Comedy about a horror movie production arrives just in time for Halloween
Elijah Lawrence is a cast member of “Hamilton House,” a comedy premiering in New Jersey at the upcoming Smodcastle Film Festival. A still from the movie is pictured. Courtesy “Hamilton House”
By Mary Ann Bourbeau
ATLANTIC HIGHLANDS – The indie film “Hamilton House” premieres Saturday, Nov. 7, as part of the Fifth Annual Smodcastle Film Festival, a Central Jersey showcase of independent cinema hosted by “Clerks” filmmaker Kevin Smith.
“Hamilton House” follows a group of young, struggling actors living together in a cramped basement apartment in Harlem. When Zach, one of the lead characters, discovers that a legendary horror film director is moving into their neighborhood, he persuades his girlfriend and his roommates to convert their apartment into a DIY haunted house to catch the filmmaker’s attention. But as Halloween approaches, their scheme spirals out of control.
Created by a group of young professional actors and filmmakers, “Hamilton House” may look like a horror film, but it’s actually more of a comedy, said the film’s producer, Greg Contaldi.
“When they find out a famous horror movie director moved in down the block and is putting on a Broadway show based on one of his films, they decide to put on a haunted house in their apartment,” he said. “It takes place at Halloween, and it has a lot of horror movie elements, but it’s not a horror movie.”
The film will premiere in New Jersey at the Fifth Annual Smodcastle Film Festival, which runs Nov. 5 to 8 at the independent cinema in Atlantic Highlands. “Hamilton House” has been nominated for Best Comedy Film at the festival. It had its East Coast premiere at the SOHO International Film Festival in New York City, and on the West Coast it premiered at TCL Theater (formerly Grauman’s Chinese Theater) in Los Angeles, famous for its long history of star-studded movie premieres.
“It was so exciting knowing how many iconic films had premiered there,” Contaldi said. He founded the West Essex Film Festival and has worked as an associate producer on “The Dr. Oz Show,” “The Drew Barrymore Show” and “Tamron Hall.” He currently works as a writer for “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.”
Los Angeles native Jordan Rowe wrote, directed, produced and edited the film and also composed the music. He called on a group of young actors and filmmakers to serve as cast and crew, many of whom he met in school at Tisch School of the Arts at New York University, including Contaldi. Another friend who helped was Mayan Lopez, who stars alongside her father, comedian George Lopez, in the NBC sitcom “Lopez vs. Lopez.”
“Mayan was a classmate of Jordan’s in elementary school and high school and they kept in touch,” Contaldi said. “She agreed to work as executive producer and help us get the film to a larger audience.”
They worked on a shoestring budget with cast and crew often wearing multiple hats.
“We were only able to shoot thanks to the invaluable support of family, friend investors, which got us through our first leg of shooting, and crowdfunding, which got us through our second,” Rowe said. “But as tough as it was at times, there was no way we were not making this film.”
Rowe was forced to pivot at times, most notably when they were about to lose the location they planned to use as their cramped basement apartment.
“My best friend from college generously offered the vacant basement of his West Harlem brownstone as a shooting location,” Rowe said. “Then in early 2024, he called me with some bad news: the landlord was selling the building.”
This threw off the filming schedule, which was slated for Halloween season while showcasing the orange and brown leaves of a New York City autumn. They had a choice: stick to their current schedule and shift to a new location or move production up by six months to film in the intended location. After making brief script changes, they moved up production and shot some scenes in the Harlem brownstone, then filmed others in Contaldi’s parents’ basement in Fairfield, using creative camera angles and editing to make it look like it was all shot in the same place.
“Shooting was always a sprint,” Rowe said. “We constantly condensed scenes, cut shots and waited for sirens and traffic to pass so we could get through a take uninterrupted. However, these obstacles energized us. I’m a firm believer that artists do their best work when they absolutely have to, and there’s no better cause for urgency than limitations. And much like Zach and his team, ‘Hamilton House’ would never have gotten made without the hard work of my cast and crew, who never let limitations get in the way of their artistry.”
Contaldi said everyone involved is thrilled to be part of the Smodcastle Film Festival.
“It’s hard to find an independent filmmaker who was not influenced by Kevin Smith in some way,” he said. “His message is that you don’t need Hollywood on your side to make your movie a success. Fight for yourself and don’t take no for an answer.”
The Smodcastle Film Festival will be filled with feature films, shorts, animation and documentaries. The festival will include an opening night premiere, a filmmaker mixer, panels and an awards ceremony. “Hamilton House” will be shown with a block of films that includes three shorts, beginning at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 7. For more information, visit smodcastlecinemas.com.
This article originally appeared in the October 29-November 4, 2026 print edition of The Two River Times.
