USC native brings ‘Greek Goddess’ graphic novel to the screen
Eleni Romanias said seeing her vision finally realized on screen is unbelievable.
“It’s so surreal,” she said. “Hopefully people enjoy it.”
A 2013 Penn State theater graduate, Romanias has been acting for a while and always knew she wanted to play an action heroine. That dream transformed into writing her own story, fueled by her personal experiences and Greek heritage.
So the Upper St. Clair native wrote a screenplay a few years back while living in California. Dubbed “Greek Goddess,” it chronicles a charmingly awkward band geek suddenly thrown into defending the world. The high school senior turns out to be Athena reincarnate, and the flag twirler becomes a spear-wielding heroine.
The action-comedy deals with themes of self-discovery, as the main character discovers her true self and builds confidence, all thrown into Greek mythology.
It took about three months to craft that initial script, which was surprising considering Romanias hadn’t really written anything before. She wasn’t expecting anything to come of it, but once she starting writing, she felt driven to complete it.
Romanias describes herself as whimsical yet persistent, so she knew she really wanted to play this main character. She quickly realized that though she wanted to star in and produce this film, it might be easier if she first wrote a book. She thought that a book-turned-movie could reach a larger audience. She also thought the style would fit a graphic novel well.
“Okay, how do I write a book?” she thought.
She bought three graphic novels that caught her eye from the bookstore to get a sense of how they were laid out. Then, she got to work transcribing her screenplay into 777 panels for her novel. She connected with an artist online and set to work.
The book took about six months to write, at which point Romanias began the preliminary stages for producing the film shortly after. It’s been a lengthy process, but one she is incredibly proud of.
“It kinda took a detour there, but it was a fun one,” she said.
The project is entirely self-funded. Though Romanias originally tried to locate investors as she finished the book, that process proved difficult because she was new to the industry.
“When I say low budget, it was low budget,” she playfully emphasized.
She formed her own production company titled Little Pudd Productions, based on her childhood nickname. She said it was both interesting and educational to navigate the behind the scenes aspects of the film.
Everything was filmed locally, with the cast and crew coming almost entirely from the Pittsburgh area. The process took about two months, in April and May last year.
“It was really nice to be able to come back home and do it,” Romanias said.
She recalls her favorite scene from their last day filming with the Peters Township High School marching band.
“There’s one shot where the whole band is running off the field,” Romanias said. “You just felt this stampede of people run past us and it was the coolest thing ever.”
She credits her success to the support of her family, especially her parents. She decided it would be easier to produce the film if she moved back home and worked a job just for the money. She had to get crafty with her budget. Because she couldn’t afford to hire other people, she took on much of the work herself.
“I don’t have to pay myself,” she said. “It was a lot of having to pre-plan, especially financially. Luckily, it all worked out.”
Because Romanias had written the story, though, she wanted to be intimately involved in each step.
“I was so close to the script. I wanted to see it brought to life,” she said.
She hopes her do-it-yourself attitude inspires others to attempt difficult projects that they’re afraid to start. She never saw herself doing this, but now it’s a reality. It took a lot to get it finished, but it’s not impossible. Romanias also hopes that a plus-size action hero will show others that they don’t need to change themselves to fit some sort of ideal.
“Everybody has their own strengths, inside and out. Believe in yourself and everything else will fall into place,” she said.
As for the future, for now, Romanias is back home with her parents. She may stay in the area to do more production work, though it’s more likely that she will leave for California or Vancouver at the end of the year to focus on acting. She’s started on other writing projects, and if they go well, she would love to return to the Pittsburgh area to shoot.
The “Greek Goddess” book is available at Amazon and Barnes and Noble. The movie can be streamed on Vudu, Roku TV, iTunes, Amazon Instant Video and Google Play. DVDs will be released in 2019.
For more information, visit greekgoddessmovie.com.