An average person probably spent his or her last winter break mulling about the house, visiting family and maybe working a part-time job. Randy Prywitch spent his making a full-fledged feature film titled “Loss For Words.”

Shooting 80 scenes over the course of 28 days, Prywitch’s production company, Be The Shoe, shot its third feature film over the course of the 2009-2010 winter break. Described as a dark comedy, “Loss For Words” focuses on an alcoholic, middle-aged writer who moves to Middle America while fighting some major writer’s block.

“We’ve been working on it for well over a year,” Prywitch said.  “It’s been a long time coming. We’re very excited to finally premiere it here in Columbia. ”

Prywitch, who wrote, produced, edited and directed the film, founded Be The Shoe Productions in 2002 with best friend Jason Goldstein. Goldstein executive produced “Loss For Words.” Prywitch has been making his own unique movies since he was in seventh grade.

“The films Randy writes are very unique to film,” lead actress Emily Bates said. “They have his own sense of humor. It’s a very specific type of agenda.”

According to Goldstein, Be The Shoe has a very distinct culture compared to most other film production companies.
“We have a way of doing things,” Goldstein said. “We have no intentions of making a movie like “Transformers.” Not just because we can’t, but because that’s not what interests us.”

Prywitch said “Loss For Words” doesn’t have any explosions or transforming robots but rather is a story he really wanted to tell and that has real heart to it.

“Whatever happens, story comes first,” Goldstein said. “Our big thing is no gimmicks, no bullshit. It’s story first and story last. Everything that matters serves that.”

One of the best parts of making a movie with Be The Shoe is the family bond that develops with the team making the movie, lead actor Gary C. Warren said.  

“You basically go to war with everyone in making the movie, and you drink lots of alcohol with them, and at the end of the day, you are a band of brothers,” Warren said.

Prywitch’s favorite part of the filmmaking process is finally showing the film to an audience.

“That’s why we make it, to be able to entertain,” Prywitch said. “When people react positively, it’s the most rewarding thing you could possibly get.”

Since Be The Shoe has no full-time employees, the hardest part of making the films is battling time conflicts, Goldstein said.
“We do it on the side, so it’s a kind of a huge time suck,” Goldstein said.

But according to Warren, it’s worth it because Randy and Jason love what they do and aren’t doing it for money or fame.

“They do it because they love it, and they have a story to tell,” Warren said. “So many movies are called indie, but they have studio support or name actors. This film was done very low budget, but unlike most low budget films, it doesn’t suck.”