A film about a contract killer single mom was honored with the Audience Award for Best Feature Film during the recent Queens World Film Festival.
“Maggie Marvel” is from Port Washington’s actor, director and writer Dan Brennan. Brennan has appeared in more than 100 national commercials, including being the dad in the AT&T rollover minutes commercials.
“I learned as an actor that you first have to pick yourself before anyone else will pick you,” Brennan said of his transition into filmmaker.
This is Brennan’s second film. His first, “The Video Guys,” was a comedy about wedding videographers and it won awards at the International Film Festival, Hoboken Film Festival and Long Island Film Festival.
“Maggie Marvel,” which was filmed last year in Queens and Nassau County, is described as “a dark comedy about a single mom who moonlights as a contract killer for extra money, and finds she’s very good at it.”
“To be a single mom and also be a killer is just really funny,” said Brennan, who described the movie as a “straight up sexy comedy” and “‘Pulp Fiction’ for women.”
In addition to writing and directing “Maggie Marvel,” Brennan also appears in it as an actor. The film was a family affair as wife Jeanne produced it and acted as cinematographer while the couple’s daughters, Sabrina and Diana, are supporting actors in it.
“Maggie Marvel” made its New York premiere at the Queens World Film Festival on Saturday, March 5. Brennan said he had read about what festival founders Katha and Don Cato did to help filmmakers when a previous festival had problems and thought they were “amazing” people. He added that he was desperate to work with them and felt very lucky that “Maggie Marvel” was selected for the festival.
Brennan said that the festival audience “loved” the film. He participated in a question and answer period after the screening where many had questions about “Maggie Marvel.”
“It was fun,” he said of the experience. “The audience has really responded.”
Being selected as the winner of the Audience Award for Best Feature Film during the festival was something that meant a lot to Brennan. He said that “you like your movie” and want others to like it but never think they will. However, winning an audience award proves that they did, he said.
“It is the most spectacular feeling in the world to win an award at a festival because it is so incredibly hard to get into a festival,” Brennan said.
Because of the response to “Maggie Marvel,” which has been submitted to a “handful of big New York film festivals” coming up, Brennan said he is definitely considering creating a sequel to it.
Also on the horizon for Brennan as a filmmaker will be a sequel to “The Video Guys.”
To find out more about “Maggie Marvel” or to purchase a download of the film, visit www.maggiemarvel.com. More information about “The Video Guys” can be found at www.videoguysthemovie.com.
