Update: Movie starring local woman to be shown Saturday
The Paramount Theater will offer a 9:30 a.m. showing of the highly acclaimed movie “Uphill Battle.” Tickets are $3 and include a drink and popcorn.
Pocatello native Shelby Smith, who now lives in Rigby, stars in the film.
“I play Erica,” Shelby said. “She’s a single mom with two older kids. She has been divorced from someone who is addicted to pornography, and so her whole family is coming together to heal from that. So it’s her story of healing and getting back on her feet and taking care of her family.”
Shelby had been involved in theater growing up in Pocatello and later in Idaho Falls, but she had a dream of being in the movies. That dream came true when she met some people at a home schooling convention in Utah.
“And the teachers in that class had started a production company and said, ‘we are starting a movie, it’s a Christian movie company and we have this idea,’ and they were explaining it, and all of a sudden I just felt very strongly, and afterwards I went up to them and I said, ‘can I be a part?’ and three weeks later they called and said they’d like me to play a supporting lead,” Shelby said.
That movie was called “Stand Strong” and was popular on the Christian movie charts.
In “Uphill Battle”, Shelby’s son, Ryker plays a supporting role – actually as a teenager who runs over Erica – played by his mom.
“Running over my mom was all trick camera work, but people always give me a hard time saying, ‘why did you run over your mom?’,” Ryker said.
Ryker wants to be an actor too.
“It was an awakening moment for me realizing I want to do this, I want to be an entertainer,” Ryker said.
Shelby loves acting too.
“I know it’s something I want to use for good,” Shelby said. “I want to continue acting and do things that inspire people, that help them change for good, and change their lives, something that could touch their hearts.”
“Uphill Battle got five doves — that’s like five starts — from the Dove Foundation, an organization that reviews family movies.
DVDs of the movie will also be on sale at tomorrow’s showing of the movie at the Paramount.
