| On September 20, the house of Mark Ford and Mei-Fang Hu suddenly caught fire. The top floor of the house burned down completely, and the bottom floors were damaged beyond repair. The house was demolished five days later. Mark and Mei-Fang began scripting Run Away Home a week after the fire. They worked at friends' houses, the local motel, and anywhere they could find a square meal. The filmmakers were determined to chronicle the emotional roller-coaster ride of losing their home on film. Instead of writing parts for themselves, they chose two local kindergarteners. The production of the film began shortly after the filmmakers discovered Erky Ewing, the six year-old girl, and Oliver Ohrazda, the five year-old boy. Erky walked through the door with magic sandals at her audition, and Oliver showed Mark and Mei-Fang how to make a bomb out of a telephone. The directors moved out of the motel and into a new house, and they began shooting in mid-November. Erky's old house in the film is actually Mark and Mei-Fang's new house. Production ended in March, and the filmmakers had a rough cut a year later. When the film finally opened, Mark and Mei-Fang's old house was a distant memory. The owners of the property decided not to re-build. The lot is now a field of weeds. Run Away Home has gone on to wide acclaim, including winning the Best Film at the 36th Humboldt International Short Film Festival. |
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