First Strike: The Second Wave (2021)
First Strike: The Second Wave (2021) builds on the exciting world created in the 2020 film "First Strike," incorporating elements of a failed cure with the backdrop of a presidential election.
RUNTIME - 90 MINUTES
(plus 18 minutes of bloopers)
DIRECTED BY
HANNAH D'ORSO
RELEASE DATE
DECEMBER 27, 2021
GENRE
Science Fiction
Action/Adventure
Zombie
From left to right: Quinn Porter (Alexas Adams), Kara Lancaster (Hannah D'Orso), Garrett Sanderson (Charlie Smith), Sabrina Collins (Ali Weisheit).
PLOT SUMMARY
In this second installment of the First Strike series, the community deals with the fallout from the zombievirus epidemic. As the residents of Seattle begin to put the events of the past few months behind them, they look ahead to the upcoming presidential election. Now on the hot seat after a rocky end to his first term, incumbent President Wendell Cooper (Ronald D’Orso) vies for reelection against opposing candidate Ricardo Rodrigues (Jim Weisheit).
With the mass distribution of the zombievirus cure and Dr. Decker (Mary Weisheit), the known creator of the zombievirus, serving a lifetime sentence in prison, the residents of Seattle fall into a false sense of security. One month after the release of the cure, the infected begin to experience blackout periods that see them temporarily transform back into zombies with the power to infect others through their bite.
Determined to uncover the truth about the origins of the zombievirus, Garrett Sanderson (Charlie Smith) exploits his new internship position with the Seattle Police Department for top-secret information, although his methods spark tensions within the department that threaten jobs, friendships, and futures.
With the looming secrets of the zombievirus hanging over him, Garrett Sanderson once again calls on his friends Kara Lancaster (Hannah D’Orso), Quinn Porter (Alexas Adams), and Sabrina Collins (Alexandra Weisheit) to go above the law for the greater good.
When a new player in town begins to feel threatened by Garrett’s activities, they take drastic measures to stop him from revealing the truth to the rest of the world before it’s too late.
In an attempt to bring the truth to light, Garrett and his friends must navigate the drastically changing environment of Seattle in the era of the zombievirus, where everyone’s out to get them, and things are not what they appear.
CHECK OUT THE TRAILER!
Demonstrators (Allison Rickert, Delaney Cox) gather downtown in protest of Commander Riker's reinstatement.
One month after the initial release of the cure, the infected begin to experience blackout periods that see them transform back into their zombie form.
From left to right: Detective Bridges (Drew Palmer), Officer Casey (Andrew Keene), and Officer Bishop (Will Keene).
BEHIND THE SCENES
I began coming up with ideas for First Strike: The Second Wave almost immediately after First Strike was released in November 2020. I finalized the script for the sequel film in May 2021 and filming took place from June-August of that same year. From August-December, I edited the film together into its final form, while juggling my responsibilities at school.
On December 22nd, 2021, we held a public premiere for the film at Smitty's Cinema in Sanford, Maine. There was a pretty good turnout of about 75 people, considering the factors of COVID concerns and unsafe conditions of icy roads. Check out photos from the event here.
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The York County Coast Star wrote up an article before the event, spreading publicity for the film and urging community members to attend. Read the publication here.
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Of course, there are challenges that come with creating a feature-length film on no budget without a real crew, but for this type of production, I think the First Strike series goes above and beyond expectations.
After releasing the first film in the First Strike series, I felt a great sense of pride in what I had created, but I also recognized that I could create something even better, with better planning and more time. Now that I have released First Strike: The Second Wave, I feel that this film is more representative of my abilities as a filmmaker and I am very excited for everyone to watch this film.
LISTEN TO THE OFFICIAL
SOUNDTRACK HERE!
CAST
Charlie Smith
Hannah D’Orso
Alexas Adams
Ali Weisheit
Jim Weisheit
Ronald D'Orso
Drew Palmer
Andrew Keene
Will Keene
Gabrielle D’Orso-Palmer
Tory Chase
Mary Weisheit
Lisa D'Orso-Palmer
Andrew Burns
Kristin D’Orso
Karen D'Orso
Mew Beardsley
Allison Rickert
Delaney Cox
Anson Cox
Jonathan Fulford
Carinn Burns
Collin Abbott