, perhaps better known to science fiction fans as "Commander Tuvok," the luckless Vulcan tactical/security officer on the lost Federation Starship Voyager, shared the writing and directing responsibilities on the film with old friend Nate Thomas, a film professor at California State University Northridge.
The two men shot the film over a 17-day period in 1996, utilizing locations around Los Angeles and the Cal State Northridge campus. Funds for the shoestring independent production -- about $100,000 -- came from Russ as well as the families and friends of both of the film's creators.
In a press release, Thomas said the film's serious subject matter made it difficult to find a distributor.
"There's a resistance in Hollywood in dealing with a topic matter like this,'' he said. "Very few people want to deal with serious social issues in film right now.''
"East of Hope Street" tells the story of Alicia Montalvo, a teenage girl played by veteran independent actress Jade Herrera, and her experiences in and out of the Los Angeles child-protection program.
Russ noted that the film is based on Thomas' decade of work counseling adolescent girls -- many from abusive homes -- in a Los Angeles residential treatment center.
"The vast majority of the information in this film was taken from actual events,'' Russ said. "When we decided to put together a story about these kids, we made the lead character a composite of several kids. All the events were real, we simply put them in order, into a two- or three-year slice of this young girl's life.''
The film has already been shown at several film festivals to enthusiastic reviews, winning the "Best Urban Drama" award at the 1998 New York International Independent Film Festival and the "Best Feature Film" award at the New Orleans Urban Film Festival in the same year. It was also honored at the 1998 Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame Festival and the 1998 Hollywood Black Film Festival.
While the experiences depicted in "East of Hope Street" may not at first have much bearing on the lives of many Star Trek fans, Russ said the decisions Montalvo makes in the film have universal relevance.
"It's the story about one person's efforts to deal with obstacles not brought upon herself, but rather as a victim of circumstances,'' he said. "She is forced to make some very tough decisions about what she wants to do in her life. Her experience is something we can all learn from.''
The film premieres Friday night at the Charlie Chaplin Theatre in Hollywood, with all proceeds going to benefit Zenith Youth Homes in Inglewood and Cal State Northridge's department of radio, television and film.
A national release is set for November 5.
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