Green Buffalo Productions (GBP) isn’t slowing down this year despite the hurdles of COVID-19. October will bring about GBP’s third season, and co-founders Ellen Scherer and Madison Sedlor are dedicated to keeping the WNY theatre company alive.
They are also dedicated to keeping actors and audience members safe, so they’ve paired with Melanie Hidy of Totallyjoker Productions to adapt their yearly fundraiser, the Spooky One-Act Play Festival, to a Spooky Film Festival. Through film, viewers can enjoy the anticipated event from the safety of their own homes.
The films were directed by Scherer and Sedlor, as well as returning directors Leyla Gentil and Zack Hatrick. The co-founders are relieved to have such a dedicated team for this project. “Leyla and Zack have consistently been there for Madison and me from the beginning of GBP,” says Scherer. “When COVID-19 threatened the majority of our 2020 season, we had to start troubleshooting, rescheduling, and reformatting productions. Guess who was there to help us through? Leyla and Zack! ”
This year’s show includes stories by Kelly Beuth (Love, Magic, and a Jellybean), Shawn Chiki (Trick or Treat), Sarah Henderson (Homeless Haunters Anonymous), and Gary Earl Ross (Rough Magick), thanks to Green Buffalo Productions’ ongoing #QuarantineQuarters writing challenge.
“Our biggest focus at GBP is working with new writers and creating a nurturing environment for them to grow,” says Sedlor. “It’s been a tough year for theatre, but we are doing our best to give readers, writers, and audience members something to look forward to each week.”
The festival also includes returning writers Justin Pope (What’s in the Wall) and j. Snodgrass (Severance). Pope says of the fundraiser, “Seeing the pieces on stage, alongside the other riveting and colorfully spooky one-acts, gives me the drive to keep going as a writer, and the ambition to keep coming back as an audience member. I certainly can’t wait to see the plethora of spooky goodies on-screen, over and over and over again!”
The Spooky Film Festival will stream live from GBP’s YouTube channel on Oct. 17 and 31 at 7 p.m. The suggested donation is $5, but every dollar helps to fund the theatre’s 2021 season. Directors Leyla, Zack, Madison, and Ellen will be hosting the streams and raffling off various items, including some props used in the films. Raffles are $1 per ticket.
Subscribe to the Green Buffalo Productions YouTube Channel to get the going live notification: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCN-djy4BtmsJs8G5DZyj8jA.
More information about Green Buffalo Productions can be found on their website at greenbuffaloproductions.weebly.com. You can also follow GBP on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, or send them an email at
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