Wall can now claim to be the hometown of a Hollywood producer.

Allison Vanore, a 2000 graduate of Wall High School, has spent the last two years in Los Angeles producing various independent short films and a new sci-fi web series called “SOLO.”

Vanore will be returning home in March to support her latest production, a short film entitled “Purgatory, Inc.,” which is playing at the Garden State Film Festival in Asbury Park.

Since leaving her desk job two years ago, Vanore said she has had to make a few sacrifices in order to pursue her dream.

“I kind of do everything,’’ Vanore said in a recent telephone interview. “In indie projects, you end up playing the role of every person you’re not able to afford to bring into the loop.”

From a young age, Vanore, who grew up on Squankum Road in Allenwood, took an interest in film.

“My parents always had video cameras in the house. They allowed my sisters and me to use them,” Vanore said. “And we would tell stories and make movies and present them to our family.”

In high school, Vanore said she took an active interest in television and photography.

Vanore also played on the high school soccer team and in the school band, where she used her natural leadership skills and instilled confidence in those around her, according to her longtime friend, Joanna Lovering.

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The 9^th Annual Garden State Film Festival runs from March 31 through April 3 in Asbury Park. 

To watch episodes of “SOLO,” visit http://www.watchsolo.com

To read Allison Vanore blog, visit http://www.alliecine.com

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"She has enough confidence in herself that she would be able to pass that confidence along to other people. She did that for me," said Lovering, who played soccer and was in the band with Vanore.

When it came time to apply to colleges, Vanore said she knew she wanted to study film and decided on the University of Arizona.

“I wanted to be close to California, because that’s where I wanted to end up anyway,” Vanore said.

After graduating from University of Arizona, Vanore took a job in Los Angeles at an interactive design firm, she said.

While the job did not involve much film production, she learned the management and leadership skills that are required in her current field, she said.

“In that position I’m learning to deal with all types of different people on different levels of production in order to get things done under budget and on schedule,” Vanore said. “And that’s exactly what a producer does.”

After nearly five years at the interactive design firm, Vanore handed in her notice to pursue film.

“So I started marketing myself online, using Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn, and going to networking events in L.A., just to kind of get as many people introduced to me, so when I left my job I had some options,” Vanore said.

 And while it didn’t take long for Vanore to find work, she had to adjust her lifestyle in order to keep paying the rent, she said.

“It’s a lot harder,’’ she said. “I made a decent amount of money at my day job, and I don’t make nearly as much at the moment. But it was more about just figuring out a way to make it work.”

Lovering is not surprised by her friend's success.

"Everything I know about her from growing up would say she would be very successful in her field. I can only imagine how tough her industry is," Lovering said. "While I'm not surprised, I am impressed."

Vincent Brantley, director of the 2011 film "Hopeless in June," has worked with Vanore in the past and attests to her professionalism and work ethic.

"I call her an energizer bunny, because she has so much energy,” Brantley said. “She just holds her own. I’ve never had to wonder or worry.”

Vanore is a true professional with staying power, according to Brantley.

"She’s really established herself as a force. I always tell her I’ll be working for her at some point," Brantley said.

Vanore's web series, “Solo,” just wrapped shooting six episodes, which are now in post-production and scheduled to launch in the next couple of months, Vanore said.

Created and written by - as well as starring – Jonathan Nail, “SOLO” is a sci-fi comedy series about a reality television star sent on a one-man mission to Mars, but the show is cancelled one month into the three-year journey, Vanore said.

Three episodes were launched online last summer. And through financial support from the show’s fans, six more were shot, Vanore said.

“All our fans have been really amazing,’’ she said. “You’ll find the sci-fi fans are really passionate about things. So when they like something they are willing to throw money into it.”

Vanore has primarily been a producer over the past two years, she wants to start making time to pursue her interest in writing and directing, she said.

“I’m doing a lot of work on these other projects that are awesome and I’m really proud of and passionate about, but I have the desire to write my own stories and do the same work on something that is my own,” Vanore said.

Vanore said she is also looking forward to spending more time on the East Coast, with the Garden State Film Festival in Asbury Park next month, and on some future projects in New York City.

“I’ve kind of been able to come full circle and bring my projects back out to the East Coast and work with people over there,” Vanore said.