Quirky office comedy by Yakima Valley native to get Tri-Cities red carpet premiere

You might see one of your neighbors on screen as a movie filmed in Eastern Washington gets red carpet treatment when it premieres in Richland on Thursday.

Filmmaker J. Rick Castañeda, who grew up in Granger between the Tri-Cities and Yakima, has released his second movie, “All Sorts,” a quirky office comedy about finding magic in everyday life.

It had its virtual premiere as one of the most-viewed films at the 2021 Seattle International Film Festival.

But the first in-person screenings of “All Sorts” is Wednesday in Walla Walla, Thursday in Richland, Friday in Yakima and Saturday in Sunnyside.

Castañeda wants to give viewers the full Hollywood experience, with a red carpet, the film’s stars posing against a backdrop for photos, and a question and answer session with some of the cast and crew after the screening.

“Growing up here, I didn’t have a lot of opportunity to attend red carpet premieres with actors and filmmakers until I moved to Los Angeles,” he told the Tri-City Herald.

“All Sorts” was inspired by the mundane office jobs Castañeda worked after he moved to Los Angeles and was struggling to break into the film industry.

As he sat in gray, often-silent offices with no windows, he used to imagine “magical escape routes out of the gray cubicles where I was trapped every day.”

The movie centers on Diego, a lonely Data-Mart clerk desperate to find excitement and love, who stumbles into the world of competitive office speed filing with his co-worker June.

The characters are off-beat and the movie has plenty of charm, said reviewers after its initial screenings at film festivals.

“This is a very positive movie about love, about friendship and finding magic in a dim drab place,” Castañeda said.

He’s hoping that it will make those returning to work in offices after the COVID-19 pandemic smile and maybe even think more imaginatively about where they work, he said.

Tri-Cities help with movie

Castañeda’s first full-length movie, 2013’s “Cement Suitcase,” was shot in Yakima and Benton counties, and Castañeda returned to the area for “All Sorts.”

He drew on people he knew from the Tri-Cities, including Benton City elementary teacher and filmmaker Benjamin Vargas. Watch for him as Oscar in the film.

“He nailed it,” Castañeda said.

The film’s executive producer is Martin Valadez, the interim executive director of the Tri-Cities Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, who got involved as a way to support Latino art.

Filming was done in 18 days in Toppenish and Yakima using many of the same cast and crew as “Cement Suitcase” with post production work in Los Angeles.

Castañeda made his first short film in his senior year of high school and then graduated from University of Southern California with a major in creative writing and a minor in film.

He’s been busy between movies, directing videos for Disney, MSN, Imagine Dragons and League of Legends.

Most recently he directed a 10-episode Lego Ninjago series for the Cartoon Network.

He’s thinking about his next feature film now, with some scripts written but investors needed to start shooting.

To buy a ticket for the 7:30 p.m. Thursday screening at Fairchild Cinemas or the other Eastern Washington screenings, go to allsortsmove.com/watch-now.

Castañeda’s working on more theatrical screenings nationwide before the film’s release on video and demand and DVD later this year.

This story was originally published March 28, 2022 at 11:45 AM.