“You’re all going to be tired of seeing me by the time this is over,” Clancy native Robert Shupe told the nearly sold-out audience at the screening for “Handshake” at the Myrna Loy in Helena on Thursday, May 18.
Shupe wrote, directed, produced and starred in the movie, which was filmed in and around Jefferson County, especially the Clancy area. The Legal Tender (since closed), for example, is the setting for a pivotal conversation between main characters Devin Fowler (Shupe) and Bill Burdick (Joe Basso). Both the interior and exterior of the Clancy United Methodist Church is also prominently featured. The Jefferson County Courthouse, however, is the most prominent local landmark, as it plays host to the trial, which featured Jefferson County residents as jurors, including Shupe’s mother, Laurie.
Filmed in 2019, “Handshake” is a story about two men who have a chance encounter out at a fishing spot south of Craig. Fowler, a young man turning to small-town crime while he struggles to find a job, stumbles upon mild-mannered, middle-aged Burdick while running from dangerous debt collectors. Burdick is just starting out his day fishing on the river, but he seems genuinely interested in Fowler’s situation and agrees to give him a ride back to Helena. Burdick, however, has his own agenda. What ensues is far beyond what Fowler could have imagined, and he soon finds his whole world unraveling.
“You think that the young guy is going to bring his problems onto the other guy, but it ends up being the opposite,” Shupe said.
Having a screening of “Handshake” at the Myrna Loy meant a great deal to Shupe, who worked as a projectionist there during his senior year at Jefferson High School, a job that further enhanced the passion young Shupe already had for film.
“To be able to come back here with a screening of my own is something special,” he said, “especially considering how much of it was filmed in the area and how many people from here were part of it.”
Shupe added that he’d always wanted to shoot a film in Montana, and he didn’t want the Montana element to be generic, as he’s seen in other films. So after going to film school in Las Vegas, he made this a goal. When the opportunity arose with “Handshake,” Shupe “wanted to be very specific in terms of geography and referencing places.”
Following the film, Shupe opened the floor to a question-and-answer session. It was an informal conversation that included much praise for the film and thoughts from local cast members about the experience. Many of those at the screening made appearances in the film, be it in a small role or as an extra. Tim Holmes (the judge), Mokey McNeilly (prosecutor) and Breanna Humphrey (Legal Tender waitress) were among cast members who received applause for their respective performances. McNeilly said it was a thrilling experience to work with Shupe and the crew.
Laurie Shupe said she couldn’t be happier about the screening, and about the entire experience with “Handshake.”
“What I’m so pleased with is how supportive everybody has been,” she told The Monitor. “People have really gotten behind a local guy developing his passion and wanting to share it with the people here. The community has been fabulous.”
Laurie said the whole experience meant a lot to her, but perhaps what meant the most was getting to see her son at work.
“What I was so impressed with is how he stayed so calm and stayed so professional,” she said. “There wasn’t a wasted minute. There wasn’t a wasted penny. I thought it was very impressive. And people liked working for him. That also made me feel good.”
Shupe said “Handshake” has appeared at a few film festivals and he hopes to have it appear at more. By the fall he hopes to have the film available in some kind of online form, but he is still discussing this with potential distributors.
