Salsano Group to produce "The First" - press release

Production to Begin in Savannah on

Mary Pickford Feature Film “THE FIRST”

Panama May 2016 –  Nick Raynes and Sandro Salsano will Co-Produce the film “THE FIRST” with producers Jennifer DeLia, Julie Pacino, and Nitsa Benchetrit.  DeLia is also directing and co-writing the script with Josh Fagin. With production slated to start in Savannah, GA in fall 2016, the film be the first to profile famed movie legend Mary Pickford. 

Lily Rabe is confirmed to star as Pickford. The producers are currently working to confirm the other attached cast: Michael Pitt as Owen Moore, Julia Stiles as Frances Marion, Billy Magnussen as Jack Pickford, Louisa Krause as Lottie Pickford, Josephine de La Baume as Elsie Janis, and Ryan Simpkins as a younger Mary Pickford.

Before production begins, the roles of Douglas Fairbanks, D.W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Adolf Zukor, Samuel Goldwyn and Charlotte Hennessy (Mary’s mother) will be filled this summer.

The film is getting support from the city of Savannah.  DeLia had this to say about the decision to shoot in Savannah: “Aside from Georgia’s state incentives, Savannah is a beautiful, stunning city and quite a treasure chest for a story like ours; historic preservation is the foundation of the city. The support there has been beyond tax credits and direct from the community and we can’t wait to settle in for the production.”

A non-conventional biopic, THE FIRST is a tale of forbidden love set against the rise of American cinema.  At the turn of the century, Mary Pickford becomes the first businesswoman in Hollywood, having founded United Artists. Swept off her feet by the swashbuckling actor Douglas Fairbanks, the very first media-scrutinized love affair in Hollywood ensues, and they are faced with the danger of the masses’ public adoration.

THE FIRST will be cast by Bonnie Timmermann and Adrienne Stern, with cinematography by Larry Smith who shot Stanley Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut, production design by Oscar-nominee Anastasia Masaro, and hair and make-up design by Oscar-winner Jan Archibald.  The production companies are Poverty Row Entertainment, Katsize Films, and IMC Films.