ABOUT LUTES COUSINS FILMS
Sometime around 2020 Ted Lutes called Brian Lutes and said, “Let’s make movies together.” An in-house, independent production company, Lutes Cousins Films specializes in gritty, real life dramas. Our mission is to bring raw and authentic stories to the screen, captivating audiences with compelling narratives and powerful visuals.
An in-house, independent production company, Lutes Cousins Films specializes in gritty, real life dramas. Their films have evolved from period based, psychological thrillers to more semi-biographical dramas, addressing significant life issues. Always romantically driven, their stories are spiced with comedy that gives them a unique flavor and personality. Brian is based in Los Angeles and Ted in Ottawa, Canada. They release a new film every two to three years and to date have six features to their credit.
In 2021 Lutes Cousins Films signs a 4 picture deal with Los Angeles based Octane Multimedia to release their catalogue.
This is an exciting partnership that will take the company to the next level where their films will now be seen worldwide on all the major streaming platforms.
THE FILMS
BLUE SKIES ON MARS
On the eve of being released from a Martian penal colony, Matthew Quinn relives the events that led to his conviction. As a high-ranking officer for 1970’s Irish mobster kingpin, Vincent Morrissey, Matt finds himself caught in a power struggle with Vinnie’s sociopathic son, Ritchie. Things are complicated further when Matt develops feelings for a young French girl and decides it’s time to extricate himself from the Morrissey family and his life of crime. Matt soon finds all roads leading out are blocked, however, when his new girlfriend Wendy is dragged into the middle.
NOT A LOVE STORY
“Not a Love Story” traces childhood sweethearts Alec and Chenoa, whose lives are upended when Alec’s uncle abducts Chenoa, sparking a bitter feud between their families that lingers for a decade. Reuniting years later—Chenoa now a single mother working in a strip club and Alec seeking redemption—they confront buried trauma, lingering love, and mounting danger as jealousy-driven Freddy violently intervenes and kidnaps Chenoa’s child. Writer-director Brian Lutes blends coming-of-age drama, romance and thriller elements while tackling themes of racism, misogyny, violence, friendship and motherhood; meticulous period detail, dynamic cinematography and strong ensemble performances create an immersive, emotionally charged film that rewards attentive viewers and invites debate long after its powerful finale.
PICTURES OF US
Pictures of Us is a gritty teenage love triangle.
When Nadima’s father uproots the family to move across the country, she and her twin brother Dastaan are angry and resentful. Navigating the drama of high school with all of its anxieties and insecurities is a highly charged emotional time in the life of a teen. Add to that the constant tension created by an ultra-traditional religious father who does not tolerate behavior that he believes brings shame on the family. When a devilishly charming boy named Donald takes Nadima under his wing on the first day of school, she is thrown into a world of which her controlling parents would never approve.
Enter Jack, who has his own family issues. He is the product of a broken home with a father who is a drunk, a brawler and a womanizer. In spite of his issues, Jack is a good guy. He knows that Donald is a lowlife with no respect for the girls he dates. Jack begins to develop feelings for Nadima and believes Donald is leading her down a dark road. Things come to a head when Nadima is gang raped at a local hangout. Jack rescues her and blames Donald.
Jack and Nadima develop a strong connection though their worlds begin to spiral out of control. Sadly, Nadima loses both Jack and her brother Dastaan. In the end, all she has left are a collection of photographs, a sketch pad… and a baby who bears the name of the boy who captured her heart.
PAINTED SHARKS
In the summer of 1979, Valerie Shaver is a woman facing the most difficult decision of her young life. The mother of two finds herself trapped in an abusive relationship. Mistakes from her past and the constant threat of violence have her questioning whether to stay with the devil she knows or risk everything to take her babies and run.
How far will a mother go to protect her children?
Carrying the blame for her mother’s pain and feeling the wrath of a father who resents her very existence, Ricki searches for a way out. Together with her younger sister, the two face a dilemma no child should… how to get rid of their father?
The story is reminiscent of “This Boys Life” with Robert De Niro, Ellen Barkin and Leonardo DiCaprio.
MY BEAUTIFUL DEMON
My Beautiful Demon is a story set against the great depression of the 1930's. It begins in the trenches of World War I France, and continues ten years later as returning war veteran Daniel Partcher finds the world he'd left behind slipping away. It is a love triangle, the story of two men in love with the same girl. One, broken and defeated, is plagued with demons brought back from the war. The other amasses great power and wealth.
My Beautiful Demon is also a tragedy. In the end no one gets what they were looking for.
PRISONERS OF TIME
Prisoners of Time is the story of two wounded souls who answer each other’s cry for help, though they live generations and worlds apart. WILLIS JAMES a Canadian war correspondent wounded in the Korean war and REBEKKAH a young Quaker woman from the 17th century are suffering emotionally and physically. When their spirits connect they develop a love affair that sustains them through unbearable suffering but has a ripple effect in their respective worlds. As their lives intersect in strange and inexplicable ways, the people around them are impacted and the results are tragic. Unable to bear a life without REBEKKAH, WILLIS withdraws from the world and retreats into himself. With their spirits freed of the physical limitations of time and space they find one another in a place where time and pain do not exist.
ONE MORE TIME BEFORE I DIE
Percy is a simple farmer, dragged sense of duty into a bloody war that tears him away from his home, beloved Laurel and their two children. When the war finally ends and Percy is returning home, fate takes a cruel and unexpected turn when he and the remains of his division come upon a small shack in the woods. His epic struggle to escape his fate and fulfill a promise to his family is powerful and gut wrenching. When finally he sets foot on the homestead he loves we share his relief and Joy... But things are not always as they seem and sometimes a man’s strongest desires and determination can’t save him from his destiny.