Fightful.com was sent the following, announcing Perry Saturn's documentary:
Perry Saturn documentary begins filming, planned for July 2018 release
ST. PAUL, Minn. (Nov. 5, 2017) — INFLUX Pictures has started filming for its upcoming documentary “The Rings of Saturn,” which examines the post-wrestling life of Perry Satullo, who, under the ring name Perry Saturn, fought for Extreme Championship Wrestling, World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation.
The film, planned for a July 2018 release, will feature interviews with Saturn and other former and current professional wrestlers and promoters, actor re-enactments and animated sequences.
Saturn’s wrestling career kept him in the spotlight for more than 20 years, but little is known about his time outside of the ring, including several years after Saturn said he was shot while stopping two men from sexually assaulting a woman in 2004. One of the goals of the film is to uncover what director Ian Withey calls these “lost years of Perry Saturn.”
“It was the number of years he went missing and no one knew how to get ahold of him,” he said. “He completely disappeared, and this documentary will really shine a light on what happened at that time.”
While much of Saturn’s private life has been a mystery, he’s no stranger to being on center stage. He wrestled during Monday Night Wars, a name given to the ratings wars between the WWF and WCW from the late-1990s to early-2000s, a period Withey remembers well.
“These are all people I watched growing up on TV in the dining room at my grandma’s,” he said. “One TV in the living room with (WWF) Monday Night Raw and one TV with (WCW) Monday Nitro, and I’d run back and forth between the two.”
Withey said viewers can expect “tales from the road” from the Monday Night Wars era, and more stories from Saturn and other wrestling icons. Interviews have been filmed with Chris Jericho, Raven, Diamond Dallas Page and Sonny Onoo.
“The Rings of Saturn” will explore Saturn’s path from stardom to homelessness, and the issues he faces today as he recovers from years of the physical demands of professional wrestling, drugs and alcohol, and abuse as a child, though Withey is quick to note the film doesn’t point fingers.
“It’s more about Perry himself and the problems and issues he has, and less about ‘this thing caused this thing,’” he said.
Is an effort to pay the wrestler back for years of entertainment, INFLUX Pictures will split profits with Saturn, according to Withey.
To fund the project and get closer to the film making profits so that Saturn can benefit, the production company has set up a campaign on Seed and Spark, a crowd-funding site that lets people support projects in a number of ways.In addition to monetary donations, Seed and Spark lets supporters “follow” a project for free. With enough followers, filmmakers can receive perks such as discounted equipment rentals and free admission to film festivals.
The campaign is available at seedandpark.com/fund/perrysaturn#story
First feature for INFLUX Pictures, a Minnesota company
Withey started INFLUX Pictures in St. Paul in 2016 after moving to the Twin Cities to finish his degree in screenwriting. The production company has filmed, edited and produced 16 hours of television for the American Wrestling Federation.
The company has also produced short films, including its most recent, a horror-comedy called “Shear Madness.”
INFLUX Pictures has made its home in Minnesota, a move Withey said he doesn’t regret, because the film community in the Twin Cities is full of people who are willing lend a hand.
“I don’t believe that would happen if I was in, for example, Los Angeles,” he said. “ I wouldn’t have a group of people that would be willing to sit down, hear me out and be willing to help me. I’ve always been of the mindset of ‘we’re all in this together.’”
