Elephant Run District’s latest film, The Save, has been selected to screen at the Empire State Film Festival. This dark romantic comedy will officially screen on Friday, October 23, 2026, at 2 p.m. at Cinemapolis (120 East Green Street, Ithaca, NY 14850) as part of the festival’s lineup of independent films created in New York State from October 23 to 25.
tickets and more screening information
This will be the third festival screening of this film, which was enthusiastically received recently at the Chain NYC Film Festival and the Richmond International Film Festival. Elephant Run District brings its signature sharp wit and surprising narrative sensibility to Ithaca with this film, which was inspired by a bizarre, real-life plot involving a man who hired incompetent operatives to abduct his own estranged wife.
The Save takes that seed of domestic desperation and transforms it into a dark romantic comedy: Jason makes a misguided decision to repair his rocky marriage to Donna by hiring two fixers, Tony and Len, who use extreme measures. The fixers bring their own odd-couple work marriage dynamic, which mirrors the partnership friction that Jason and Donna are trying to survive.
“With The Save, we wanted to explore how divisions can imperceptibly creep into close relationships and how achingly difficult it can be to repair them,” says writer and director Chris Harcum. “I hope audiences walk away laughing at the sheer absurdity of the situation, while recognizing some of the complicated and flawed aspects of their own relationships in the words and actions of these characters. We look forward to sharing this offbeat and complex film with other filmmakers and film lovers in Ithaca.”
Built on a foundation of trust and collaborative indie spirit, The Save showcases powerful performances from a cast deeply rooted in New York’s theatre and film scene, including:
- Francis Mateo (The Holdouts, El Alto) as Jason
- Shauna Blaize (Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, New York Homicide) as Donna
- Joel Nagle (Hello Tomorrow!, Do the Right Thing) as Tony
- David Carl (The Tender Bar, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel) as Len
- Nihara Nichelle (Hot Angry Mom, Law & Order: Organized Crime) as the Therapist
The project was executive produced by Harcum’s longtime artistic and life partner, Aimee Todoroff, who is the Artistic Director of Elephant Run District and a member of the Actors Studio Playwright/Directors Unit. This means a work marriage within life marriage made a film about a life marriage indelibly changed by a work marriage.
Electronic press kit and photos
tickets and more screening information
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