Staff photo by Danny Drake. Clockwise from upper left: Luke Culleny, Corey Branigan, principal Janice Strigh, teacher Dave Roehm, Victoria Maria Sierra and Zach Langford edit video shot when the group from Charter-Tech High School for the Performing Arts in Somers Point visited Willie Nelson on his Texas ranch last month.
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by Vincent Jackson
Entertainment icon Willie Nelson might not rank as high on the cool meter as Rihanna, Lady Gaga and the rock band Muse for four teenagers at the Charter-Tech High School for the Performing Arts here, but they knew he achieved country music legend status when they met him last month in Texas while working on his newest movie.
“I know of him,” said Corey Branigan, 18, a senior, who lives on Townhouse Lane in Little Egg Harbor Township. “It was an honor to work with someone so big in the industry. It hit us when we got there.”
Principal Janice Strigh, film and TV teacher David Roehm and four students – Branigan; senior Victoria Maria Sierra, 18, of Broad Street in Pleasantville; junior Luke Culleny, 16, of Eighth Street South in Brigantine; and freshman Zach Langford, 14, of Springers Mill Road in Cape May Court House – traveled to Texas to help make 76-year-old Nelson’s latest film, titled “Shout Out of Luck.”
Strigh drove the van with the students from here to Nelson’s ranch outside of Austin where most of the movie was shot. Roehm is a friend of the film’s writer and director, Norman Macera. Roehm is one of the movie’s producers, which gave him the clout to involve the students.
The students did multiple jobs while working on the small, independent film for four days. It took two days to drive to Texas one way.
At the popular movie Web site www.imdb.com, all four students are listed with credits attached to the picture. Branigan acted in a scene as a dominoes player. Culleny was a camera operator. Langford and Sierra each worked as grips, a person responsible for the adjustment and maintenance of production equipment on the set. The students worked on scenes that include a horse stampede and a bar fight.
Roehm, 46, had the power to have the students work on the movie, but they could have blown it by either not knowing what they were doing or acting inappropriately. The four students were among a total crew of 15 professionals.
“They did great. I’m very proud,” said Roehm, of Dettmar Terrace in Runnemede, Camden County.
Strigh did not work on the movie, but her presence made the drive to Texas easier, and she served as another adult on the scene to watch over the students. Roehm traveled with students to work on Nelson projects previously, but this was Strigh’s first trip.
“There is nothing that equates to having real-world experience. This was an excellent opportunity for our students,” said Strigh, a resident here.