with Original Songs by Mervyn Warren
Filming Begins in the Summer of 2026
The film Out In The Vineyard is an original musical drama set in the picturesque Sonoma County, California, blending romance, family secrets, and the resilience of dreams. The story follows Sean O’Dey, a young man approaching his 30th birthday, who inherits his estranged Uncle Walt’s vineyard in Sonoma.
Out In the Vineyard is set to begin filming Summer 2026. Contact us to find out more about how you can support our film through investment and donations.
My failures are mounting
That’s four, but who’s counting?
There was always another frontier
Seems I have no business being in business
So, one thing is painfully clear
It’s time to move on..
Musical
The film’s unique appeal lies in its musical elements, where characters break into song to express their deepest emotions and dreams. Grounded in reality but with lively musical numbers, Out In The Vineyard explores forbidden love, generational family struggles, and the pursuit of impossible dreams. The visually striking settings of Sonoma’s rolling hills and vineyards reflect the contrasting eras of the 1960s and present day, and the storyline’s shifting visual style mirrors Sean’s personal transformation.
Out In the Vineyard is set to begin filming next year. Please consider supporting our film with a donation or by sharing within your communities.
SYNOPSIS
Sean O’Dey, a young gay man fast approaching his 30th birthday, is a perpetual dreamer whose life has been defined by a series of business failures. As he shutters his latest failed enterprise, he receives unexpected news that his long-lost Uncle Walt has passed away, and he must attend the reading of the will. Accompanied by his best friend and part-time drag performer, Conrad, Sean travels from Los Angeles to the idyllic Sonoma countryside, where he discovers he’s inherited all of Uncle Walt’s worldly possessions, including an aging house and vineyard. But the inheritance sets off a feud with José, the fiery neighboring vineyard owner, who believes the property should have been left to him. Sean soon uncovers the family’s hidden love story spanning six decades: Uncle Walt and José’s father, Gustavo, were impassioned lovers caught in a complex love triangle with José’s mother, Valentina.
When Sean learns that Uncle Walt’s unfulfilled dream was to build a successful winery one day, he seizes upon this venture as a chance to prove his worth despite having no expertise in winemaking. For Sean, this risky endeavor is his last chance to redefine himself and honor a family legacy rooted in love, resilience, and identity. Will Sean’s journey be yet another chapter of failure, or will he rise above his past to honor Walt’s legacy and find his own place out in the vineyard?
Out In the Vineyard is set to begin filming next year. Please consider supporting our film with a donation or by sharing within your communities.
DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT
The first movie my parents took me to see in a theater was Mary Poppins, and it immediately took up permanent residence in my heart. At that time, I didn’t realize that it was part of a rare breed of original break-into-song movie musicals that were explicitly written for the screen and weren’t adaptations of stage productions. Some of the movies on this list include The Wizard of Oz (1939), Singing In The Rain (1952), A Star Is Born (1954), Gigi (1958), The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964), Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory (1971), Yentl (1984), and more recently: Once (2007), La La Land (2016), and The Greatest Showman (2017). In this same tradition, Out In The Vineyard is an original new movie musical written for the screen. However, unlike these other musicals, it’s grounded much more in reality. Granted, it’s a reality where people break into song, but not with extravagant fantasy elements. That being said, the movie still has big, fun, lively numbers. But for the most part, the story is intimate, with songs that reflect the big-hearted, romantic drama that unfolds.
Out In The Vineyard musically weaves the parallel stories of two generations of Sonoma farm families struggling to unite for survival. Musicals shine when characters reach a point where dialogue is no longer enough, and only through song can they fully express their deepest hopes, dreams, and desires. Adapting any story into a musical is challenging, but Out In The Vineyard is a rich, multicultural tale of forbidden love, family secrets, and big dreams, filled with poignant and rousing opportunities for the characters to break into song.
Given my love of musicals, unsurprisingly, my first four feature films all contain musical numbers in one way or another. However, they were primarily one-off performances within the story, where a character sings a live song. I’m excited to say that with the creation of Out In The Vineyard, I’ll finally realize my lifelong dream of directing an entirely new, unapologetic, original movie musical. I couldn’t be more thrilled. – JIM FALL
SEAN:
"But, why did Walt will this vineyard to me? Every business I’ve ever attempted has failed. Every single one."
VALENTINA:
"But you kept trying. You never gave up. You had vision and you weren’t afraid to keep dreaming big. That’s why. You’re the last chance for his dream to come true."
GUSTAVO:
"I love you, you know."
WALT:
"I know."
GUSTAVO:
"Even if there isn’t enough money, even if this all falls apart and we lose everything, none of it matters, as long as we stay together."
WALT:
"I know that too."
THE LOCATION
Out in the Vineyard unfolds against the timeless landscape of Sonoma County, California, spanning both the 1960s and the present day. The valley’s enduring natural beauty remains as captivating as ever, with its cinematic vistas of rolling hills filled with vineyards stretching endlessly with a backdrop of redwood forests reaching the top of the mountains.
Sonoma County is a welcoming enclave of multigenerational family-owned wineries with a widely diverse community ranging from migrant farm workers to high-tech professionals and every social stratum in between. Discovering this inclusive atmosphere and a deep-rooted family history he knew nothing about inspires our lead character, Sean O’Dey, to leave his frustrating life in Los Angeles behind and try to make a new future here in the Valley.
JIM FALL (WRITER/ DIRECTOR)
Jim has had a diversified directing career spanning over 35 years, including theatre, film, and TV. His first feature film, Trick, starring Christian Campbell and Tori Spelling, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and Berlin Film Festival in Dramatic Competition. Released in the summer of 1999 by Fine Line Features, it became their highest-grossing film of that year. Jim’s studio directing debut, The Lizzie McGuire Movie – a big-screen adaptation of the Disney Channel series starring Hilary Duff – was a big box office success for Disney, opening at number two below X-men 2 and earning back its 17 million dollar budget its first weekend.
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His TV credits include the A&E TV movie Wedding Wars, starring John Stamos and James Brolin. He directed and co-wrote Holiday Engagement (Hallmark’s highest-rated Sunday night movie that year), starring Shelley Long, Bonnie Somerville, and Jordan Bridges, Holly’s Holiday (Lifetime), starring Claire Coffee and Ryan McPartlin, and Kristin’s Christmas Past (Lifetime) starring Shiri Appleby, Elizabeth Mitchell. All three Christmas movies have continued to return every year, playing in rotation during the holiday season. He also directed episodes of So NoTORIous, VH1’s scripted comedy starring Tori Spelling and Zachary Quinto, and Grosse Pointe, the Darren Star-produced comedy series that has become a cult favorite.
His recent theatre directing credits include the world premieres of Mark Saltzman’s musicals Alice, Formerly of Wonderland at ETC in Santa Barbara and Falling For Make Believe at the Colony Theater in Burbank, Primal Scream, The Musical, music by David Foster, book and lyrics by Arthur Janov, at the Smothers Theater, Pepperdine University, Howard Skora’s comedies Miserable With and Ocean View and Damaged Furniture at the Whitefire Theater, and Gary Lennon’s drama The Interlopers at the Bootleg Theater.
MERVYN WARREN (ORIGINAL SONGS & SCORE)
Five-time Grammy Award winner, 11-time Grammy nominee, and Alabama Music Hall Of Fame inductee Mervyn Warren is a highly accomplished film & TV composer, music producer, lyricist, songwriter, arranger, pianist, and vocalist.
Equally adept at practically any style, Merv’s work spans pop, R&B, jazz, classical, orchestral, vocal, country, and more. One of the industry’s most sought-after producers, his credits include Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, Queen Latifah, Boyz II Men, Barbra Streisand, David Foster, Celine Dion, Rascal Flatts, Michael Bublé, Dolly Parton, Chicago, The Manhattan Transfer, Al Jarreau, Faith Hill, Rascal Flatts, and many more.
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Merv co-produced the Michael Jackson single This Is It. He also co-produced with Babyface the Billboard #1 R&B hit Last Night by Az Yet; produced a Billboard Top 10 hit—I Believe In You & Me (movie version) by Whitney Houston, from The Preacher’s Wife; and penned a Billboard #2 Dance hit—The Power of One for Donna Summer.
Merv has composed the orchestral underscore for numerous feature films—from comedies to dramas to action—including the #1 hit The Wedding Planner, A Walk To Remember, A Raisin In The Sun (2008), and Jim Fall’s Wedding Wars.
Merv’s expertise is regularly requested by his mentor Quincy Jones, which is no surprise, as Merv produced, arranged, composed, and/or performed on 13 tracks on Quincy’s last three albums: Back On The Block, Q’s Jook Joint, and Q: Soul Bossa Nostra. Merv also co-produced, with Quincy, We Are The World 25 For Haiti, featuring over 80 superstars.
In 2021 Merv was selected by Quincy and Mary J. Blige to compose the score for Mary J. Blige’s My Life. Merv was also selected by Quincy and director Nicola Peltz-Beckham
to compose the score for the 2024 film Lola.
Merv has also produced, arranged, and/or written songs and lyrics for numerous films, including Sister Act 2, Living Out Loud, and most of the Grammy-nominated, multi-platinum soundtrack for The Preacher’s Wife, featuring Whitney Houston—the best-selling “gospel” album of all time. Merv also composed and arranged underscore and songs for Queen Latifah/Dolly Parton film Joyful Noise.
BRIAN BROCKWAY (PRODUCER/ STORY BY)
Having grown up in a Hollywood film family, Brian has been surrounded by the entertainment world all his life. As a young boy, he would often sneak onto sound stages to watch scenes being filmed at Warner Bros., 20th Century Fox or MGM where his father worked as a feature film editor. Being able to run free on those studio backlots inspired his imagination to make films where you’d find yourself walking down a New York Street one minute then walk around the corner and suddenly be in a Wild West town only to turn around another corner and discover you’re in King Arthur’s Court. Years later, after graduating from the USC School of Cinema, Brian immediately went to work in the television field as a cinematographer. He has worked on Emmy Award winning shows such as Murphy Brown, Designing Women, The Big Bang Theory and Two and a Half Men.
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Brian feels grateful for having worked with legendary stars such as Robin Williams, Candice Bergen, Lucille Ball, Tom Hanks, Mary Tyler Moore, Bette Midler, Jennifer Anniston and Jean Smart to name a few.
Having come up with the original idea for Out in the Vineyard over fourteen years ago, Brian is amazed at the journey on which it has taken him. He is thrilled with Jim Fall’s new and fabulous screenplay because not only does it retain the integrity and fun of the original story but now has been reconceived and grounded into a fantastic movie musical.
ANDREW KOENIGSBERG (PRODUCER)
Andrew Koenigsberg (he/him) is an entrepreneur, a connector and communitarian at his core. Professionally he has been assisting organizations transform their business operations for nearly 30 years. As a founder of a successful management consulting firm, FlipSwitch, LLC, he has focused on serving his clients in the private, public and non-profit sectors.
Andrew is also a producer focusing on film and theatrical projects. He is a TONY nominated producer on GYPSY (2024) and is a lead producer on a new musical, AMERICAN ECLIPSE, music, book and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa.
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Additionally, he has several film projects in development, including OUT IN THE VINEYARD, a musical romp through wine country, and NANDO, written by Luis Figueroa. Both films are expected to go into production in 2026.
Andrew has served as a board director (since 2016) and Managing Director (2018-2022) for the Transcendence Theatre Company in Sonoma, CA. In January 2024, Andrew joined the board of directors of Maestra, an organization whose mission is to support women and non-binary individuals in the musical theatre industry.
He holds a Bachelors of Arts in Psychology/Business from University at Albany, State University of New York. Andrew and his husband, Rob Izzo, have lived in Sonoma County, CA for over 12 years.
LAURA IVEY (PRODUCER)
Laura Ivey is an award-winning producer of film, television and theater with 26+ years of experience in the production, finance and sales sectors of the entertainment industry.
Most recently, Laura won a Tony Award for Best Musical Revival for the hit Broadway revival Merrily We Go Along starring Jonathan Groff, Daniel Radcliffe and Lindsay Mendez. Previous Broadway shows include David Byrne’s revolutionary musical Here Lies Love, which played at the Broadway Theatre in 2023 and the musical Mrs. Doubtfire starring Rob McClure, which opened at the Stephen Sondheim Theater on December 5, 2021. In development is the musical, American Eclipse, from the genius musical mind of Michael John LaChiusa.
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Her last film Paulie Go, starring Ethan Dizon and Madison Wolfe, was released in theaters in Spring 2022. Among the many films Laura has produced over the years are Walking Out starring Matt Bomer, which premiered in competition at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival and Meg Ryan’s directorial debut Ithaca, starring Sam Sheperd, Jack Quaid and Tom Hanks. Also, produced was musical adaptation of Jason Robert Brown’s Tony-Award winning The Last Five Years, directed by Richard Lagravenese and starring Anna Kendrick.
Laura is a member of the Board of Directors of Maestra Music, the only organization providing support, visibility, and community to the women who make the music in the musical theater industry. Previously she served for two terms as Co-President of the Board of Outfest in Los Angeles, CA. Laura received her Juris Doctor from Fordham University Law School and is a member of the State Bar of California.
There’s so much I want for us
So much more I wanna do
There are tides that we can turn
Lifelong wishes to come true
Someday love will just be love
And we’ll tell the world that we’re a team
A man can dream...
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Original Songs by Mervyn Warren
