SPRINGFIELD – Colin Tracy, a Sixteen Acres resident, has fulfilled his goal of producing a film that addresses the issue of human trafficking.

Tracy recently released the preview for the film, titled “Illuminate,” online at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fu-9m4TdYCk&feature=emb_logo.

Forming The Firefly Creative, Tracy told Reminder Publishing the film’s story has been in the works for nine years.

The film is described by its producer as portraying “the reality of human trafficking – it’s not a sinister mastermind behind this dark world, it can be the family man who lives next door. Paul Cross’s struggle balancing that double life. To most of society, he’s an honest, caring family man doing the best to provide for his wife, Rebecca and daughter, Elle. But in reality, he a dangerous man running a trafficking ring underneath Illuminate, a club he manages. His two worlds collide when he meets Blair Meade, one of his victims who clings to hope in the midst of a hopeless world. Secrets are revealed and one questions rings true above them all: what will it take to see the light?”

He had produced plays about the subject but when the pandemic hit and live performances stopped, he knew he had to re-think how he could tell the story, Tracy said.

“The subject has been on my heart for a long time,” he said.  In college he initially learned about human trafficking, a subject of which he had little knowledge. He did two years of research and spoke to former victims.

He adapted his play into screenplay and used his personal savings to buy the necessary filmmaking equipment. Reaching out to area actors for the cast, he said, “We had a really good response to that.”

The actors were mostly local he noted and one of them, Donnie Francis of Ware said in a statement, “being part of this film was important to me because human trafficking is something easily overlooked and not openly discussed. Victims are often forgotten by everyone but their families with no justice ever served. We hope to keep people informed and raise awareness, which is a big step in putting a stop to this unthinkable act.”

Tracy said his goal with the film was to show people human trafficking could see “it happening in our backyard.”

Shooting the film during the pandemic was “definitely a challenge,” Tracy said. He had to try to meet the demands of the story while following the health and safety guidelines. He noted he had to watch the number of people who were on the set at any one time.  

Temperatures of cast and crew were checked during each day of filming and Tracy noted there was one period of quarantine but no one became sick.

“Eventually it [shooting] ran pretty smoothly,” he added.

The shooting of the film began in June and wrapped up the end of October, he explained. He was filming on weekends and then editing during the week, a full-time job for him. As of the time of this interview, Tracy is still in post-production working on the sound track and color timing. He is now also working with a local composer in the creation of a score for the film.

Tracy is hoping to raise completion funds for “Illuminate” with an Indiegogo crowd funding effort at https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/firefly-creative-productions?fbclid=IwAR2skdzmNRuAZpsou76NRtQBw3eJlRtXKQyhwcTMSMKUveTda-Q6r9PwM0E#/.

He plans to submit the movie to several film festivals and may release the film through online platforms such as Amazon prime.

When the pandemic ends, he intends to have a local premiere of the film.

In the meantime, Tracy is continuing his efforts to produce films by starting production on a short film, “Scars,” that addresses trauma, depression and PTSD.