By Allie Napoli
Staff Writer
It’s happened to all of us — great ideas spring into our minds and we’re enlightened with ways to get rich and famous overnight. But what if one day, you made these plans do just that — come to life?
Makeda Loney, a junior journalism and mass communication major, has started to realize how that feels.
A spur-of-the-moment idea turned into reality on a typical February afternoon when Loney was browsing the Internet and came across an inspirational anonymous quote: “You never truly know someone until you’ve walked a mile in their shoes.”
“After reading that quote, I said to myself, ‘Wow, that could be a really cool story,’” Loney said. “I love writing, but I didn’t want to turn it into a book. I pictured it more like a movie or a show.”
Loney’s imagination went wild. The story of seven college students consumed her thoughts. Each character would embody a different stereotype. Somehow, the unique characters would have to interact with one another, willingly or not. Something would eventually happen that forces them to understand each other.
Inspired, Loney turned to her friend Tori Lanzillo, a sophomore journalism and mass communication and theater major.
“When Makeda brought this idea to me, I thought it was wonderful and it had a lot of potential,” Lanzillo said.
After a long discussion, Loney and Lanzillo concluded that they would make a mini-series on YouTube entitled “Seven Soles” (the word “soles” for reasons to be revealed during the series). Loney will write the script and Lanzillo will shoot video.
But with all great ideas comes an even greater amount of work and immense dedication. Step one was to create a YouTube channel. Loney and Lanzillo agreed on Quirky College Productions, a highly appropriate name for two creative college students.
Step two was acquiring a cast.
“Tori majors in theater and I minor in theater, so we have a lot of friends that are into acting,” Loney said. “We asked our friends if they would be interested and held auditions in Tori’s apartment. We made a cast and started to film.”
After getting permission from SBU’s Office of Marketing and Communications to film on campus, the dream started to come to life.
Vigorous filming since February has paid off with the completion of Seven Soles: Season One. The pilot will premiere sometime next week. Quirky College Productions also has its own Facebook page and Tumblr blog.
“We haven’t stopped working,” Loney said. “We were in Rochester for a whole day just last week. We got up at six in the morning and didn’t stop till about three in the afternoon. But the great part is that the amount of fun we have overshadows how much work we actually do.”
Loney and Lanzillo are not the only two having fun with Quirky College Productions. The entire “Seven Soles” cast is happy to be involved.
Anna Martin, a freshman biology major, plays popular girl, “Anna.”
“I met Makeda and Tori through theater,” Martin said. “They’ve definitely worked the hardest out of all of us. I am so excited to be doing this; I love the script and can’t wait until I see the finished product!”
Loney and Lanzillo said they couldn’t be more proud of the hard work that has been put into Quirky College Productions.
“It’s crazy because everyone talks about doing something, and we actually did it,” Lanzillo said.
Loney was surprised she and her friends were able to accomplish everything they have in three short months.
“I can’t believe I actually wrote an entire script for a whole season of a show,” Loney said. “I don’t think anybody’s ever pulled this off before. We’re just a few college students doing what we like to do. I can’t wait to see where this goes.”
