Elvis Thao

A Light Beneath Their Feet (2015)
Film by Valerie Weiss (Drama) Actor Emotionally raw and uncommonly observant, this coming-of-age drama balances the pull of family obligation against personal aspirations. Madison Davenport beautifully conveys the mixture of fierce love and grueling weariness she feels while embracing her role as caregiver, a responsibility that threatens to consume the entirety of her life. And Taryn Manning is equally impressive in avoiding any trace of caricature in her portrayal of mental illness, preserving Gloria's dignity even as her behavior becomes more erratic. Director Valerie Weiss has found an ideal collaboration in screenwriter Moira McMahon Leeper, making her feature debut. By turns endearing, unsettling, and ultimately moving, A Light Beneath Their Feet is a triumph of empathetic filmmaking. There are no heroes and villains in this story, just ordinary people struggling to create a sense of normalcy in their day-to-day existence. Written by Matt Fagerholm

The Surface (2014)
Film by Gil Cates Jr. (Drama and Thriller) Actor Two strangers, both at the end of their rope, suddenly meet in the middle of the unpredictable waters of Lake Michigan.

Petty Cash (2010)
Film by Ross Bigley (Action and Drama) Actor When debts are due, there's no where to hide and somebody's going to pay. A low level bag man, his wife, his brother, a stripper, the strip club owner, a junkie whore, a psychopathic mute, a crime boss, and others, all collide in a final dance of death over money and survival. Written by Craig McCarthy

Gran Torino (2008)
Film by Clint Eastwood (Drama) Actor Walt Kowalski is a widower who holds onto his prejudices despite the changes in his Michigan neighborhood and the world around him. Kowalski is a grumpy, tough-minded, unhappy old man who can't get along with either his kids or his neighbors. He is a Korean War veteran whose prize possession is a 1972 Gran Torino he keeps in mint condition. When his neighbor Thao, a young Hmong teenager under pressure from his gang member cousin, tries to steal his Gran Torino, Kowalski sets out to reform the youth. Drawn against his will into the life of Thao's family, Kowalski is soon taking steps to protect them from the gangs that infest their neighborhood. Written by alfiehitchie