Daily Press and Argus
Sunday, December 3, 2006

Film captures anger over outsourcing

By Jim Totten

Brighton resident Deb Tunis deals with everyday people who have lost their jobs due to outsourcing, and knows their pain and frustration.

So portraying a U.S. furniture company employee who is losing her job due to outsourcing and must train the same people taking her job and others to India wasn't much of a stretch. Tunis tapped into those emotions, put herself in their shoes and glided through her first role in an independent film called "Offshore."

"It's a movie about jobs going to India and how it affects both sides," said Tunis, who is married to Brighton City Council member John Tunis.

The actress said the film shows both sides of the story on an emotionally charged subject in the United States, where many companies have been shipping jobs overseas due to lower costs.

Tunis plays Carol Silvers, who is a trainer for the furniture company's call center, which is being moved to India. Tunis said her character is a longtime employee, comfortable in her job and at an age where she doesn't think about switching careers.

Tempers flare during the film, and Tunis said her character tries to sabotage the new Indian employees.

Tunis used vacation time from her job as a national sales trainer to shoot her scenes during three weeks in December 2005. The film was shot in Troy and India, and its cast and crew party screening was held last month in Royal Oak. About half the cast members are from India.

"I really think it's a good film and interesting," said Tunis.

One of the most ironic moments came off-camera, as some of the Indian actors were taking an elevator inside the Troy office building where the film was being shot, and the elevator became stuck. Tunis said the group picked up a telephone, and the call went to a call center in India.

Although she has been in other independent films, Tunis said this was the first one that was ever completed. She has also done voice-over work for Ford Motor Co. and is the voice heard when people exit the parking structure at the Somerset Collection in Troy.

Tunis said it was unnerving to sit through the first screening in a packed movie theater.

"When you see yourself on the screen, you want to crawl under the seat," she joked.

She added it was good for her to step outside her "comfort zone."

Could another film be in her future? Possibly, but Tunis isn't packing off to Hollywood.

"Let's put it this way: I'm not quitting my day job," she said.

Diane Cheklich, who directed the film, said she wanted to create a piece that provoked the audience by representing the employees' emotions accurately and not sugarcoating the subject. She also wanted to make an entertaining film about a current issue.

"I wanted people to see two sides of a story," said Cheklich, who also helped write the script and edited the film.

"If people walk out from the film thinking about it, and even if it makes them a little uncomfortable, I feel like I'm doing my job," Cheklich said.

Cheklich, who was born and raised in Michigan and lives in Royal Oak, recently completed two other independent films, including a thriller called "Trap."

Cheklich said the producers are planning to have a film screening in India because the film is truly a "binational movie."

Brighton area residents who would like to see will have a difficult time for the moment.

Cheklich said the film will be scheduled for additional domestic screenings and will probably be shown at upcoming film festivals. She's hoping a distribution deal can be arranged so the film can be shown in theaters and released for movie rental. However, no distribution has been signed at this time.

Contact Jim Totten at (517) 548-7088 or at jtotten@gannett.com