After watching countless Red Carpet events, admiring the actresses’ dresses and checking out the actors in their tuxes, I was incredibly excited to attend the “Concealed Names” movie book trailer last week with my friend Megan Ferrando. We foresaw that the night ahead  would be fun in our long dresses and honestly, I first went hoping to see Bo Duke.

After spending the afternoon running around, looking for an appropriate dress and heels, I was ready to get the show on the road. Meeting the cast and crew of the production was a joy, but two days later, as I sit writing this review, all I can think about was the evident love the author of the series, Stacie Triche, felt for her nephew Charlie.

In March of this year, her Charlie died from a huffing accident. Huffing is when individuals inhale a chemical called difluoroethane that is in the computer cleaning spray Dust-Off. 

While in class one day, a classmate of Charlie’s took the Dust-Off and inhaled it as a joke after the teacher left the room. Charlie then decided to go home and try it, not knowing it could be life threatening. Before he did it, he had told a friend it would be the same as sucking the helium from a balloon. 

This tragedy was the catalyst that led Triche to use her “Concealed Names” series as a means to create awareness of inhalant abuse. 

The book itself tells the story of how weeks before his nineteenth birthday, the main character, Charlie, is forced to face the demonic forces that threaten his home town. Around the same time, he is also fiercely drawn to a girl named Aurora. The book also features strong religious values, mirroring Triche’s own strong faith in God. Her characters often turn towards Him in times of duress.

As someone who has also suffered from the death of a family member, my heart went out to Triche, and I was in awe of her determination to persevere as well. It is hard when someone you love dies, but she proved strength in her ability to move forward and turn the event into something positive.

When she began looking for cast and crew workers, it was announced that there would be no pay for their work. Despite this, there was an outpour of auditions and people willing to work for the project. 

Of the volunteers, over two dozen were Southeastern students, and they had jobs as the leading roles, videographers and extras.

The “Concealed Names” team hopes the book’s trailer will catch the eye of a producer and be turned into a film. At the premiere, multiple movie producers were in attendance and awards were also given out.

Though I have yet to read the book itself, the trailer did catch my interest and I am intrigued. I have every intention to read this book and truly hope someone else will be driven to do so as well.