Michael A. Sanchez will premiere his film, " Tuxedo Joe," at 8 p.m. Saturday at the Sovereign Majestic Theater, Pottsville.
The movie began as a one-man stage show about a character named Joey Tucci, a comedic actor dealing with Bipolar II disorder. The film is a semi-biographical tale, which features Sanchez as Tucci.
"I created the character as a one-man show in January 2003 just after I was diagnosed with Bipolar II disorder," Sanchez said. "For me it was just a great cathartic experience. I was able to stand up there and face down this demon that had come into my life."
One of his main concerns is that people view mental disorders with negative stereotypes and he wants to reverse the trend, allowing people to understand mental illness and to see the person.
"What people don't realize is how common this really is. It's a topic that's laced with stigma, with negative stereotypes," Sanchez said. "The whole point of this film is to bring the subject into a public forum."
An estimated 26.2 percent of Americans ages 18 and older suffer from a diagnosable mental disorder in a given year, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. That equates to about 54 million Americans when based on the 2004 U.S. Census.
The story hit the stage for the first time in 2003 and Sanchez added more characters to the one-man show in 2006, including local residents Jenna E. McBreen, Schuylkill Haven, and William G. McGovern, Pottsville.
Sanchez personally financed the making of " Tuxedo Joe," shooting in locations like Hawk Mountain, Lebanon County and his own home. The film first premiered at the Allen Theater, Annville.
Sanchez graduated from Penn State University in 1996 with a degree in film and video production. He has spent the last 10 years doing theater.
He met McBreen when she was his wife's student at a local school and a few years later knew she would be perfect for her role as "Elizabeth," based on Sanchez's former best friend who was killed in a car accident.
"Even though she is a person I never met, through the process of playing the part, I got to know her," McBreen said. "I've done a lot of stage and this was my first real film work. I always thank Mike (Sanchez) for the opportunity."
"I'm thrilled that it's coming to the area. I had no idea the character in the story would have such an effect on people," Sanchez said. "I'm happy because there are so many people in this area that I really want to reach out to because of the subject matter."
After several years of performing " Tuxedo Joe" on stage, he was ready to put the character to rest, until he and McBreen came across an advertisement for amateur filmmakers that piqued their interest.
Sanchez and some of the cast shot a five-minute audition clip and their piece made it through the second round of auditions for the Fox reality series "On the Lot."
"Something told me that this character still has something that people wanted to see," Sanchez said. "I finally felt brave enough to make the film and the story was luckily not very difficult to transition into film."
"I'm really excited about it because we had it in Harrisburg and places like that ... It's really great that it is so close to home and I have friends that can come see what we've been doing," McBreen said.
"For me, the film is the version I've always wanted," Sanchez said. "For me, it tells the story that always needed to be told."