Riveting new drama, “Wild Fire,” encircles a group of people getting intimately honest with each other about relationships, sexuality, and everything in between.
Photo Credit — Wild Fire Movie, Jennifer Cooney, Halfjack Generation, Facebook
“Wild Fire” debuted on streaming platforms March 5. “Wild Fire” the first film from Scranton area native, Jennifer Cooney, who wrote, directed, and produced the groundbreaking picture.
“Wild Fire” is Jennifer Cooney’s directorial debut. Cooney is based out of the Scranton area and shot the film at a home right here in NEPA in just 10 days.
Photo Credit — Wild Fire Movie, Jennifer Cooney, Halfjack Generation, Facebook
In one of the most hard-hitting lines of the picture, character Elliana says, “The opposite of life isn’t death. — (It’s) fear.”
Photo Credit — Wild Fire Movie, Jennifer Cooney, Halfjack Generation, Facebook
Wild Fire, picked up by distributor Gravitas Ventures, received 22 total accolades over the course of a ten-month international festival run in 2023.
Photo Credit — Wild Fire Movie, Jennifer Cooney, Halfjack Generation, Facebook
What would happen if we allowed ourselves to expose our most vulnerable, authentic selves? What would that look like? New film “Wild Fire” from Scranton-based director, Jennifer Conney, answers that question.
Shot in NEPA, the film was released March 5 on Apple TV, Prime Video, Vudu, Google Play and more. “Wild Fire” was picked up by distributor Gravitas Ventures, an Anthem Sports & Entertainment Company, for USA release.
The groundbreaking drama features a predominantly female and queer-led ensemble of seven acquaintances who get radically honest with each other over the course of one long night. After an unyielding game of Truth or Dare, one by one they open up about unspoken desires and secrets they’ve been avoiding bringing to the surface — some for their whole lives. After confronting the truth, they each must decide how to proceed from here.
The new film is a moving depiction of the human journey that deals with themes of fear and honesty in a way that feels so organic, bold, and real.
“Wild Fire” is HalfJack Generation CEO Jennifer Cooney’s directorial debut. She currently lives in Moscow and started screenwriting about 10 years ago. Once she secured her first screenwriting job, she fell in love with the movie-making process and decided to get more involved in film beyond simply writing. After working on “Rain Beau’s End,” it was time to create her first masterpiece.
To get her feet wet in the industry, Jennifer Conney began coordinating a short film but when she quickly wrote out 20 pages before the end of act one…it became apparent that this wasn’t meant to be a short film at all. “Wild Fire” was meant to be a full-length feature film, so she could convey everything the story begged to reveal to audiences.
“This one really is my baby,” said Cooney.
Everyone in the production was ecstatic to expand the movie. Cooney wrote, directed, edited, and produced this project herself with a great team to ensure the vision came alive. They spent seven months in pre-production and filmed the picture in just 10 days over the summer of 2022 in Cooney’s friend’s outstanding home in the region — the perfect setting to facilitate the character’s poignant conversations.
“I set out to tell a story about love, about relationships, about being honest within those relationships — whether it’s friendships or long-term relationships or new relationships,” said Cooney.
There’s so much depth in this film and so much truth behind every one of these distinct relationships. You won’t see any surface-level two-dimensional characters here. Authenticity is of the utmost importance to Cooney, so she never skimps out on character development.
“I just feel like life is too short to scratch the surface,” said Cooney.
Each character really stands alone, coming from different backgrounds, different jobs, different relationships — yet the challenges they individually face feel accessible to anyone. They feel like people I know in real life. Although each viewer will surely relate to some characters more than others, it’s easy to empathize with them all.
There’s no villain or antagonist in this film — other than the self. Maybe we all have our reasons for dealing with things the way we do. Making a misstep doesn’t make you villainous…it makes you alive.
“There is not a single character that I will ever write that I think is a bad person. Even if they’re doing bad things, they’re just a human and they’re acting from their most inborn fears and motivations,” explained Cooney
Even Maeve played by Annie Gill, who is the closest to any kind of classic antagonist, often felt the most relatable. Although I wanted to dislike her for the way she handled her feelings and resisted the process — I see myself in her. It’s not easy to pull away the curtain. Perhaps that urge to dislike Mauve is just a reflection of the self.
“I feel that stories are a gateway to how we live our own lives,” said Cooney. “We are our own enemy, we are our own champion, and you get to choose which one of those roles you’re going to play in every situation.”
There’s something about getting it all out on the table in a late night sesh that feels so real to me. Maybe it’s because these intimate after-parties are usually the place where I personally overshare about my ridiculous dating life or strange childhood traumas. And I’ve often felt guilty and vulnerable about that before, but “Wild Fire” makes me rethink my perspective.
Maybe I shouldn’t feel ashamed and should recognize just how special the experience of speaking and being heard truly is. When I really think about it, I’ve never thought any less of anyone who felt comfortable enough to tell me their deepest feelings. If anything, I’ve thought more of them even if it complicates things.
As beautiful and exciting as honesty can be, it also be difficult. Sometimes the truth hurts and we must then find a new path forward. Cooney does an excellent job of depicting the complexities of those next steps as well. It’s not easy to be that honest, not with the people you’ve just met or even with the people you’ve known your whole life.
“To me these people show varying degrees of courage in that challenge. Who’s willing to be vulnerable but just to their person, or to just to their friend — and how terrifying it is to take those masks off,” said Cooney.
Each of these characters have their own motives, they have their own reasons for being the way they are, thinking the way they do and these are traits we can all understand. Whether married, single, gay, straight, bisexual…we’re all experiencing this life together.
HalfJack Generation is a production company dedicated to making films that elevate the consciousness of its viewers and that mission certainly shines through this film. Cooney works with archetypes that everyone can recognize in themselves, making it easy to resonate with different pieces of each of the seven main characters.
“I write from their motivations. I write from what they’re afraid of,” said Cooney. “ — And then their queerness, straightness, blondness, or vision impairment becomes the shading of the drawing instead of the drawing itself.”
There’s so many different facets and challenges to honesty, but there’s no better way out than through. Truth can be scary, confusing, and daunting but when we take the plunge, we can begin to move forward. Waiting too long can be worse. Step into a new day, say it out loud, and from there grow onward and upward. Any adult will find value in this film.
In one of the most hard-hitting lines of the piece, character Elliana says, “The opposite of life isn’t death. — (It’s) fear.”
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Wild Fire received 22 total accolades over the course of a ten-month international festival run in 2023, securing multiple wins along the way, including Best Drama at Shockfest Film Festival, Best of Fest at Pride Film Festival, and Best Original Score and Best Actress (for Celeste Marcone who plays Elliana) at the Red Dirt Film Festival.
“When people walk away from this film, I hope that they think differently about who they really are, how they’re presenting themselves in the world, and what they’re really afraid of,” said Cooney.
“The fear of rejection is the antagonist that lives inside of all of us, “said Cooney. “Will it keep us in the dark or not? Will we overcome that fear…or not? “
Jennifer Cooney’s debut film, “Wild Fire” is now available on streaming platforms. Deep dive into vulnerability as these relatable characters open up. Let this movie soak in and help us better understand our relationships and our sense of self.
