Golden Globe® and Emmy® winner Jane Seymour (“Wedding Crashers,” “Austenland”) joins Annabelle Stephenson (ABC’s “Revenge”), Nicholas Gonzalez (“The Purge: Anarchy,” FOX’s “Sleepy Hollow”) and Paul Rodriguez (“Ali,” “Blood Work”) in the new Alex Ranarivelo directed drama PRAYING FOR RAIN – the latest feature production from Forrest Lucas and Ali Afshar’s ESX Entertainment.
Written by Gloria Musca and Christina Moore, PRAYING FOR RAIN is the story of NYC reporter Emma Gardner. On learning of her father’s untimely death, she returns to her home town to find that the idyllic farming community of her childhood has been ravaged by drought and has become a place tormented by gangs and the ill effects of extreme poverty. She quickly figures out that her dad’s accidental death was not accidental at all. The lists of possible suspects include overly zealous environmentalists, a local war lord and other farmers jealous of her father’s outstanding reputation.
Said Afshar, “With Jane, Annabelle Nicholas and Paul together, there is a really high caliber of talent assembled and this, we feel, will translate to a film that is of equal caliber when it comes to entertaining audiences. Having worked with Alex on a regular basis, we know he has the vision to make this a memorable film.”
Forrest Lucas added, “’Praying for Rain’ continues our mission of telling inspiring and purpose driven stories. We know we have a great story here but of equal importance is attracting a cast of gifted and versatile lead actors capable of bringing the story to life. We are excited to unite Jane, Annabelle Nicholas and Paul with director Alex Ranarivelo and make a wonderful movie.”
PRAYING FOR RAIN is financed and produced by ESX Entertainment with Forrest Lucas and Ali Afshar serving as producers. Co-Producers are Ashley Michaelsen, Christina Moore, Daniel Carrey and Mark Heidelberger. The film is the fourth collaboration between Afshar and Lucas’s ESX Entertainment and director Alex Ranarivelo. They previously teamed on the drama “Running Wild” starring Sharon Stone, which is currently in post-production.
Principal photography for PRAYING FOR RAIN will take place in Northern and Central California.
