The five-track EP includes the songs "Laugh Till I Cry," "Buildings & Bridges," "Everyday Parade," "Come Out" and "Cops on Horses."
In a statement, Poe said, "Marc Meyers, the director of 'Harvest,' wanted the songs from the film to feel like something the lead character Josh, played by Jack Carpenter, would be listening to on his iPod while he spent a summer dealing with his family in flux. We took a cue from the song-based score/soundtracks of other coming-of-age and modern family-oriented films we liked -- Simon & Garfunkel's work for 'The Graduate,' Cat Stevens' in 'Harold & Maude,' Sondre Lerche's for 'Dan In Real Life' -- and created new songs for the film that loosely reflected its story, then extrapolated musical themes and tonalities for the instrumental score from those songs to give the entire film a unified sound that is very specific, handmade, and ranges from wistful to hilarious to celebratory.
"This is a different creative approach from most films, in which songs from various artists are licensed, edited in, and the film composer writes a separate score. Duncan and I have both scored films as well as had our songs placed in film; 'Harvest' was an opportunity to do both, and we feel the result is a simple, singular piece of music that both tells the story of the film and stands on its own.
"We didn't realize it at the time, but there's also a strategic component that other filmmakers can learn from, in that by writing a record's worth of songs for the film in partnership with the filmmakers, we've created another asset that helps to attract audiences -- in this case, to a well-told, heartfelt story of a family dealing with Alzheimer's, death and dying, struggling with the challenges of aging parents and family politics. Not the usual stuff of pop songs.
"We're proud to be part of it. This film is so relevant to now, full of outstanding, authentic performances, and we're pleased, but not surprised, that it's already won so many awards. 'Harvest' is a small, perfect thing." As previously reported, The QUAD Cinema and Monterey Media will present the New York theatrical premiere of "Harvest" beginning May 6. Written and directed by Marc Meyers, "Harvest" is produced by Meyers and Jody Girgenti.
The cast includes Academy Award and Tony nominees Robert Loggia ("Scarface," "Prizzi’s Honor") and Barbara Barrie ("Breaking Away," "Private Benjamin"), Tony winner Victoria Clark (Light in the Piazza, now starring in Broadway’s Sister Act), Arye Gross ("Grey Gardens," "Minority Report"), Peter Friedman ("The Savages," "Breaking Upwards") and Jack T. Carpenter ("I Love You Beth Cooper").
"Set on the Connecticut shore in Madison," press notes state, "where old money and working families have lived together for generations, Meyers weaves the lives of three generations of the Jewish-Italian Monopoli family who gather around their Patriarch Siv (Loggia), as they wait out what might be the last summer of his life. Although he has pancreatic cancer, it’s hard to tell. The robust Siv has built a substantial world and a generous reputation. A decorated WWII veteran and a successful business owner, he’s all-American and determined to die with a burst of life-affirming energy.
"When his grandson, Josh (played by the winning Jack T. Carpenter) comes home to Madison from college, determined not to spend his 'last' college summer at home, his mother, Anna (Victoria Clark) posts the warning: 'Everything your grandfather does this summer will be for the last time.' "Gradually, the continuity of sympathy and responsibility gains ground, touching Josh, as it dawns on him how precious his family is, despite (sometimes because of) their shortcomings.
"There are painful secrets, suspicions, unfulfilled desires and feelings that go unexpressed. Siv’s once vivacious wife, Yetta (in a vivid performance by Barbara Barrie), has slipped into a cantankerous dementia. The sibling rivalry of his Sandwich Generation children heats up, in part over Siv’s will. And when Josh’s own budding romance with Tina falls apart, Josh reaches out to his grandfather for the secret of how he stayed married and in love with the same woman for more than fifty years. Meyers refracts these stories in meaningful fragments with a delicious humor and pathos—think Chekhov meets Scorsese (with a pinch of Eric Rohmer)."
For more information visit http://raisingharvest.com.
