The City of Ravenna has started the 2025 year on a high note after getting a taste of the Hollywood experience. The City spent all of last week experiencing what it was like to film a movie having been selected as the backdrop for the movie “Divorcing the Mob.”
“It is awesome,” Ravenna Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Ryann Cline told The Weekly Villager on Feb. 10. “It is really a great opportunity and the best part for Ravenna, it was a great opportunity for the community to all come together. There are a lot of community members that are a part of the film and a part of the movie, and I think that is so important because it has brought everyone together and unified to celebrate something that is so positive.”
The film is about the relocation of a ruthless mafia boss Vincent “Blue Eyes” Berlusconi, played by producer/actor/director John Reign, who has agreed to leave his old life behind at the request of his wife Angelina, played Jessica Noel Thompson. They are relocated to a new town with the help of the Witness Protection Service but Reign’s character still is involved with his mob lifestyle, unbeknownst to his wife. The City of Ravenna served as the backdrop to which Vincent and Angelina were relocated but it is referenced as a Pennsylvania suburban community in the film.
According to Cline, the opportunity to have filming take place in Ravenna occurred because of the association that Reign had with John Wood, husband of City Council Member Cheryl Wood. Cline said that John Wood has had experience in filming and videography which put him in touch with Reign. Cline said that when the opportunity was presented to the City to allow Reign to film in Ravenna, they left the decision up to the businesses.
“What business owner is not going to want to have their business represented in a movie regardless of how big the movie goes or how far it goes,” she noted. “It is just an awesome opportunity that not a lot of people get the option to take advantage of.”
Cline said that because of Ravenna’s extensive background specializing in Italian Cuisine, it was a perfect match for the film.
“It was very good and I would not be surprised to see more opportunities that come along too,” she added. “Like I said, it all comes down to a community coming together and there are so many people from Ravenna that are a part of this movie in some capacity and it is going to be awesome to sit down and watch that movie.”
Throughout all of last week, several businesses were closed to the public during normal hours to allow filming in the City and some businesses were open after hours to give the production exclusive access for filming.
“It is not just filming from one direction, but it is filming from multiple different angles and point of views and doing it not once, not twice but three times and multiple takes to get everything that they are looking for which just goes to show how thorough and how professional this group is, which is fantastic,” noted Cline.
She said that a lot of filming happened in venues such as the West Main Street Winery, Ravenna Sip & Social, Neighborhood Development Services, Bean and the Baker and The Big Dog Saloon.
Cline added that the Woods’ family allowed the filming crew to shoot several scenes in their house.
In addition to several businesses being used as filming sites, there were also several acting opportunities for the citizens of Ravenna, including Cline.
Cline said that she took on the role of FBI Agent McCallister, who was the head agent responsible for the protection and overseeing the relocation of Vincent and Angelina.
“Doing all of that type of stuff, I had never been on the police force so it was awesome,” she said. “I do not want to give too much away but it was a cool experience.”
In addition to Cline, several citizens were used as extras in the film and even a few had some dialogue. More people became involved by strolling through some of the filming sites and being caught in the background.
Cline said that there are still a few more scenes to shoot and some voiceovers that need to be recorded before filming officially ends. She also said that production may come back to Ravenna next weekend for some additional shots.
Once editing is complete, Cline noted that a special screening would take place in the Ravenna 7 Movie Theatres.
