BECAUSE I LOVE YOU
Marco and Joanna enjoy an electric marriage, until Marco is witness to a
series of events that lead him to suspect Joanna is having an affair
with a co-worker. Starring Bob Celli (Gotham, Blacklist), Jennifer Plotzke
(Blacklist), Dave Roberts (Blue Bloods), and Melissa Joyner (The Morning
Show)
"Kudos to Bob Celli and his short film Because I Love You...I’ll just
say that stories of intrigue are tricky to pull off in indie films, and
writer/director/star Bob Celli shows some impressive mastery in Because
I Love You…his cast, the visuals, and the costuming blend beautifully
to accomplish everything that needed to happen to pay off its ending.
You got me. Brilliant. Thanks for a short remember."
- Alan Ng (Film Threat Review)
"Bob Celli’s tight direction pairs well with Director of Photography Ken
Kotowski’s vibrant cinematography, creating a visual experience that
emulates the late, great Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo. Celli phenomenally takes his character on a descent into total paranoia...Because I Love You finds writer/director and star Bob Celli
pulling out all the stops alongside a stellar supporting cast,
delivering a marriage crisis in gloriously tense fashion. So sit back. . . and enjoy the ride.
-Mark Lakatos (Take2Indie Review)
"Plotzke brings Joanna's persona to life here in a way that actually
complements Celli's performance beautifully and leaves us in our own
doubts...Joanna gives us a look and we wonder even
more. As seems to always be true for Plotzke, she finds all the nooks
and crannies of Joanna's experience and draws us in and takes our breath
away....
From beginning to end, Celli is equally strong in a performance that
says so much in so little time. Celli gives Marco credibility, a
suspicion that feels justified even as it amplifies. Even as his
behavior becomes a bit more extreme, we follow along respectfully
because Celli's performance demands it."
- Richard Propes (The Independent Critic)
Delanocelli productions
Because I Love You - Trailer
Because I Love You Film Festival Schedule 2025
Info added as we are notified - Screenings In Order of State
CAST & CREW
Jennifer Plotzke - As JOANNA
Jennifer Plotzke is an actress and producer, appearing on television in THE BLACKLIST, BLUE BLOODS, FBI: MOST WANTED and THE SEX LIVES OF COLLEGE GIRLS. She can be seen in the film FIZZLE with Peter Friedman (SUCCESSION) and Geoffrey Owens (THE COSBY SHOW) and will appear in the upcoming film EZRA starring Bobby Cannavale and Robert DeNiro. She also starred as Satan in the Paradise Lost adaptation, LOST + FOUND, which aired on PBS. Jennifer is the founder of Poor Monster Productions and she produced the award winning films, HOW AM I DOING, CRUMB CAKE, and WINDOW SHOPPING, which is currently streaming on Revry. She has three feature films in development.
BOB CELLI - Writer/Director/PRODUCER - AS MARCO
Bob Celli is an award winning actor/writer/director and a proud member of SAG-AFTRA and AEA. Bob recently co-stared on CITY ON A HILL, FBI:MOST WANTED, THE BLACKLIST and was a guest star on GOTHAM. He appeared on The ONION NEWS NETWORK, As The World Turns, and Going Home. He was in the original cast of Circle, a play based on Arthur Schnitzler's, Le Ronde.Circle was the recipient of the OOBR Award for best Ensemble Cast. Bob also appeared in the play Down Range. A play dealing with how military spouses face ond oevrcome repeated deployments. Bob is currently developing the script into a feature film. Directing credits include Going Home, Figs For Italo, and Brooklyn In July, and The Keeper.
Melissa Joyner- As Beth
MELISSA JOYNER. An Audelco Award winning actor, Melissa Joyner holds an MFA from The Actors Studio of the New School for Drama. She has studied under some of the most inspiring, respected & accomplished Playwrights, Directors, Actors and Singers in the industry. Some of these include: Program Director Robert LuPone, Acting Chair Ron Leibman, Robert Walden, Arthur Storch, Paul Rudd, Austin Pendleton, Nova Thomas, Christopher Shinn, Pippin Parker, Michael Weller, Laura Maria Censabella, Elinor Renfield, Rick Sordelet and Patricia Fletcher.
Joyner's television credits include Mrs. America, Blue Bloods, FBI, Evil, Madam Secretary, Damages, "The Morning Show", Redrum, and “The Today Show”.
Theatre Credits: Betty McKay in Maids Door (Billie Holiday Theatre), Melissa in And She Said, He Said, I Said, Yes (The Public Theatre), Jermaine in Generation Graffiti (Playwrights Horizons), Mary Talbert in At Buffalo: a Musical (NY Musical Theatre Festival), Angela Metcalf in Fell (NY Fringe Festival), Anna in Old Times (59 East 59th), Sparkle in Body Shots (The Atlantic Theatre, The 24 Hour Plays ), Carol in Jack Perry is Alive and Dating (NY Musical Theatre Festival) Portia in Street Lights, A Musical (NY Musical Theatre Festival).
Regional Credits include: Kanika Weaver in Permanent Collection (Human Race Theatre), Betty McKay in Maids Door (NC Black Repertory Theatre).
Film: Three Blind Mice (supporting), Bad News Gabe (supporting), 20 Minutes of Action (supporting).
www.melissadjoyner.com
David Roberts - As JIM
David Roberts is a 1st Generation
American Bronx-native who began in off-Broadway theatre and became a
2018 Winner of the AUDELCO award for Best Lead Actor
in a Dramatic Play. His most recent features have been in HARLEM, BLUE
BLOODS, FBI: MOST WANTED, DAREDEVIL, THE WU-TANG SERIES, and ORANGE IS
THE NEW BLACK. His poem “I Apologize Pt 1: The Rapper” interview/video
hit over 10 million views on Facebook and is
still climbing.
He trained at the NY Conservatory for Dramatic Arts and is a part of the off-Broadway sensation, Layon Gray’s COWBOY.
iliana GUIBERT - CO-PRODUCER -
AS JENNIFER
Iliana Guibert will join the cast of action film, Six Hours Away starring Guillermo Ivan and Michael Madsen.
Some recent television credits include, Law & Order:SVU and Organized Crime, City on a Hill, Blue Bloods and HBO's White House Plumbers.
Her performance this summer at the Bay Street Theater in Anna in the Tropics garnered rave reviews for Iliana. Other recent theater credits: Superstitions directed by Jenna Worsham, It's Okay for MCC's Youth Co. and Voices from a Pandemic which won her a Broadway World nomination for best actress.
Leylak,
one of her producing projects, won numerous awards including at Tribeca
Film Festival and Flicker’s Rhode Island Film Festival.
Iliana
has appeared in several 9/11 documentaries and has been featured in
magazines and news segments for her humanitarian efforts, philanthropy
and inspiration.
Laura Delano - PRODUCER
Laura Delano has produced four films with DelanoCelli Productions, My Over There, Figs for Italo Brooklyn in July, The Keeper and co produced one with DC/Jouve Productions, Going Home. She has also produced several plays, both original works and revivals, for Off-Off Broadway and co produced with JMTC and Horse Trade Theater the acclaimed Off-Broadway hit, Circle, by Suzanne Bachner. Before working as an actor and then jumping behind the scenes as a producer she was a professional modern dancer. She performed nationally and internationally with the Kenneth Rinker Dance Company, The Bertram Ross Dance Company, Rudy Perez Dance Theater, and The Valerie Bettis Dance Company as well as other NYC based dance companies. She appeared in several films including Fame The Warriors Stardust Memories and The Chosen. She has closely collaborated on and edited many scripts but My Over There is her first co-writing credit.
KEN KOTOWSKI - DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY
Born and raised in New Jersey, I served four years in the USAF prior to enrolling in college at William Paterson University where I received my BA in Communications with a concentration in Media Production. I discovered my calling as a Cinematographer while in college and worked as a Director of Photography on my first feature length project the summer after graduation. I received my MFA in Media Production / Cinematography from CUNY City College of New York. Since then I have been working steadily as a freelance Cinematographer.With hundreds of commercials, dozens of short films, music videos, and documentaries, as well as several feature length projects under my belt, I have gained a diverse portfolio and a reputation for being able to shoot anything that comes my way.I currently have two short films doing the festival roundS. I’m employed full time as a Lighting Director at MSNBC.
SARAH ANN RODGERS - CO-PRODUCER
Sarah-Ann Rodgers is a NYC-based stage, film & TV actor who has appeared in 16 seasons of SNL and numerous feature and independent films. As producer, she has provided The Players, NYC’s renowned private social club for people of the theater and patrons of the arts, with variety shows, staged readings and an art exhibition. AEA • SAG-AFTRA.
DAVE ANSON - COMPOSER
An award winning composer hailing from The Lake District, England. Dave has been working in the Film & TV industry as a composer for the last decade, excelling in all branches of music for the moving image. Working on feature films, and short films alike, providing award winning scores, while developing a vast palette of genres and styles to call upon. Dave is recognized for his work in dramatic action scores (Now Hiring, ELITE), and broadcast music for sports (NFL, NBA, PGA), taking home awards and thriving in all styles and genres. An Alumni of Music Production at Leeds Conservatoire, and owner of Glass Sound Studios, Dave understands what it takes to create an industry level score and mix. Over the last decade, Dave has worked with industry topping clients such as BBC, Channel4, CBS, NBC, Fox, NFL Network, Sky, ESPN and many more, including audio re-brands for major networks and companies.
ROBERT O ' HAIRE - SOUND
Robert O'Haire started out as a child and began to record sounds soon thereafter.
Special Thanks to the following Supporters
DelanoCelli Productions
