Bridgeporter on board: Local man writes comedic movie about pregnancy

By Jennifer Nunez

Bridgeport resident and downtown trader Rino Scalise knew he was in for some major life changes when he found out his wife Debbie was pregnant with the couple’s first child; what he did not know was that the following nine months would fuel his inspiration to write a screenplay for a movie starring Heather Graham and Jerry O’Connell.

The independent film, Baby on Board, is a romantic comedy about Angela (Heather Graham), a beautiful and ambitious divorce attorney, her successful husband, Curtis (Jerry O’Connell), and their surprising pregnancy during the peak of Angela’s career. Angela must deal with her physical and emotional changes as well as her over-demanding boss (Lara Flynn Boyle). The film also stars John Corbett, playing one of Angela’s close friends.

Although “she wasn’t a very crabby pregnant woman,” said Scalise of his wife, watching her deal with the “physical changes and her physical incapability was a great source of material for the film,” he said. “Some of it was very funny, and I took notes. The funniest things occurred when she was sleeping and dreaming.”

With all that he jotted down over nine months, Scalise was able to write a complete screenplay in just three months.

Baby on Board was not only written in Chicago but filmed here between Feb. 18 and March 15. The $4.5 million movie opens with a shot of Chicago’s famous skyline and includes some of the city’s best known landmarks, such as the John Hancock Center and Wrigley Building. The crew spent a week at the Hancock filming office scenes; other locations include restaurants the Capital Grille, Tru, and Nick’s Fishmarket; Equinox Health Club; and interiors at a house in Winnetka.

Scalise was born and reared in Bridgeport, and he owns a house just two blocks away from U.S. Cellular Field, making it easy for him to catch a Chicago White Sox game.  Scalise said he is a Chicago sports fan, but when it comes to the White Sox vs. the Chicago Cubs, he roots for the South Siders every time.

Scalise loved growing up in Bridgeport. “It’s a real tight knit community,” he said, and as proof he said he remains friends with grammar school classmates.

Scalise sees the area evolving, however. “The real estate market has changed the neighborhood, and many outsiders are moving into the area,” he noted. “You used to know everybody, but now we have more new people.”

Scalise has been a trader at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange since graduating from De La Salle High School in 1987. “I haven’t called it quits on the trading career quite yet,” he said, although he has not traded since November 2007 in order to concentrate on Baby on Board. “I will trade electronically when I have time away from the project,” he said. “It’s not as exciting as trading in the pits, but it still provides an income.”

Scalise believes his passion for narrative fueled his shift from trading to writing. “I have always had a deep desire to tell a story, and films are a great way to” do that, he commented. After reading a few books and taking a screenwriting class, he discovered he had the ability to write for film. “My skill is rough and needs polishing, but I did it,” he said.

When not writing, Scalise enjoys the restaurant scene in Chicago; so much, in fact, that he owns the Bella Lounge on the Gold Coast. Bella opened in November 2004 and is a popular place for food and late night drinks.

Scalise’s other pleasures are exercising, keeping up with various sports, and spending time with his family. He said his biggest accomplishment is growing up and raising his own family; he and Debbie have been married nearly ten years and have a son, Dominic, 3, and a daughter, Daniela, 5, who was the inadvertent inspiration for Scalise’s film.

About being a father, Scalise commented, “It teaches you to love somebody more than you love yourself. If you can do that, you’ll be a good father.”

Baby on Board is not Scalise’s first screenplay. A decade ago, he wrote Mobsters in Training, which shadows events in his life but is not about him even though it reflects growing up and hanging out with certain individuals. “Mobsters is a comedy, but I don’t plan on doing comedies only,” said Scalise. The script has not been turned into a film yet, but Scalise said making that happen will be his next project after Baby on Board.

Baby on Board was directed by Brian Herzlinger, creator of and actor in the award-winning My Date with Drew, released in 2004. Scalise is credited as the Baby on Board screenwriter along with Michael Wright who, after Scalise completed the original screenplay, did some fine tuning to polish the product. Scalise also is credited as an executive producer.

Scalise and the crew will bring Baby on Board to the Cannes Film Festival in May. They are optimistic about a national release sometime next year, “hopefully early ‘09,” said Scalise.

He hopes everyone gets a good laugh after watching Baby on Board. “At the end of the day, making movies is about entertaining the people,” he concluded.