Indie Film "Trattoria" Serves up The Closer Star Tony Denison and Celebrity Chefs at Sonoma Int'l Film Festival April 14th

Indie drama "Trattoria" stars The Closer's Tony Denison, John Amedori (Gossip Girl, Jane Mansfield's Car), feature well known San Francisco celebrity chefs Elizabeth Falkner (The Next Iron Chef), Traci Des Jardins (Top Chef Masters) screening at the Sonoma Int'l Film Festival April 14th. End Quote

I was falling in love with the food scene in the Bay Area-by the time I started working in restaurants it was like live theater-chef Elizabeth Falkner

Los Angeles-Long Beach, CA (1888PressRelease) April 10, 2012 - Indie drama "Trattoria" stars The Closer's Tony Denison, John Amedori (Gossip Girl, Jane Mansfield's Car), directed by Jason Wolos is peppered with personal restaurant stories that are woven into the feature from well known San Francisco celebrity chefs Elizabeth Falkner (The Next Iron Chef), Traci Des Jardins (Top Chef Masters), and husband/wife chef duo Craig Stoll and Annie Stoll. The film will screen at the Sonoma International Film Fest on Sat April 14th @ 5:30pm.

Inspired by real chefs and real-life experiences in the restaurant business, filmmaker Wolos and co-writer Dawn Rich, tell the story of Sal Sartini (Denison) who has forgotten why he became a chef in the first place - his love of food and cooking - and loses site of what is really important: family. Chef Sartini must learn with the help of his son Vincent (Amedori) to rekindle his passion for cooking and life, and not make the same mistakes again or risk losing everything.

Elizabeth Falkner is quoted in the film, "I was falling in love with the food scene in the Bay Area… by the time I started working in restaurants it was like live theater," (Chef/partner of two Michelin recommended restaurants in San Francisco).

The Sonoma Int'l Film Festival, located in the heart of wine country is known for its celebration of film, food and wine. An annual gathering for film industry insiders, cinema enthusiasts and independent filmmakers. (sonomafilmfest.org)

Trading in his hand gun for a chef's knife is five-time SAG nominated and Prism Award winning actor Tony Denison, who is known as Lt. Andy Flynn in TNT's #1 Drama The Closer, starring Kyra Sedgwick, soon to be Major Crimes, and was named best villain of the decade by TIME Magazine for his role as Ray Luca in Crime Story.

Wolos says, "When we were pursuing Denison for the lead, I knew he'd be great for the role not only because of his Italian heritage, but because he loves Italian food and can cook a mean eggplant parmigiana."

"Their themes of family, food, and passion jumped out at me immediately. I am such a food lover and have always been fascinated by the restaurant business. I knew this was a film I had to make," Denison adds.

Amedori, got his start after catching the eye of Cameron Crowe who then wrote a role for him in Almost Famous. He can be seen in the Berlinale nominted film- Billy Thorton's Jane Mansfield's Car. He starred as the young Evan in the Butterfly Effect with Ashton Kutcher and most recently as Blake Lively's love interest in the hit series, Gossip Girl. Lisa Rotondi (Jerry Maguire), and Kandis Erickson (I Am Not A Hipster) round out the cast.

Wolos, who shot camera on the feature, Stephanie's Image, with Oscar® Winner Melissa Leo, has been fascinated by the restaurant culture ever since he started washing dishes in the back of his family's first restaurant. "As a restaurant person, as a foodie, and as a filmmaker, I have always wanted to share these stories with the world," he says. His first short film "The High and The Mighty" played on Northwest Airlines as part of IFP's Independents in Flight, and his short Waiter Duty played in over 30 film festivals and is used as a training video in restaurants across the country.

Known for its vibrant culinary scene, San Francisco served as the backdrop for catching the interest of many top chefs. Chef Douglas Dale of Wolfdale's Restaurant, who was the food stylist/consultant on Trattoria and recently told the Sierra Sun, "The synopsis of the film truly hit home with me. It is a movie inspired by real chefs and the writers' real-life experiences in the family restaurant business - Wolfdale's being one the places."

"Being a chef today you have to be everything, you have to be a biz person, you have to be a TV personality, as well as a chef," Traci Des Jardins (chef/partner/owner of several SF eateries- Jardinière, Public House, Mijita, and Manzanita at the Ritz-Carlton/Tahoe).

Trattoria was produced under Trattoria Productions in association with Fog City Pictures and Executive Producer Dawn Rich. (trattoriathemovie.com)

IN ATTENDANCE- Films stars John Amedori (Gossip Girl), Lisa Rotondi (Jerry Maguire), Kandis Erikson (The Road) and filmmakers Director Jason Wolos, writer/producer Dawn Rich. Lead Actor Tony Denison is available for interviews via telephone anytime.

Media Contact: Jolson Creative PR 310 614 3214 jolsoncreativePR ( @ ) mac dot com

###

Visit Brycsyn Alexander, Jolson Creative Imagepr Website

space