Pine Springs

Pine Springs is an independent film by No-Springs Productions, created and released in the summer of 2009. It is about a small town that is turned upside-down when a local educational access television news host living and working there decides to prove that he will go to any lengths necessary to boost his show's ratings.

Plot
Terry Phillups was an ordinary executive trying to run an ordinary news show on a university-run educational access channel. But when his ratings began to fail, he decided to take on the dangerous gamble of signing a contract to get a better host and show together than any he'd ever before. Hilarity soon ensued, because the city of Pine Springs would soon be tuning in to The Michael Kelly Show with Michael Kelly.

Michael proves himself to be obnoxious and narcissistic both on and off camera. However, Michael points out to Terry that not even the best TV host can redeem a show that is only capable of providing guests that cannot hold public interest for long.

Terry tries to hold everything together his way anyway, first by bringing on goth girl Isabella from the Pet Adoption Center. Once off camera, Michael makes no secret to Terry his complete contempt for Isabella and all guests like her. Isabella can be seeing trying not to cry as she prepares to exit the stage, unable to contain her humiliation. The next segment shows that Terry's best follow up was "a boy who likes plants."

Michael gets so frustrated with both the guests and with is inferior dressing room, that he threatens to take matters into his own hands to get someone more interesting on. He even goes so far as to suggest openly inviting a serial rapist on the show. Terry objects to that, but realizes how desperately he needs to either fulfill Michael's wishes or end his contract or both.

Rumor soon spreads that there's suspicion on one house in town. That house just so happens to be the home of Will. According to the rumor, nobody seen entering that house is seen ever leaving it. Terry immediately jumps on the bandwagon of suspicion that a serial killer lives there, and goes to the house uninvited to lure the home's occupant onto Michael's show.

When Will locks Terry in the basement however, Michael breaks into the house and attempts to pull off a rescue. Michael realizes that if he gets the police involved, it'll ruin everything. Michael frees Terry, only for them to be confronted by an angry Will. The two of them use everything in their environment as arsenal to fight back as Will is determined to kill them both. They eventually get the upper hand, knocking him out with a paddle and a camcorder. They take as much yellow tape from a nearby crime scene as they can get away with taking, and use it to tie Will up. The two of them then realize in a panic that they only have a few minutes left to get back to the studio.

Chuck and Hector meanwhile prepare to put Trish on live in case Michael cannot make his deadline. However, Michael and Terry show up with a barely-conscious Will in the nick of time. A series of fake magazine covers plays over the end credits, revealing Michael's rise to fame and eventual incarceration. Will's capture only manages to launch Michael into an A-list star, while Terry feels neglected. This leads Terry to turn against Michael in the media and expose all the illegal activities they engaged in to get their award-winning guest. Other members of the studio pitch in to get Michael in jail, citing how many times he's abused them.

Development
This film was developed using new digital video cameras made available to Media Supply in the summer of 2009. The Digital Cinema Class was involved in this and other projects, but with this one becoming the most well-known and popular. It was shot in the IRC building's basement studio.

Dozerfleet relevance
This film was a coming-of-age for skill and performance for several Ferris students who would later work with the Dozerfleet founder on a variety of Ferris projects, including Ferris State Live and Ferris in Focus. For this reason, its portfolio catalog significance is too great to be ignored; even though the Dozerfleet founder and any associates were never involved in its actual production. This is because the Founder was out of money for summer school in 2009. The year 2007 had yielded a few shorts featuring The Trapezoid Kids, and 2008 was the year that 3-13 was first attempted.

Money saved by not becoming a part of Pine Springs proved useful later on, as Blood Over Water would be produced just a few months later for a different class.

Main cast

 * Nick D. as Michael Kelly: An extremely narcissistic and abusive talk show host, Michael was brought in to run a campus news show after apparently falling from greater heights. Frustrated with the boring guests on his show, he strives to get either a dangerous felon or a victim of one on his show to boost ratings.  His reactions to how dull the guests are is quite possibly intended as a satire of Ferris State Live.


 * Brandon Danowski as Terry Phillups: Terry is also desperate to improve ratings on his show; but is a little less ambitious than Michael on doing whatever is necessary to achieve those ends. He does initially demonstrate a little more common sense than Michael, even raising objections to Michael's off-handed suggestion of inviting a serial rapist on the show.


 * Trevor Dobias as Will the Killer: Will is just an ordinary, run-of-the-mill serial killer. All he wished was to be left alone in his home with all his accumulated victims.  He never planned on a home invasion by a talk show host turning his already-twisted world even more upside-down.

Supporting characters

 * Eric Stacy as Hector the Stage Manager
 * Kelly Deward (credited as Kelly Armbruster) as Trish Armbruster
 * Nate Totten as a Cameraman
 * Sam Osentoski as Clarence Biggums
 * Chrissi Gadd as the Walking Girl
 * Ian Smith as the Controlman/Dea
 * Sara Potter (credited as Sara Tuttle) as the Control lady
 * Ian McCallahan as Chuck the Director
 * Molly Romero as Isabella Gupta

Music
The end credits music is "Everyone I Know," by the indie band Lightning Love. It features off their 2008 album November Birthday. This song is better known for featuring in Columbia Pictures' 2010 comedy film The Virginity Hit.

Most of the background music is produced on various albums by Gene Michael Productions. "Tracking a Monster," off the album Freak, features in the scene where Michael and Terry attempt to abduct Will and bring him onto Michael's show. This song is also one of many off that album to feature in various scenes of Blood Over Water.