Arts & Entertainment

'No Soliciting' Film Director, Actor Talks With Patch

Will Dove, a native of Lilburn, is seeing his dream come true, as his film "No Soliciting!" runs for another week at the Plaza Theatre.

This month, Will Dove, a 24-year-old graduate of Parkview High, is seeing his dreams come true. And, beginning Friday, the public has another chance to be a part of that dream.

It's the culmination of lots of tenacity and ambition for the young filmmaker and actor.

Inspired by Dove's own experiences as a brief door-to-door salesman, "No Soliciting," took several months of writing and fine-tuning to finish the script. After years of making small projects and working for production companies, it is his first attempt at a feature-length film.

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So far, it's showing at the Plaza Theatre, and Dove also has submitted it to several film festivals, including the Atlanta Film Festival.

Patch recently sat down with Dove to learn a little bit more about his dream, and what brought "No Soliciting!" to life. Read our Q & A below, and then let us know in comment section what you think.

Find out what's happening in Lilburn-Mountain Parkwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Question and Answer

Patch: So, the first showing earlier this month was sold out. How'd that make you feel?

Dove: It just skyrocketed two days beforehand, and then the day of there were so many people buying tickets we only had -- it was already almost sold out -- so we had 20 left, and we upped it to 50.

And, we still had to turn away a hundred people. The (Plaza) owner, that's what he does. He buys films for theaters -- he owns three theaters -- and he said he's never seen an independent film do that.

Patch: In the pictures of the evening, you seem so happy.

Dove: Yeah, I was loving it. You get to kind of see your work pay off.

Patch: How long had you been working on the film?

Dove: Um, about a year.

Patch: Where'd the concept come from?

Dove: The company I was working for went under. So, I worked a couple of odd jobs, and one of them was door-to-door sales. I already had the template for a movie, and I just needed something that was really terrible, and that fit in so perfect.

I worked there for literally two days. I was going to try to work there for a month and really research it, but I couldn't. It was like four days, I think -- two days training, and actually one day when I was just doing it -- and I was like, "This is miserable."

Patch: So, you went to that job for research, or for a job?

Dove: It was a little bit of both. So, the jobs I was working, they were all really crazy jobs, so it's kind of like you're trying to feel it out -- just to get more stories and stuff, you know. If anything you're meeting random people constantly. So, I was like, "This is it I'm going to stick with this."

Patch: So, what happened that one day of sales that it didn't work out?

Dove: So, what you got to do is -- you have to commute. So let's say from here, I would have to drive to Sandy Springs, and that's... 30 minutes away. So, you meet up there, and then you do a one-hour, two-hour meeting with them, and then basically what I was having to do is drive all the way to Covington and Douglasville, which is an hour away... So, the first day I made, I think, $14 for all day, so I was like, if I come out even that's fine, but I didn't. So, I was like, I'm not going to spend money to work this job. That's why I quit.

Patch: So, how did you develop a whole film out of just a few days?

Dove: After graduating, you kind of re-evaluate -- especially in this kind of economy -- what you want to do and what you can do... It's good to know what you want to do in life, but what really sucks is knowing what you want to do but can't do it... I wanted to be a filmmaker, but it was so hard right out the gate. It's all networking...

And, then going to these job interviews. You know you're perfectly qualified for it, but they're like, "Oh there's this guy who retired," and he's got, like, 30 years of experience on you for this entry level job. And, then on top of that with internships: You can get an internship, but it's always going to be free, and those are the entry level jobs, then as soon as you're done, they'll fire you and get somebody else. So, that was really frustrating.

Patch: What were some of the challenges of making the film?

Dove: It took me 15 days to shoot it. Yeah, that's crazy planning... My original director of photography, the cameraman, he dropped out five days before the first day of shooting, and that's my cameraman, right. And, he had the camera, so that was ridiculous. That was the first huge scare I had about it's not going to happen.

Patch: What's your ultimate career goal?

Dove: For me to be satisfied, would be to do one blockbuster Hollywood movie, and then I could retire. That, or, win an Oscar, you know. Maybe, if I have time for it, sure. I'll gladly take it, or nominated for an Oscar. Oh my God, that's so far down the road.

Patch: What kind of advice would you give to others who may want to do film making?

Dove: The resources are all there, now especially, that literally, anybody can do it. It just takes the time, the dedication and devotion. You can easily do it... On the flip side, you got to be a tough individual, no matter what. You want it to be good, but not everybody is going to like it, even if it is a good thing. You got to be able to take criticism, and that's one thing I'm learning.

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Want to know more?

To learn more about Will Dove and the film "No Soliciting" check the movie's website and Facebook page. Vimeo has more of Dove's work, as well.

Want tickets to the showing?

Check the Plaza Theatre's website for times and prices.


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