Harrisburg’s newest web series ‘shines’ as it receives SAG approval

HARRISBURG, Pa. - May 3, 2014 - PRLog -- The city’s newest web series, aptly titled “Shine,” has recently obtained SAG (Screen Actors Guild) approval in the New Media Agreement category. The approval of the noted actors’ union means that producers will be able to utilize the talents of SAG-AFTRA artists. The move makes Shine one of few web series filmed in the Harrisburg area to do so.

Shine was written by Judith Brown, a lifelong resident of Harrisburg. It tells the story of a young woman (Shine Remington-Reed), once a rising star in Tinseltown, and her daily challenges to rebuild her life following an international scandal. In the midst of opening up a new PR agency, Shine must also re-evaluate her relationship with her mother, Chantel, who is credited with selling compromising pictures to the tabloids, which ultimately ruined Shine’s career.

Shine sets itself apart from most other series in that its strongest roles are female characters, bucking a trend that is generally not the norm.

“When it comes to women, unless a big name or an A-lister (such as Oprah or Meryl) is involved in a project,” says series writer/director J Blair Brown, “the industry generally ignores women, particularly if the plot involves a strong female character. Our hope is that our series will help to change that view, opening up doors for other projects featuring strong female leads.”

Shine stars Harrisburg’s own Kiana Jenkins in the title role. Others include include: Jasmin Hines as Shine’s protector and half-sister Starr Brown; Chantel Motes as Shine’s self-centered mother Chantel Reed; award-winning actress Nicole Renee as Starr’s nurturing mother Mona Brown; Gabriel Bellotti as sports agent Chance Edwards; Michael Giovanni as Roberto Santiago, the agency’s first employee and a man with many secrets; Rory Nicole as Rory, Extraordinary, a precocious pre-teen with ties to the agency; Jasmine Forney as Nika Duncan, a troubled woman with her own agenda; Sean James as Luke, Chance’s confidant and driver; Lauren DeLeon as Valerie Pierson, whose goals prove detrimental to Shine’s own; Barry Tangert as Detective Manny Ross, and Jeffrey Rensch as Detective Zeke Solomon – two underhanded NYC detectives with their own sense of justice; Raj Belani as the sensitive Dr. Patel; and Brittany Boyd as La’Tasha Wells, the new princess of daytime TV.”

Shine will be released on YouTube in July 2014 in ten weekly segments.

To follow the progression of the series, see its Facebook page here: http://tinyurl.com/maqyz5q.