Cast and Crew

Cast

Maxwell Truth

MAXWELL TRUTH, played by comic “Airborne Eddy”, Dobosiewicz began sharing his vibe though music, magic and mirth. He has appeared on Comedy Central, A&E's Evening at the Improv, ESPN, and the BBC. Eventually he came to the realization that there was one M missing so he dialed M for movies and opened the doors of the "Hungry Ear", a place open to hipsters everywhere, a place where the movies that must be shown can be seen.

Maxwell remains passionate and intense about everything he does including screening films like Roger Corman's Bucket of Blood or his musical performances with the Denizens of the Dark all the while keeping the Hungry Ear Coffeehouse alive with great banter, hypnotic music, riveting poetry, irreverent humor and the occasional illusion.

Although at times his words may seem caustic, listen closely, as he speaks the “truth”.

The Mysterious Zelda

THE MYSTERIOUS ZELDA, portrayed by actress Constance McEwen Caldwell, adds some beauty and poise to the coffeehouse. This veteran of the theatre stage joined the cast of OBC in 1996 and ever since she has been a patient mediator between Maxwell’s “methodical madness” and Bird’s “flighty get rich quick schemes”.

However do not let the cool calm exterior fool you. Behind those shades is a chick that is spirited and fervid. Especially when it comes to film noir and choosing the proper coffee to consume while you radiate in the glow of a black and white cathode ray tube. Heed Zelda’s advice and you will soon realize that Godzilla was simply trying to make the world a better place.

Bird the Painter

BIRD THE PAINTER is an interpretation from Tony Billoni. This art and entertainment innovator sees Bird in many ways as an exaggerated extension of himself. Given that he has immersed himself in the arts culture for decades and grew up with the likes of Vincent Gallo and Marc Freeland, it is a logical step for Bird to symbolize the stereotypical beatnik artist by tapping into all the characters that he has encountered through his experiences in the abstract ambience of the arts. For Bird, there are no bad films, only misguided actors.

Crew

James Gillan

Creator and head writer James Gillan has won many national awards for creative excellence through his advertising agency Paragon Advertising located in Buffalo, NY. He states, "Off Beat Cinema was created to provide a forum for films that are not regularly shown on television - and in many cases - are not readily available, even on DVD. There is an enormous cache of films out there that an entire generation grew up watching that are otherwise unavailable. We wanted to create a program reminiscent of the hosted late night film shows of the 1960s and 1970s - the kind of show that made you beg your parents to let you stay up late to watch. Where else can you watch Teenagers from Outer Space and a week later watch Bergman's Seventh Seal in its original language version?"

John Disciullo

Off Beat Cinema is produced by ABC executive John DiSciullo of WKBW-TV in Buffalo. Mr. DiSciullo is responsible for making all the various parts of Off-Beat come together. "From the start, OBC really struck a chord with viewers. How many TV shows have you ever watched that inspired you to write a letter? Yet, that's exactly what our viewers do. We receive many hundreds of pieces of fan mail from across the United States and Canada. We get it all - requests for films, original poetry, philosophic ramblings - and we love it all. I think our fans appreciate the fun of Off Beat Cinema, and the fact that we just don't take ourselves too seriously."