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'Standing’ ovation: Mancini floors ’em
By Elise Franco
efranco@vindy.com
YOUNGSTOWN
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Actor and Youngstown native Ed O'Neill shares insights into his hometown in a scene from “Youngstown: Still Standing.”
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Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini lends direction during a shooting session in May of 2008 at the Youngstown Club, where the filmmaking team interviewed residents.
A select group gathered for a private screening of Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini’s documentary “Youngstown: Still Standing” before its world premiere at the Cleveland International Film Festival tonight.
The 89-minute documentary, which features interviews with historians, local political leaders, public figures and others, debuted Tuesday night at the Butler Institute of American Art on Wick Avenue to an audience of about 400 — most of whom were involved in the film in some way.
Audience members seemed to be engaged in the film, laughing, pointing and clapping.
And several segments elicited much chatter among the crowd, including the trial and conviction of former congressman Jim Traficant and the shooting of Mahoning County Prosecutor Paul Gains.
“Still Standing,” which was shot in Youngstown in 2008 and 2009, also will be shown in Cleveland on Thursday.
Mancini, former boxing champion and hometown hero, said he expects a crowd for both Cleveland shows but wanted to first debut the film right here at home.
“I wanted to be here,” he said. “You’ve gotta do things first here in Youngstown.
Mancini, who spent time before the viewing talking to friends and fans alike, said he’s proud of the finished product and thinks viewers will be as well.
“I think people will get the humor, because it is funny,” he said. “You couldn’t write a script about the characters in this town if you tried.”
The film, which is narrated by voice actor and Youngstown native Jim Cummings, takes a tell-all look at Youngstown, something Mancini said was important to get right.
“I had an obligation to this town to tell the story the right way,” he said. “Outsiders who come in can never tell the story the way we can.”
John Chechitelli, an Austintown native now working as an actor/cinematographer in Hollywood, directed the film. Chechitelli and New York filmmaker Sam Kass captured the footage, which largely consists of interviews of city leaders, authorities and longtime residents.
Through personal interviews and first-person remembrances, “Still Standing” paints a picture of Youngstown’s past, present and future selves.
It also exposes the elements that contributed to Youngstown’s decline, including organized crime and the demise of most of the steel industry.
The documentary features many interview clips with Ursuline High School graduate turned Hollywood actor Ed O’Neill.
After describing his childhood neighborhood and home, O’Neill said, “We never walked on the sidewalks. It was always through the backyards. All that’s gone.”
Mancini said Tuesday’s viewing was the culmination of several years of hard work.
“I feel excited, and I feel satisfied,” he said. “But also very relieved.”