Directed by Angelina Velis with Athená Polymenis as the Director of Photography, "The Immaculate Deception" is a short narrative comedy that follows a group of teenage, catholic school girls as they attempt to help their friend leave school to go have sex. Protagonists, Jordan, Alex and Gabby - portrayed by, respectively, Kristen Biggs, Olivia Tovar, and Campbell Raney try to escape their catholic high school while encountering obstacles from Sister Beatrice, Kellee Owens, and their Teacher, Christine Cochrane. The film was produced for the Advanced Narrative course (RTF 343) in the Radio-Television-Film program at the University of Texas at Austin.
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"I really wanted to create a comedy with two contrasting aspects, the setting of a private Catholic school and the vulgarness of the girls," Velis says.
Polymenis notes that Velis's idea stuck out to her during the pitching process. "Religion is such an interesting microcosm for our society since it's so engrained in our ideology in the United States," Polymenis says. Polymenis also notes that one of her favorite parts of the film is watching Jordan's character arc as she shifts from her uptight catholic upbringing to beginning to question religions role in her life. "That's really what drew me to Angelina's work - it's a funny story, and it was bright and cheery, but if you look deeper and observe you can see the seeds she planted for Jordans growth," Polymenis explains.
While preparing her department heads, Velis noted that Polymenis's "Heart Attack," a short made for a previous assignment in the course, had really stood out to her. It was then that Velis knew that she wanted Polymenis to be the Director of Photography for "The Immaculate Deception." "I was super flattered - and I was already intrigued by her story so we really came together to make something fun and thoughtful," Polymenis says.
Polymenis also notes that finding another Greek filmmaker was a great joy during her time in the program. The pair hit it off so well that Polymenis eventually asked Velis to Edit her Undergraduate Thesis, "η πατρίδα (The Homeland)" in addition to 2nd 2nd Assistant Directing during the production period. Polymenis elaborates that she is excited to continue working with Velis - hopefully in the near future.
Make sure to take a look at the remaining stills from the film which was Edited by Velis and Colored by Linden Dodson.
Please enjoy the behind the scenes photos for "The Immaculate Deception" taken by various crew members!
