After The CJN profiled filmmaker Allan Ungar in September 2014, CHAT invited him to speak at his alma mater on career day.
“I guess they didn’t want to just limit it to lawyers and doctors; they wanted to give the kids an idea that there are other things you can branch out into,” he says with a laugh.
Obviously, CHAT has a bevy of esteemed, creative alumni, but Ungar, now 27, is making waves on the big screen. His second feature film, Gridlocked, had its world premiere at the Fantastic Fest in Austin, Texas before making its Canadian debut at the Toronto After Dark Film Festival in October.
Gridlocked, an action movie that Ungar co-wrote and directed, stars Danny Glover and Trish Stratus. Canadian distributor Mongrel Media recently picked it up.
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Lately though, Ungar has been taking a break from directing in order to write and produce.
This past summer he co-produced Lower Bay that stars Christopher Lloyd – best known as Doc Brown in the Back To The Future trilogy – about the abandoned – and apparently haunted – subway platform beneath Toronto’s busy Bay Station.
Ungar, says there’s something distinctly Canadian about the movie because it’s actually set in Toronto, unlike the many productions that use this city as a stand-in for place like Chicago and New York.
That’s part of what drew Ungar to the project. “And to be honest, I had always wanted to go down to that abandoned tunnel. I just wanted a chance to go down and see what it looked like,” he says.
Despite working underground with a cast and crew, he admits that the experience was a spooky one. “In the back of your mind,” he says, “you’re sort of like, some weird stuff definitely took place here about 40 to 50 years ago.”
Along with the inherent creepiness of the set, Lower Bay features horror movie legends, including the executive producer of The Ring and scream queen Rose McGowan.
Beyond producing Lower Bay, Ungar is stepping outside of his comfort zone in his latest writing projects. He’s currently working with director Dominic Sena (Swordfish, Gone in 60 Seconds) and also producing an adaptation of the New York Times best-selling romance novel Ugly Love.
Yet, he doesn’t mind that it’s a departure from his usual fare. “At the end of the day, I love movies and I appreciate a good story with great characters and resonance,” he says while describing how he chooses his projects.
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He’s also pleased to working with Glover and Lloyd, two of his own movie heroes. “Within the span of a year, getting to work with these two old-timers that I really look up to and respect was really cathartic, it was a really neat experience.”
As The CJN previously reported, Ungar spent some time in Los Angeles while taking a break from his undergraduate studies at York University. For now, he’s eager to continue working in Toronto.
“I want to stay here,” he says. “I think we have so many incredible resources, so many talented people. If I could stay here for the rest of my life and make movies, nothing would make me happier.”