Cass Filmaker Working To Raise Funds Needed To Make A Movie In His “Emotional Home”

Cass, WV – Every person has memories that they hold dear, whether they be about other people, special places or certain things. Filmmaker J.T. Arbogast holds dear the town of Cass, WV. Although he was born in Pennsylvania, J.T. will always consider West Virginia his “emotional home.”

“It’s one of the few places in the country, I think, that really has this sort of – call it what you want – this sort of magical quality that calls you home,” he says. “I think people from the state understand it and people from outside the state probably don’t. It’s very much a place that, when you’re a part of the family there, it very much calls to you no matter where you are.”

J.T.’s new movie, “Angel’s Perch,” is to be filmed almost entirely in the scenic town of Cass. The story follows a man who is asked to return to his hometown of Cass when his grandmother, who is suffering from Alzheimer’s, is found wandering outside her house.

“He is faced with the choice of either putting her into an assisted living facility or finding some alternative way that she can remain home,” says Arbogast. “He’s a guy who’s been running away from his own memories; he’s got some painful memories that he’s running away from as well. In coming home, this sort of perfect’ world that he has built around him starts to crumble down.”

“The memories that he is running away from, he is forced to face and ultimately face them and move forward in his life. It’s a story about memory and loss. It’s a story about family and hope and certainly what it is for a family to be dealing with a disease that affects so many people not only in West Virginia, but all across the county.”

J.T. found inspiration for the movie as he watched his own grandmother battle the disease and try to keep her own cherished memories of living in Cass.

“Watching her really struggle to hang onto her memories in this place that she was from and in this place that she held very dear that is, in a lot of ways, a snap shot of another time,” he says. “Cass is preserved by the state as a memory of a different time that people can come and visit and catch a glimpse of history, see what it was like to ride those rails and live in the town.”

The local filmmaker has found support from many people around the state and country. A few theaters around the state are already willing to make space available on their screens for “Angel’s Perch.” Also, the Alzheimer’s Association has been providing some support to film since it brings awareness to the struggle of living with Alzheimer’s. Still, J.T. and his crew have not yet met the goal for their budget.

“We are moving forward right now,” he says. “We are continuing to raise the funding for the project to happen. Obviously, people visiting the website and pitching where they can – I mean, every dollar helps at this point.”

“We did quick calculation of it, and I think it one in 70 people in West Virginia give us $10, then we’ve made our goal; it’s a pretty compelling number. I don’t know how many listeners there are, but I’m sure there are a few that would be interested in seeing it happen. Visit the website angelsperch.com and pitch in if you can. Sign up on the mailing list because there are going to be lots of opportunities to be involved, both potentially in front of and behind the camera; stay tuned, I hope everybody is as excited as we are.”

Story By

Heather Niday

Heather is our Program Director and Traffic Manager. She started with Allegheny Mountain Radio as a volunteer deejay. She then joined the AMR staff in February of 2007. Heather grew up in the Richmond, Virginia, area and now lives in Arbovale, West Virginia with her husband Chuck. Heather is a wonderful flute player, and choir director for Arbovale UMC. You can hear Heather along with Chuck on Tuesday nights from 6 to 8pm as they host two hours of jazz on Something Different.

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