Room for Rent (2017 film)

Room for Rent is a Canadian comedy/mystery film written and directed by Matt Atkinson. It stars Brett Gelman, Mark Little, Carla Gallo, Stephnie Weir, Patrick J. Adams, and Mark McKinney.

Room for Rent
Directed by	Matt Atkinson
Written by	Matt Atkinson
Produced by	Justin Rebelo, Kyle Bornais
Starring	Brett Gelman Mark Little Carla Gallo Stephnie Weir Patrick J. Adams Mark McKinney
Cinematography	Robert Scarborough
Edited by	Michael Pierro
Music by	Richard Pell, Ian LeFeuvre
Production companies	El Duo Motions Pictures Farpoint Films Musterios Entertainment Inc. Prodigy Pictures Inc Vigilante Productions
Distributed by	Gunpowder & Sky
Release dates	September 16, 2017 (2017-09-16) (Atlantic Film Festival) November 2, 2018 (2018-11-02) (United States)
Running time	89 minutes
Country	Canada
Language	English

It had its world premiere at the Atlantic Film Festival on September 16, 2017, won awards for its 2017 showings at the LA Comedy Festival and Chicago Comedy Festival and its 2018 showing at the Canadian Film Festival, and won three Canadian Comedy Awards when it opened theatrically in Canada on October 26, 2018. It was released to video on demand on November 2, 2018.

Plot

In high school, Mitch Baldwin won the lottery and blew all the cash. Twelve years later, he's holed up living with his parents when his dad says they have to downsize their house so he can retire. Mitch insists they rent a room to save from selling their home. Enter Carl Lemay. Carl at first seems like the perfect renter but when he begins upsetting Mitch's routine way of life, a battle of wits turns into all out war.

Cast

• Brett Gelman as Carl Lemay
• Mark Little as Mitch Baldwin
• Carla Gallo as Lindsay Ross
• Stephnie Weir as Betty Baldwin
• Patrick J. Adams as Huey Dorsey
• Mark McKinney as Warren Baldwin

Production

Principal photography took place in Winnipeg, Canada in June 2016.^[1]

Release

The film had its world premiere at the Atlantic Film Festival on September 16, 2017.^[2] This was followed by its US Premiere at the San Diego International Film Festival on October 16, 2017,^[3] and its Asian premiere at the Shanghai International Film Festival on June 19, 2018.^[4]

The film opened theatrically in Canada on October 26, 2018.^[5]

Gunpowder & Sky released the film in the US to video on demand platforms on November 2, 2018.^[6]

Reception

The film has an 88% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.^[7] Alan Ng of Film Threat awarded the film three and a half stars out of five.^[8] Norm Wilner of NOW Toronto awarded the film three stars out of five.^[9]

Awards and recognition

Year	Awards	Category	Nominee	Result	Ref
2017	LA Comedy Festival	Best Film		Won	[10]
		Best Screenplay	Matthew Atkinson	Won
		Best Actor	Brett Gelman	Won
	Chicago Comedy Festival	Best Feature		Won	[11]
		Best Actress	Stephnie Weir	Won
2018	Canadian Film Festival	Best Feature		Won	[12]
		Best Set Design	Gord Wilding	Won
	Canadian Comedy Awards	Best Direction	Matthew Atkinson	Won	[13]
		Best Writing	Matthew Atkinson	Won
		Best Performance	Mark Little	Won