The Midway Point wraps up festival season at the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival

“The Midway Point”, the debut feature film written and directed by Lucca Vieira, is finishing its season of screening at festivals.

In the month of November alone, the film has been screened at the Twin Cities Film Fest in Minnesota, the St. Louis International Film Festival, The Los Angeles Brazilian Film Festival (LABRFF), and now the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival.

Celebrating its 39th annual festival in 2024, the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival (FLIFF) presents American indies and studio films, international films, special tributes, seminars and introduces filmmakers to South Florida audiences. The festival runs November 8 – 17, 2024, and screens 200 films in Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood, and Lauderhill.

‘The Midway Point’ is closing its festival season and will be ready for distribution.

The Midway Point, a multilayered story directed by the now 22-year-old Brazilian-born Vieira, stands as a testament to the power of film festivals to spotlight unique and underrepresented voices. The film, which is inspired by Vieira’s own life experiences on the autism spectrum, isn’t just an ordinary coming-of-age drama; it’s a deeply personal narrative, developed by Vieira when he was just 17 years old.

Writing the script during the challenging first few months of the COVID-19 pandemic, he poured his own experiences into the story, and depicted situations rarely scene on the big screen before.

The film, led by the outstanding lead performance of Sean Ryan Fox, known for his role on Nickelodeon’s ‘Henry Danger,’ portrays high schooler Jake as he desperately tries to fit into the mold of a world in which he doesn’t quite belong.

“We met Sean through his self-tape audition, and were quite impressed, but once Lucca and Sean met and discussed the project through a Zoom call, I knew right away that it had to be him,” says producer Carolina Brasil.

“Sean had a great chemistry with Lucca on set and understood exactly how to portray the character.”

“I remember one scene when Lucca’s mom was watching the monitor as Jake was having a breakdown, crying on the floor. When they yelled “cut” – nobody was able to stop her from opening the door to the room and pulling Sean in for a deep, tearful hug. She saw her son in him. Everyone on set got emotional.”

‘The Midway Point’ also has highlight performances from Wes Studi (Last of the Mohicans), who plays Jake’s stern, but loving math teacher, and Thora Birch (American Beauty, Ghost World), as Jake’s overbearing mother. Others on the cast include Julie Benz (Dexter), former Miss Colombia Ariadna Gutierrez, and others

Producer Carolina Brasil, who is traveling through the festival circuit with the project, shares: “The movie has so many layers, and it’s so good to see people’s reactions within the audience. I feel like this movie will inspire others, and prove that being different is special, and you can truly achieve anything you want. We’re ready to sell and give others the opportunity to watch this incredible movie.”

The Midway Point was produced by Carolina Brasil and Daemon Hillin and is currently negotiating distribution, coming soon to theaters and streaming channels.