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It’s a real crime that Jeff Daniels doesn’t have more awards on his mantle. To date, he’s never won an Academy Award, or even been nominated for one. Throughout his career, he’s done Oscar-worthy work on multiple occasions, but the Academy has repeatedly snubbed him. Now, showcasing his talents in a whole new way, Daniels is not just starring in a high quality new independent movie, he’s written it as well. Guest Artist, now in limited release and coming to VOD next week, is not just a great vehicle for Daniels (which it decidedly is), but a moving character study with a hell of an ending, to boot. The film is a dramedy, pitting a grizzled veteran playwright in a battle of the mental wills with a young and optimistic fan. Joseph Harris (Daniels) spends his days in New York mostly drunk, avoiding turning in his latest work.

"This feels like one of those places you go only if you have to..." Indican has released an official trailer for an indie drama titled Guest Artist, which premiered at the Hollywood Reel Independent Film Festival last year. Marking the directorial debut of award-winning actor / producer Timothy Busfield, the film is about a disillusioned playwright who meets a young aspiring playwright who challenges his weary old ways while on a trip to a small town in Michican. The story of a young man coming face to face with his hero and exploring the tangled relationship between the dreams of youth and the wisdom of age. Jeff Daniels stars (and wrote the screenplay) with Thomas Macias, and a small cast including Richard McWilliams, Erika Slezak, McKara Bechler, and Lynch Travis. This looks a bit too weird and depressive despite the potential for an introspective, refreshing look at the difference between young optimism and aging despair.

Exclusive: Jeff Daniels, Timothy Busfield and Melissa Gilbert have teamed to launch Grand River Productions, with their first project, Guest Artist, set to have its world premiere Saturday at the Santa Barbara Film Festival. The creative partnership joins the fellow Michiganders who will look to mount modest-budget films.

That plan starts with Guest Artist, which Daniels adapted from his stage play and stars in. Busfield directed, and the trio are producing along with Tony-winning Broadway producer Michael A. Alden and executive producer Donald Clark.

“Our shared love of the American theatre is evident in every frame of our modern little throwback,” Daniels said. “Together, we felt that there was a film in Guest Artist that spoke to the precarious role of the American artist and that made it the perfect project for Grand River Productions’ feature film debut.”

Daniels, who just won an Emmy Award, his second, for Netflix’s Godless,...