Juvenile delinquent.
Born in Costa Rica, Francisco Bulgarelli enrolled at the Castella Arts School at the early age of nine. He continued his art studies at G.S.U. and UCLA extension. Francisco has shot features, music videos, commercials and short films. Recent projects include Unraveled and Innocence Blood. Bulgarelli and director Paul Bunnell are featured in the March 2012 issue of American Cinematographer, talking about shooting the last of Kodak’s Plus-X 5231 black-and-white film stock on JOHNNY X.
Ego Plum is an American musician and award-winning composer. His unconventional sound and melodic sensibility got the attention of Nickelodeon in 2008 when he was hired to compose music for Amy Winfrey’s hit series, Making Fiends. Ego received an Ovation Honor Award from the Los Angeles Stage Alliance for his inventive musical score and original songs for the Gogol Project and completed his first orchestral score for The Ghastly Love of Johnny X. He is currently working on Richard Elfman's long-awaited Forbidden Zone 2: The Forbidden Galaxy, co-composing the original score alongside the illustrious Danny Elfman.
Will Keenan was born in Philadelphia and attended New York University while majoring in theater and studying psychology, philosophy and dance. He started his career in underground and cult movies, performing lead roles in Tromeo and Juliet and the first fully digital feature film, Love God. Keenan believes JOHNNY X will go down in history as the very last 35mm black-and-white widescreen musical. Some of his other starring and producing credits include Politics of Love, Chop, Terror Firmer, Margarita Happy Hour, The Love Machine, Hoofboy, OMC, Hisss and Trick.
Creed Bratton became a professional musician during his high school and college years and went on to become a founding member of The Grass Roots where iconic hit songs like “Midnight Confessions” cemented their standing as major contributors to the rock music scene in the 1960s. Creed is currently gearing up to film his ninth season on NBC’s Emmy award-winning TV show The Office, where he plays a fictional version of himself. In 2011 he co-starred opposite John C. Reilly in the theatrically released independent film Terri.
De Anna Joy Brooks won the coveted role of “Bliss” from among 300 competing actresses. Some of her past projects include The Strand with Katherine Helmond, as well as featured roles in Neighborhood Watch and Studio House, alongside such notables as Ruta Lee and Debra Wilson. Brooks has recently written and starred in several hilarious one-woman shows to rave reviews. Director Paul Bunnell believes JOHNNY X will be De Anna’s breakthrough film project and hopes to work with her again.
Reggie Bannister reunites with director Paul Bunnell, having previously worked together on That Little Monster (1994). A favorite to horror fans far and wide, Reggie is best known for his work in Don Coscarelli’s Phantasm films, Bubba Ho-Tep, and other cult favorites. An accomplished musician and singer since the 1960s, Reggie was a member of Stone Country, Greenwood Singers and The Young Americans, appearing in many stage and television shows alongside such greats as Red Skelton, Robert Goulet, Bing Crosby, Carol Channing, Sonny and Cher, and Stevie Wonder.
Les Williams comes from a theatre background in Baltimore and Los Angeles. He is a key member of the legendary Sanford Melsner Theatre Group and continues to work in film and television. His film credits include Kiss The Bride with Tori Spelling, the popular TV show Days of Our Lives, TV movies Sketch Artist II and Enemy Within. In 2002 director Paul Bunnell discovered Les Williams in the independent film Training Wheels during a film festival screening and decided to reserve a part for him in JOHNNY X without so much as an audition.
Jed Rowen has had credited parts in nearly 80 films, and considers his part as “Sluggo” in The Ghastly Love of Johnny X to be his best role to date. In recognition of his wide array of movie roles over the years, Jed was awarded the Golden Halo Film Achievement Award by the historic Southern California Motion Picture Council. His film career was also the subject of a featured article in The Atlantic magazine. Jed had a great time working with Paul Bunnell and the rest of the cast and crew of Johnny X, and has high hopes for the film.
British born actress Kate Maberly plays “Dandi Conners” in JOHNNY X, a bubbly young fangirl who gets mixed up with a legendary rock star “Mickey O’Flynn”, expertly played by Creed Bratton. Maberly’s breakthrough film role came in 1993 when she starred as “Mary Lennox” in The Secret Garden. This internationally acclaimed performance paved the way for several subsequent leading roles, including “Wendy Darling” in Finding Neverland, opposite Johnny Depp and Kate Winslet. Kate's recent projects are Standing Up with co-stars Val Kilmer and Radha Mitchell .. and Rites of Passage with co-stars Christian Slater and Stephen Dorff.
Academy Award, Grammy, Golden Globe winner Paul Williams plays the role of "Cousin Quilty" in JOHNNY X. Although most people came to know him as one of Johnny Carson's recurring favorites on The Tonight Show, or as an actor in dozens of films, television comedies and dramas, it is his musical legacy that continues to inspire. His film roles include "Gunther Fry" in Tony Richardson's 1965 dark comedy The Loved One, "Virgil" in Battle for the Planet of the Apes, and "Swan" in Brian De Palma's 1974 cult classic Phantom of the Paradise, in which he not only starred, but wrote the Oscar nominated song score. Be sure and see the new documentary Paul Williams: Still Alive.
Kevin McCarthy is most remembered for starring in Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) directed by Don Siegel, and for the original Twilight Zone series, playing the title character in the classic episode “Long Live Walter Jameson.” McCarthy was nominated for an Academy Award in 1952 for his portrayal of “Biff” in Death of a Salesman and worked with director and star Anthony Hopkins in the 2007 film Slipstream. Sadly, Kevin passed away in 2010, shortly after completing work on JOHNNY X, making it his final feature film appearance.