About the Cast
About the Filmmakers
BRIAN W. SEIBERT (Will)
Brian can be seen in THE GRADUATES, THE UNIDENTIFIED, and the short films NAILING JELLO and DELETED SCENES. You can also see him get a bullet to the head in the webseries DELETED: THE GAME. On stage, Brian has worked at BAM, Manhattan Ensemble Theater, Westbeth, La MaMa, and regionally with Petoskey Theater Festival. Brian has an MFA from the Actors Studio Drama School at New School and a BA in Speechwriting from Oakland University.
RICARDO VALDEZ (Mateo)
Ricardo is an actor born in Mexico. He can be seen in several shorts including BAD PENNY (Blue November Micro Film Festival), LULU and the feature THE EMPTY BUILDING (Award of Excellence). On stage Ricardo has worked on NIGHT OVER TAOS (directed by Estelle Parsons and produced by INTAR), MRS. DALLY HAS A LOVER, HAMLET, THREE SISTERS. He has trained with Wynn Handman and HB Studios.
ARIEL BONILLA (Luis)
Ariel Bonilla studied acting at The William Esper Studio and singing with vocal-coach Donna Reid. Some of Ariel’s last credits include a co-star appearance in BLUE BLOODS and in the film THE MARTYR directed by Dan Korlak. Ariel has recorded national and international voice-overs for TV and radio and has appeared in several on-camera commercials in the US. Ariel is now recording his second album with French producer Pascal Perrin. www.arielbonilla.com
MICHAEL EDMUND (Richard)
Michael has appeared in over 35 plays in New York and regionally, including THE BALD SOPRANO, 1776, THE SKIN OF OUR TEETH, HAY FEVER and several plays by Christopher Durang. Film work includes NAILING JELLO, THE ORANGE PAPERS and SLIPAWAY.
RACHEL VALDATI (Stella)
Rachel graduated with a Master's in Fine Arts from The Actor's Studio in NYC.
MARYLL BOTULA (Rachel)
TV: 40 (with Edward Burns) and BELIEVE (directed by Alfonso Cuaron). Web: Ploppy the Mudwench in ALL’S FAIRE (www.allsfaire.tv), the voice of Jolie in GREG AND DONNY (www.greganddonny.tv). Off-off: June in MARISOL (City Attic Theatre), Regional: Young Playwright's Festival (CityTheatre), Sketchbook5 (Collaboration), Redmoon Theater in Chicago.
DEIRDRE MACNAMARA (Melissa)
Deirdre is an actress and playwright residing in Brooklyn, just a few subway stops from Turtle Hill. Most recently, she co-starred with Rob Riggle, in MAY THE BEST MAN WIN. Deirdre has written and produced her plays DEFINE HAPPINESS, and her one-woman show NUDE NUDE TOTALLY NUDE. Her background includes improv, theatre and television, including four appearances on the LAW & ORDER franchise as the body of a dead hooker.
RYAN GIELEN (Director / Producer)
Ryan's films have won awards in festivals around the country for writing, direction and vision, and have been featured in publications ranging from The Washington Post to Wholphin, from Filmmaker Magazine to Gawker. Following a three-month college tour, Ryan's award-winning first feature, THE GRADUATES (2009) launched a ten-city arthouse theatrical release, playing to sold out crowds. It has gone to be one of the top 5 digitally selling indies of the last decade.
BRIAN W. SEIBERT (Writer / Producer)
Brian produced and starred in the short film NAILING JELLO, which after premiering at NewFest in 2009, it was chosen to be screened at the Brooklyn Academy of Music as part of Best of NewFest. The film was subsequently picked up by Logo as part of the Best in Shorts series online and cable. Previously, Brian produced THE GRADUATES with Gielen, which won Best Comedy at Seattle True Independent Film Festival. After self-distributing the film, it stayed one of the Top 10 Comedies on Hulu for three years. Brian also co-wrote the feature script FIRE CHELSEA CLINTON.
RICARDO VALDEZ (Writer / Producer)
TURTLE HILL, BROOKLYN marks Ricardo's first feature film production. He has over ten years of experience producing independent theater in NYC. In Mexico he produced plays, runway shows and short films. As a writer, his plays have had successful runs in Mexico. He also has two novels and multiple screenplays in progress.
HOLLY LYNN ELLIS (Producer)
In addition to TURTLE HILL, BROOKLYN, Holly was a producer, actor and co-writer of PRAIRIE LOVE (Sundance 2011) and a producer of THE GRADUATES. Previously, she wrote, produced and starred in NAILING JELLO. Holly also produced the short doc FRIDAY NIGHT MAGIC (based on the game Magic: The Gathering) and the short narrative BOOBY TRAPS.
ANDREW TANK RIVARA (Director of Photography)
Andrew’s previous collaborations with this creative team include FRIDAY NIGHT MAGIC (which he also co-directed), NAILING JELLO, DRINKING GAMES, and the webseries TONY AND CAL. He has worked as a gaffer on various films including PRAIRIE LOVE, HALLOW POINTE, HEAD and THE COLD EQUATIONS. Andrew has also written and directed his own short film SOUR FLOWER.
