Brad Mays was raised in West Windsor when students attended Princeton High School — before the town had its own high school. He returns as a filmmaker, presenting the world premiere of a documentary, “I Grew Up In Princeton,” on Friday, October 18, at Princeton High School. Tickets are $10 to $12.
The film was originally conceived of as a video journal for the 40 year reunion of Princeton High School’s Class of 1973. Mays, an independent filmmaker and stage director, began his interview process with graduates from the class. As the stories unfolded he realized that the dialogue focused on stories during an era of racial, political, and cultural events in the 1960s and ’70s. The film covers the war in Vietnam, cultural communities, and more.
His wife, Lorenda Starfelt, encouraged him to expand it into a serious film. She died of uterine cancer in 2011, while the film was being made. “The film was my wife’s idea and her vision,” he says. “I was finishing the film for her. She loved Princeton. It is a labor of love.” Starfelt is the producer of the film.
“I always thought I understood that creating art is painful — always conflict and drama,” says Mays. “The piece is painful. Her presence is there.”
Mays was born in St. Louis and moved to the Edinburgh section of West Windsor in 1967. “I was not well liked and there were some real bullies,” says Mays, who declines to discuss his family other than to note that they were never involved in the arts. “I became a punching bag in a rough place.” At one point he was beaten badly and left unconscious on the floor.
“Princeton High School saved me,” he says. “I was totally embraced by the townies.” He was part of the counterculture and it was fine with everyone.
He also found a new life for himself as part of a work study program with McCarter Theater. Mays worked in repertory theater there and credits Arthur Lithgow as the spiritual founder of regional theater. His speaking and non speaking roles in “Macbeth” and “Caesar At The Rubicon” invoked his fascination for theater. When the family moved to Baltimore, he went on to study theater arts at Towson University.
Mays’ past films include “Stage Fright,” “Paper Chasers,” “The Trojan Women,” “Singularity,” “The Watermelon,” “The Audacity of Democracy,” “A Way Back In,” and “The Donut Shop.”
“I had been working in sports television — shooting and editing for eight hours a day,” says Mays, who was living in Hollywood, California. “It kept a roof over my head.” His sons, Zachary Mays and Graham Starfelt, both live in California.
“A year ago I realized I needed 2,000 more hours for the film,” he says. “I wanted to make a real movie that had legs. It is a massive project and required many trips back East. People were very generous — especially with their time.” He moved from Hollywood, California, to Hollywood, Florida, when his friend, Linda Carroll, Class of 1970, invited him to finish the film at her house. “We have a serene relationship,” he says.
“Princeton is the town that made me who I am. I saw and heard everything,” says Mays. “I am like a roll of film that has been kept in a drawer for 40 years.”
World Premiere, I Grew Up in Princeton, Princeton High School, 151 Moore Street, Princeton. Friday, October 18, 8 p.m. The original score is by Jon Negus, a former Princeton resident. $10 to $12. www.igrewupinprinceton.com.
