A taste of NJ at Ventimiglia Vineyards

By Alexis Tarrazi – Straus News

Photos by Alexis Tarrazi
Gene Ventimiglia owner of the Wantage winery tends to his vineyard.

WANTAGE — Take a turn down a gravel road and into the woods and you will come across fields of grapes grown straight from Sussex County soil that will soon be fermented and bottled into wine. Gene Ventimiglia owner of the family-run Ventimiglia Vineyards in Wantage takes great pride in being a New Jersey winery and the only farm winery in Sussex County.

“All of our wines are 100 percent Jersey grown, with the exception of two wines,” Ventimiglia said. Those two wines — Carignane and Fratelli Ventimiglia — are crafted in Ventimiglia’s grandfather’s honor using the Carignane grape grown from his grandfather’s village in Italy.

“I was always around wine growing up,” Ventimiglia said. “My grandfather made wine and I helped.”

Female wrestler, Marlee Smith, competes in nationals

Marlee taking down her opponent in the nationals.

By Alexis Tarrazi – Straus News

WANTAGE — From as far back as she can remember, Marlee Smith of Wantage has been involved in sports. It wasn’t until second grade that she began to play with the boys.

“She was cheering as a cheerleader and my husband was coaching football. He was one kid short, so he turned to me and said, ‘I’m putting her in,'” said Crissy Smith, Marlee’s mother. “She was this little thing but a tough kid, so we threw football pads on her and she went out there and that was the end of cheerleading.”

Football was the transition Marlee needed to explore another predominantly boys sport, wrestling.

‘Goodfellas’ actor films locally, talks about his new film

Photos by Lyndsay Cayetana Bouchal – Paul Sorvino with his cast on the shoot in Frankford.

 

By Alexis Tarrazi – Straus News

 

FRANKFORD — Bringing a bit of Hollywood to Sussex County, Paul Sorvino — known for his roles in Goodfellas and Romeo + Juliet — filmed a video to promote his new comedy “Christmas in Beverly Hills” in Frankford on May 28.

Due to Sorvino’s filming schedule in other movies, his only free window was on May 28 when he was in New York. And with the film’s producer Dale Restighini offering up his Frankford home as a place to shoot the film, Sussex County was decided as the location of choice.

“Dale ‘Rage’ Restighini, whom in my opinion is one of the best video director in the industry, read the script and synopsis,” Sorvino said. “He enjoyed it so much that he personally offered the usage of his own home kitchen, equipment and crew to help us shoot the main ingredients for the Kickstarter campaign.”

Local filmmaker paints the ‘Town Red’ at Cannes Film Festival

High Point Regional High School graduate Ryan Geiger pictured on right portraying lead role Patrick with Micaiah Castro playing Jeffrey on the left and in the background is Michael Jefferson, who plays Neil. The three are about the enter the garage where they have captured a zombie boy.

By Alexis Tarrazi – Straus News

SUSSEX — With $2,000 in his pocket, a camera and the use of a New Jersey farm, High Point Regional High School graduate Ryan Geiger was able to transport viewers to the 1950s where a zombie virus has broken out in his film “Town Red.”

The independent movie was recently recognized and accepted into the Cannes Film Festival in France in May along with three other festivals.

“I’m super stoked that my movie was played in a different country now,” said Geiger, 27 who served as Director and actor in his film.

When he first was accepted to Cannes, he though it was a mistake. It didn’t really hit him until he landed in France and arrived at the theater where the festival was taking place.