News
Email
Print
Production wraps up on saga of Abbate family, WFU's '06 season
Steven Abbate said that revisiting the 2006 death of his son Luke for a movie was painful, but also cathartic.
ADVERTISEMENT
Published: November 18, 2008
For the past five weeks, Steven Abbate has watched as his family's story was transformed into a movie.
"It has been a rewarding, emotional, exhilarating but saddening experience," he said.
"We've always been very excited about it (the film), but to be honest with you, after it started, we said, ‘Why did we do this? Why did we open up these old wounds?' But it was cathartic to be a part of it."
The movie, The 5th Quarter, is being shot in Winston-Salem. Production ended yesterday, and the film will probably be released in 2009.
The movie tells the story of Jon Abbate, a linebacker at Wake Forest University, and his parents, Steven and Maryanne, as they worked to overcome a tragedy. Jon Abbate was part of Wake Forest's 2006 ACC championship season, and in honor of his younger brother, helped spur on the team.
Luke Abbate was 15 when he was riding in a car with other students near Atlanta in February 2006. The driver was speeding, the car wrecked, and Luke died. Five people received Luke's organs.
To commemorate that and the number "5" being Luke's lacrosse-team number, Jon Abbate -- then a junior at Wake Forest -- asked to have his jersey number changed to "5." At games, people began raising a five-fingered salute in Luke's memory and to cheer the team on.
Director/screenwriter Rick Bieber became aware of Abbate's story during the 2006 season and, before the season ended, began discussing the idea with the Abbates of making a movie.
Steven and Maryanne Abbate live in the suburbs of Atlanta, but they and Jon have been traveling to Winston-Salem on weekends to watch the filming.
"It's been rewarding to see all of this come together," Steven Abbate said. "For us, it's a way to honor Luke and his life and his memory, and also honor the great year that Wake had in 2006."
The cast is headed by Ryan Merriman as Jon Abbate, with Aidan Quinn and Andie MacDowell as Steven and Maryanne, and Michael Harding as Coach Jim Grobe. A few minor roles are filled by the real people, including Micah Andrews, a running back who was on the team with Abbate.
"The actors did a good job getting to know us as characters," Steven Abbate said. "To see our words coming out of their mouths was an out-of-body experience."
He added that the script for the film is "about 98 percent true to life."
"There are some things in there that, when you see the movie, you'll say, ‘Wow,'" he said. "It's completely truthful, we put everything out there. As you can imagine, we've struggled, as a family and individually, to get over this. We're still not there. We struggle every day. It's long and hard, difficult process."
The details had to be just right, Bieber said, because "this is not only true but it's also recent.… This is not a 40-year-old story. All these folks are still around. We felt a great responsibility to all those whose lives are being depicted."
After winning the ACC championship in 2006, Wake went on the Orange Bowl, losing to the University of Louisville. Abbate signed a free-agent contract with the NFL's Houston Texans, where he was converted from linebacker to fullback. He was released in August after spending the 2007 season on the injured reserve list. (He has tryouts this week with Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the San Diego Chargers, Steven Abbate said.)
Bieber said he doesn't think whether Abbate makes it as a pro is an issue for his film.
"I think winning the ACC championship was a great moment," he said. "We're very confident it's a very compelling story."
Abbate family members, meanwhile, are concentrating on their work with the Five Foundation, created in honor of Luke. The foundation educates high-school students about the dangers of reckless driving.
In January, family members hope to meet one of the recipients of Luke's organs, a woman in Baltimore who received his heart.
"She's agreed for us to meet her, and we're in the process of setting that up," Steven Abbate said. "My dream has been to hear Luke's heartbeat, to feel it. My son, a piece of him is still living inside of her."
■ Tim Clodfelter can be reached at 727-7371 or at tclodfelter@wsjournal.com.
Email
Print
