DeMane Davis and Khari Streeter knew that the road to a successful independent film wouldn’t necessarily be easy but, as it turned out, the hardest part of getting their new film LIFT to the screen wasn’t getting financing. It was getting to tell their Boston story in Boston.

"We’re from here and we want to stay here," said Streeter during their recent five week shoot. "There should be more going on here."

LIFT camera crew on location in Jamaica Plain. Camera Operator Melissa Donovan, First Camera Assistant Tim Metivier, and Director of Photography David Phillips. Photo credit: Gretje Ferguson.

The story actually begins several years ago when Davis and Streeter, who worked together making commercials, decided to try their hand at a feature film. The result was BLACK & WHITE & RED ALL OVER, which premiered at the prestigious Sundance Film Festival in 1996. The film attracted some notice but got limited theatrical release. (It’s currently out on home video.)

That success, though, got the directing duo an invitation to participate in the Sundance Writer’s and Director’s Labs, which is where LIFT was developed. The two came up with the story of a young black woman at a dramatic crossroads in her life. She has a job and the opportunity for advancement, but she is also tied to her mother who is carrying a secret pain. As a result the woman has to decide if she is going to live her own life or sacrifice for her mother. Once the story was in place, Davis then wrote the screenplay.

The key to the script was setting it in the neighborhood around Dudley Station in Boston. Part of it is because of the character’s never feeling she’s good enough, even as some people see Boston as a junior version of New York. Said Davis, "Boston is always known as not being as good as New York or [people there] always striving to go to New York." When she would be asked why she didn’t take the easy way out and simply shoot in New York, she refused, explaining that would change the film into a completely different story. Davis and Streeter, both Bostonians themselves, also felt the contrast was heightened by the compactness of the city where poor neighborhoods and trendy upscale areas could be within blocks of each other.

LIFT star Kerry Washington discusses her next scene with Writer-Directors Khari Streeter and DeMane Davis. Photo credit: Gretje Ferguson.

At one point it was suggested that the story could be set in Boston but shot using Baltimore locations, since Maryland is a right to work state. Producer Mark Hankey, of Boston’s Picture Park, noted, "There was definitely pressure to move it to other places. Boston has a reputation [as] a difficult place."

When the script was the U.S. winner of the 1998 NHK International Filmmakers Award, interest grew. It was finally put into production by Hart Sharp Entertainment, best known these days for backing a small film that became a critical and financial smash: BOYS DON’T CRY.

The film was shot on 17 locations over 24 days in late April and May, and although the leads are from out of town, something like a dozen principal roles and twenty day players were hired out of the local acting pool. An open audition was held at the First Church of Roxbury (under the auspices of casting director Kevin Fennessy), which led to a couple of roles being cast as well as some 90% of the non-SAG (Screen Actors Guild members) extras.

With many people still unaware of the growing number of local productions, Streeter noted, "I don’t think the community really knows what it means to film here." The more people find out, he feels, the better it will be for filmmakers wanting to shoot here.

Because the film is a low-budget feature (under $2 million), the local unions were eager to grant concessions. Said Hankey, "All the unions were great. They really want more productions like this." The rates are on a sliding scale, giving a break to modest productions like LIFT.

Much of the crew was local as well, but that also required an explanation. "There’s a perception there isn’t a talented crew here," said Streeter. "We had to go to bat for each one."

Ironically, Line Producer Hankey formed Picture Park with Eric Korsh because, he said, "We’re two freelance line producers. We decided we wanted to stay at home rather than travel." A little over half their work is out of town, and they feel obliged to maintain an office in Los Angeles. Still, he feels local production is becoming more and more viable, noting that "the crews have gotten so much better here."

Oddly the one complaint was directed against the Massachusetts Film Office, which is used to working with filmmakers early on in pre-production, not in the middle of a shoot. The filmmakers wanted to film in Harris Park in Roxbury but the Parks and Recreation Department refused because the scene involved a shooting. A few days before the filmed gunplay was to take place, the city thought better of allowing a Boston park to be used as the location for what may been perceived, erroneously as it turns out, as a violent movie..

On the set, Sound Mixer John Garrett is assisted by LIFT Intern Jesse Lichtenstein. Photo credit: Gretje Ferguson.

When they asked the Film Office to intervene, said Streeter, "Their initial reaction was, ‘You should have come to us earlier.’" Ultimately they had to find another location.

Tim Grafft, deputy director of the Film Office, said that "the city was not aware that that was the gist of the scene," and it was difficult to persuade them otherwise on such short notice. "We do ask all filmmakers that if you have a tough scene like that, you notify us way in advance."

In spite of the problems, the two directors remain committed to local filmmaking. "There’s some amazing locations," said Davis, "if you can get in."

The co-directors are currently in the process of editing the film and getting it ready to submit to it to next year’s Sundance where they hope to have the premiere showing. While Davis and Streeter aren’t certain what their next project will be (no one is offering them $60 million science-fiction blockbusters, they joked), they do know that they want to continue to work locally.

As Davis put it, "I wake up every morning and say, ‘I live here; I grew up here; and I’m going to work to make my movie."

Daniel M. Kimmel is the Boston Correspondent for Variety Magazine