Ishai Setton knows how to be on time, even if he has to hurry; and he knows how to wait. Young as he is, he is an experienced filmmaker who knows how to get what he needs, even when the best strategy is biding his time.

  Setton is an inveterate film lover. He used to trek in to New York City to see the newest, cutting edge films like RUN, LOLA, RUN, HARD EIGHT, WELCOME TO THE DOLLHOUSE at the Angelika, at Film Forum, at all the places where he could see the cinema that would never play his hometown in Allentown, PA. Now that he’s a filmmaker, he’s close to completing THE BIG BAD SWIM, a film shot in Old Lyme Connecticut, the kind of out of the ordinary feature the Angelika will likely be showing sometime very soon.

Setton, founder of Setton Sun Productions and Four Acts Films, is attracted to projects that feature quirky characters. In his award-winning short THE BUTCHER AND THE HOUSEWIFE (See IMAGINE August 05 issue), the rock group The Scorpions cavorted in Allentown at a grocery store where the butcher and a loveless housewife find love and fulfillment over a half-pound of ground beef.

In THE BIG BAD SWIM, by Daniel Schechter of Old Lyme, a group of underdogs are learning to swim in an adult swim class under the tutelage of Noah Owens (Jeff Branson), a has-been Olympics hopeful. A calculus teacher (Paget Brewster) in the throes of a difficult divorce from a high school colleague, an exotic dancer and dealer at Mohegan Sun (Jess Weixler), a handsome youngster Hunter McCarthy (PHIL OF THE FUTURE’s Ricky Ullman), and a hydrophobic policeman (Kevin Porter Young) join nine other courageous grown-ups, between the ages of 17 and 75, who know it’s never too late to learn new skills and to grow into emotionally mature human beings.

“The film centers around the main characters, but it’s an ensemble film,” says Director Setton. “They all contribute to one another’s stories.”

The Cast of Ishai Setton’s THE BIG BAD SWIM assembles in the pool at The New London Recreation Center. (L to R) - Crystal Bock, Liza Lapira, Judy Cole,Terria Joseph, Emma Galvin, Paget Brewster, Jeff Branson, Jess Weixler, Kevin Porter Young, Ostaro, Darla Hill and Todd Susman. Photo courtesy of Ishai Setton.

After Ishai Setton graduated from NYU’s Film Program, completed a stint as an intern at Sony Pictures Classics, and worked as Producer/Director of Forbes Video Network, he moved in to Daniel Schechter’s parents’ home in Old Lyme to develop a feature Schechter, a script consultant for Boston’s Scout Productions, had written about his native Connecticut. They joined forces with Producer Chandra Simon, of Fairfield CT, producer of some successful films such as ARMENIAN GENOCIDE for PBS Television, BIOGRAPHY: SANDRA DAY O’CONNOR, for A & E, and IN THE COMPANY OF WOMEN, for IFC. 

While they were working on the project, the team managed, with the invaluable assistance of Essex art gallery owner Sandy Garvin, to secure the right to shoot at Mohegan Sun. “She believed in us as a team,” says Setton about Garvin. “And she was always there to do things for us that no one else could have done so well. Like getting us a bus to use for a makeup van, arranging for us to shoot at Lyme/Old Lyme High School, basically connecting us with incredible community support.” 

But despite their best efforts, the first project didn’t fly. Though they had assembled a group of generous investors and had begun a casting process, the original concept turned out to be much bigger than the kind of low-budget indie the team had hoped to do as its first feature. The three recognized, however, that there were elements of the film they could salvage and turn into exactly what they were trying to produce.

Schechter then penned THE BIG BAD SWIM, and they knew they were on their way again. “We took some of the elements from the other project like shooting at Mohegan Sun, and we went to our investors to tell them what we wanted to do.  They were absolutely behind us. So we set a shoot date and went at it. It really just happened very naturally,” muses Setton.

Setton credits his time at Forbes with preparing him for the business side of film-making.  “It was a great introduction to the business side of film.  I learned how to deal with people, how to talk to investors, what it takes to set up an LLC and write a credible business plan, how to make it all presentable . . . how to use PowerPoint!”

On-set of THE BIG BAD SWIM, Director Ishai Setton confers with actor Jeff Branson. Photo courtesy of Ishai Setton.

Like any film, the BIG BAD Film shoot had its challenges. Much of the swim class was shot at the Connecticut College Aquatic Center, a competitive pool that is never warmer than 80 degrees. “It was cold,” laughs Setton. “Very cold. One day I had to get into the pool with the actors; it was the only way I knew how to share their pain.” 

But the shooting wrapped, and now begins the hardest work, the third part of the writing process: editing with Editor Ian Wile, of Rogue Post in New York, the editor who cut SESSION NINE, directed by Brad Anderson. 

Since beginning the work on THE BIG BAD SWIM, Setton has been living on credit cards and the money he makes as a teacher at the Connecticut School of Broadcasting and wherever he can pick up a class or two. He has moved to Brooklyn, and, judging from the advance buzz on THE BIG BAD SWIM, he has good reason to be hopeful about being enabled to turn to fulltime film directing very soon. 

Editing is nearly done on THE BIG BAD SWIM.  “We should have a festival cut by the end of this week,” Setton asserted. “We’re targeting Sundance as our first entry. Who wouldn’t? I’ve already had a lot of interest by production companies and distributors.  Sundance sure couldn’t hurt!”

Ishai Setton and his team are as ready to take the film on the road as they are to take on their next challenge. They’ve fashioned the trailer, perfected the pitch, put out the word. 

All that’s left is to hurry up and wait.

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Carla Stockton is a writer/producer and IMAGINE’s Associate publisher in Southwestern Connecticut. She can be reached at carlaatimagine@yahoo.com