
BlackTree TV Host Jessica Boyd, sits down with the stars from the film Frozen River, which made a lot of noise at this years Sundance Film Festival. SHORTSYNOPSIS Frozen River is the story of Ray Eddy, an upstate New York trailer mom who is lured into the world of illegal immigrant smuggling when she meets a Mohawk girl who lives on a reservation that straddles the US-Canadian border. Broke after her husband takes off with the down payment for their new doublewide, Ray reluctantly teams up with Lila, a smuggler, and the two begin making runs across the frozen St. Lawrence River carrying illegal Chinese and Pakistani immigrants in the trunk of Ray's Dodge Spirit. DIRECTOR'SSTATEMENT I wrote this film after learning about women smugglers at the border of New York State and Canada who drive their cars across the frozen St. Lawrence River to make money to support their kids. The risk involved compelled me to write a story, not only about smuggling at the northern border, but also about what life circumstances would lead someone to take such chances. What I discovered was that a mother's instinct to protect her children is more powerful than any cultural, political or economic boundary line. Melissa Leo (Ray) and Misty Upham (Lila) embodied the unheralded struggle of single mothers of all ethnicities who are living on the edge. ABOUTTHEPRODUCTION Shot on the Panasonic Varicam in 24 days, in sub-zero weather in Plattsburgh, New York with a bare-bones budget, the production of <b>...</b>
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Melissa
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