Ray Romano share his directional debut feature film trailer “Somewhere in Queens”

• Ray Romano portrays a father battling his own demons while having the best intentions.
• Romano made his directorial debut with the upcoming dramedy.
• Romano, 65, both co-wrote and acts in the movie.

In Somewhere in Queens, Ray Romano portrays a father battling his own demons while having the best intentions. Romano made his directorial debut with the upcoming dramedy, which had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival, and news has an exclusive first look at the trailer. Romano, 65, both co-wrote and acts in the movie.

The actor portrays Leo Russo, who, in accordance with the official synopsis, “lives a humble existence in Queens, New York, with his wife Angela (Laurie Metcalf), their timid but gifted son “Sticks” (Jacob Ward), and Leo’s close-knit network of Italian-American family and neighbourhood friends.” Sticks’ high-school basketball games are something Leo lives for each week, never missing the chance to support his one and only child as he rules the court as a star athlete. “Happily enough working at the family construction business alongside his father (Tony Lo Bianco) and younger brother (Sebastian Maniscalco), Sticks is content with his job.

The summary continues, “When the senior in high school receives the unexpected and life-altering opportunity to play basketball in college, Leo seizes the chance to offer a plan for his future, away from the family construction business. Leo, though, takes unusual steps to keep his son on this new course when a sudden heartbreak threatens to throw him off course.

Romano, who is a co-writer with Mark Stegemann, told news that they wanted to “write about this culture, this family, but also make it applicable to everybody since that’s generally what it is.”

“The secret to the success of “Everyone Loves Raymond” was that it was family-oriented and unique to us New Yorkers. Hence, it made no difference where you were from. You may relate to it, “He continues.

Romano, a real-life father of four, claims that portions of the events in the novel are based on his own memories of growing up in Queens, New York, as well as a similar interaction he had with his youngest son Joseph, now 25, who played basketball in high school.

It was drawing close to the conclusion of his basketball career and he was graduating, according to Romano. Also, despite the fact that Joseph “was the center of attention” in high school, he simply wasn’t “college-basketball material.”

“I mean, it’s kind of sad that I needed more excitement in my life, but I used to love going to the games and would live vicariously through him with all the excitement,” he jokes. I had a TV persona.”

Romano recalled “crying” as he hugged Joseph’s coach after the final high school basketball game and reveling in the fact that “I had the son who was one of the stars of the basketball team.”

He told news that his initial notion was, “What if this [movie] was about a father who, that’s all he had—he felt invisible in his real life and the only time he had any kind of purpose or attention was through his son and the basketball, and it was ending?” And that served as the narrative’s starting point.

However, he “added other parts” to the story that he drew from his own experience, like his son’s battle with anxiety and his wife of 35 years, Anna, who overcame breast cancer. (In the movie, Metcalf, 67, portrays Leo’s wife Angela, who has battled cancer.)

“I therefore injected as much of that as I could. Also, we created characters and a tale, but the most of it was inspired by real-world events “Romano declares.

When asked about working with fellow sitcom veteran Laurie Metcalf, who gained notoriety on Roseanne and currently appears in its follow-up series The Conners, Romano says he was initially “intimidated to meet” her, “but she was amazing.”

He added that the cast “trusted” the Midwest-raised actress “more than she trusted herself” to express “a convincing East Coast working-class woman” since they were aware of how “pro” Metcalf was in comedic and serious parts (such as Lady Bird).

Romano continues, referring to the actress who has won numerous Tony Awards and Emmy Awards, “She actually went to a dialect coach.”

Romano has had a long and prosperous career in television and cinema, but up until this point, he has never directed. He admits to news that he was afraid.

He says, “I guess I had an opportunity on Everyone Loves Raymond if I wanted to, but I didn’t really have the desire.” “I was more focused on my own work and the writing. I didn’t think it was particularly crucial that I direct one of those episodes. And it simply never happened with my other shows.”

Romano adds, “And I was maybe a little bit gun afraid to tell an actor what to do,” while stating that he “thought we had very skilled, good directors” on Raymond.

But with [Somewhere in Queens], it was such a personal matter that his agency was the one who first suggested that he take the helm. “I expressed to them my worries about the technical part of it. And he simply gave me the advice to “surround yourself with a good cinematographer and a decent [assistant director]” and I took it to heart. And you already know what you want to see.”

Romano continues, “And I know exactly what we want to obtain from the plot and from the actors. “That’s what I was: I put all of my effort into making the performance what we had in mind, and I allowed the actor add whatever they wanted to it. The Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions film Somewhere in Queens will hit theatres on April 21.

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