she said.

The cast and crew of “Gemini” includes some Hollywood talent.

Schwartz, who plays the role of Fletch, started acting as a child and was in a memorable scene in the 1983 classic holiday film “A Christmas Story.” He played Flick, the classmate of Ralphie who got his tongue stuck to a cold metal pole in the schoolyard.

Kent, the stunt coordinator, has a long résumé as a military technical advisor on films such as “Transformers: The Last Knight” (2017),” “Kong: Skull Island” (2017) and “Bumblebee” (2018).

Five songs by Minnesota-based rock band Rat Bath were used in “Gemini.” The band will be present at the movie’s premiere at Main Street Theater and will play all five of the songs before the screening.

Pictured at top: Angela Cole and Scott Schwartz in a scene from “Gemini.”

Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.