TRAVERSE CITY — Bitter cold, a blizzard and an isolated radio station circa 1963 create the scene for high suspense in Rich Brauer’s new feature film.
“My hope is that audiences are going to step back 60 years to the time before cell phones and stereo,” Brauer said. “That we transport them back to a time where technology and humanity co-exist.”
“The DJ on Wallaker Hill” is the Traverse City award-winning filmmaker’s 11th movie. The 90-minute drama written and directed by Brauer weaves local elements, from concept to talent to set construction.
“The inspiration was a sound board I found in the basement of WTCM — with all its glory,” he said.
Les Biederman, founded WTCM, Traverse City’s first radio station. Biederman purchased the soundboard in 1941. On loan from WTCM, the vintage controls set the stage for Brauer’s period film.
The story takes place on Christmas Eve within the walls of a remote Upper Peninsula AM station. Its only staff member, the DJ, has knowledge of an escaped convict. The station power fails, the phone dies and an unexpected visitor comes calling. The DJ trapped inside the station must decide whether the visitor is a citizen or criminal, friend or foe.
The tale mirrors the style of the film industry’s “Master of Suspense” Alfred Hitchcock.
“It’s a Hitchcock-inspired way of telling stories,” Brauer explained. “It’s a slow burn, then things start to happen.”
Brauer filmed the drama in black and white, as Hitchcock did in what some experts consider the master’s best works.
For Brauer, staying true to the film’s period meant digging up everything from coffee cups to clothes to items hung on the station wall manufactured before the early 1960s.
“It’s like putting together a puzzle,” he said.
Whether by fate or chance, he stumbled upon key props. Brauer found a 1961 van at a Benzie County junkyard and a large vintage generator in Ludington — a needle in a haystack find.
The filmmaker involved area high school students in the movie-making adventure. Nine Northwest Education Services Career Tech construction trade students from multiple school districts built the 1963 AM radio station replica set.
“He’s a local hero to a lot of the kids for what he does,” said instructor Tom Sensabaugh. “The energy flowed between them.”
Sensabaugh said student engagement ran so high for the real-life opportunity that they went to the set to work even when school was not in session.
Four students from the center’s Film & New Media department also assisted the professional crew.
“That was a home run all by itself,” Brauer said.
Production took place during the 2023 Screen Actors Guild Strike. As a result, the cast consists of non-union, local talent. The movie features Noah Durham, AJ Guertin and James Ricky. Music is by area artists Seth Bernard, Miriam Picó and others.
A core story element, Mother Nature’s blizzard, appears thanks to Brauer’s coordination with the National Weather Service forecast. Filming paused for two weeks while the storm brewed its power to offer a slice of northern Michigan reality.
Screenings of “The DJ on Wallaker Hill” take place at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m., Feb. 10 at Old Town Playhouse, Traverse City. Tickets are $10. Purchase tickets at the door or at oldtownplayhouse.com. Cast and crew will be on hand for a Q&A following the film.
The movie will be available in the near future on Prime Video.