Your dog could be cast in a Beaufort comedy

A comedy set to begin filming in Beaufort this fall is issuing its first casting call, and directors are hoping you have a friend ready for stardom.

The first role to be filled for “Basement Bob,” a low-budget comedy about a man living in his ex-wife’s basement, is the neighbor’s dog. If you think your canine is a fit, come by the Port Royal Veterinary Hospital on July 17, from 2 to 6 p.m.

“It’s a very opinionated dog,” said VW Scheich, head of Rareform Pictures, who is co-directing the movie with Gary Weeks. “It’s funny how the dog continues to thwart him.”

Scheich is welcoming all breeds for the audition, with no set criteria for the successful dog.

Knowing tricks would be a plus, he said, and a photographer will snap headshots of the animals. Owners will be asked a few questions about their pets.

The casting call is the next step in Beaufort returning to the big screen, though “Bob” won’t have the pocketbook of past Beaufort films.

After first testing pre-sales of DVDs and movie downloads to fund the film, Scheich opted instead to go after traditional investors. He said the movie is about $90,000 short of its $275,000 budget.

Scheich and his wife, Uyen Le, took a break from “Basement Bob” to screen “Interwoven,” a movie they completed while still living in California.

They moved to Beaufort to make “Basement Bob” and have returned to promoting the idea of the comedy. The couple joined South Carolina Public Radio last month to talk about the movie.

Tom Clark, director of the South Carolina Film Commission, was also a guest on the radio network in June and said the state’s stature on the screen is growing. He pointed to recent state law that made rebates to filmmakers permanent.

The incentives go further in attracting television shows, Clark said in the radio interview. He pointed to such productions as HBO’s “Vice Principals,” which shot in Charleston, and Cinemax’s “Outcast,” filmed in Rock Hill.

Still, Clark said, South Carolina doesn’t have the incentives other states do. That’s a reason why it has been more than 15 years since a feature film has been made in Beaufort, Clark added, an area which claims movies like “The Big Chill,” “The Great Santini” and “Forrest Gump.”

“Beaufort was probably the iconic location of South Carolina,” Clark said. “It’s not hard to sell the Lowcountry.”

This story was originally published July 7, 2016 at 10:16 AM with the headline "Your dog could be cast in a Beaufort comedy."