UPPER DARBY — The 94th Annual Academy Awards will air live Sunday, March 27 on ABC from the Dolby Theater in Hollywood. Voting for the final nominees took place from January 27 to February 1.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has revealed there are 276 feature films eligible for the 94th Annual Academy Awards. On Tuesday, Feb. 8, when the academy announces the final Oscar nominees, some local residents involved in the making of the movie “Ageless Love” will hold their breath as they listen to the results.

Oscar nominees or not, the cast and crew of “Ageless Love” seem thrilled and proud that the film ticked all the boxes to make it into the top 276 nominee category.

“Ageless Love,” has the stamp of Delaware County talent all over it. The film was co-written, directed and produced by Joshua Coates, whose home is in Upper Darby but does most of his work in Los Angeles. Coates sparked excitement and made headlines in Delaware County in 2019, while directing the movie “Hollywould.” The director brought stars Eric Roberts and Torrei Hart to the county and filmed some of the scenes locally at Cocco’s Pizza, Cocco’s Gelateria and JT Brewski’s Pub in Primos, Lula’s Deli in Clifton Heights and at the Newtown Township Police Department.

Just like with “Hollywould”, Coates used local talent in its production. Other local executive producers of “Ageless Love” include Elizabeth Caponigro of Wallingford, who also starred in the film, Steven Bass and Marcia Bass. Actors Co-op owners Val McAdoo of Swarthmore and Pete Postiglione of Springfield served as producers. McAdoo also starred in the film, and Postigione served as set designer. “Ageless Love” was filmed in Delaware County, Swarthmore and Media, as well as Bryn Mawr and Atlantic City.

The film is based on a true story written by the late Yale Schwartz. He lost his wife, the love of his life, in 1997, and has never stopped mourning the loss. The couple, who lived in Media in their later years, were married for 28 years. On his wife’s headstone, he inscribed a date of death identical to his next to her name.

“When she died, I died,” he explained.

Schwartz wrote several plays about their romance, in which he starred himself, until 2019 when he was diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer, with a prognosis of three months to to live. His last wish was to bring the love story between him and his late wife to the big screen.

With little money to spend on the larger-than-life story and limited time, Schwartz turned to director Joshua Coates. Previously, Schwartz had served as an extra in one of Coates’ films, so he knew the director’s work ethic and could be sure that the end result would be a high-quality film, conveying the essence of deep love. and lasting torque.

“After pitching me his story and asking me to produce and direct the film,” Coates explained, “I read the script and decided to put it on the fast track so Yale could direct. his dream.”

Miraculously, Coates and the team completed the film in just two weeks. Once the film was finished, Coates rushed an abridged version of the film for Schwartz, and the grateful and emotional man watched his love story unfold once more. He died shortly after the screening.

“Ageless Love” tells the story of a Jewish couple, Yale Schwartz and Nina Lemisch, who struggled against the social norms of the late 1960s in order to find true love and happiness.

“The heart is a strong and mysterious muscle – it wants what it wants and happiness depends on feeding its demanding desire,” Coates said. “This extraordinary and heartfelt story begins in the late 1960s when two seductive, star-crossed lovers meet in an ordinary suburban neighborhood. The problem is that Yale is 23 and fresh out of college, while Nina is 37 years old and a widow with five children.

Needless to say, the Yale parents weren’t thrilled with the budding relationship and had their own opinions on what their son should do with his future. A family drama ensues. Although they are at different stages of their lives, Nina and Yale fall into an on-again, off-again relationship that is continually bound by their passion for each other.

“It was an honor to be part of the production team of ‘Ageless Love’ along with Pete Postiglione and all the other talented cast and crew members,” exclaimed actress Val McAdoo, a resident of Wallingford. “Joshua Coates is an amazing director and a fantastic leader. Yale knew Josh was the perfect person to tell this incredible love story. I had so much fun playing Aunt Shirley and loved being able to meet the real Aunt Shirley during filming. We all became a family while making this movie. I feel incredibly proud and excited for the world to see “Ageless Love!”

Coates says Swarthmore’s Actors Co-op helped push the film forward on its fast-paced timeline.

“Actor Co-op founders Val McAdoo and Pete Postiglione were key to the production,” Coates remarked. “They helped with the casting process, allowing us to hold castings at their facilities. Some of the actors and actresses in the film were students at the actors’ co-op. Pete and Val helped design a third of the sets used in the movie and more importantly they helped provide the vintage props that were used throughout the movie.

The 276 films, which met the Academy’s eligibility criteria to enter the ring for voting, required a seven-day qualifying race in at least one of six US metropolitan areas. “Ageless Love” opened in Beverly Hills, Calif., at Lumiere Cinema Music Hall in the fall. The premiere was followed by a Q&A session with the cast and crew. Special Hollywood guests on hand to support the premiere were director John Landis and Hollywood actress Aubrey Plaza. Schwartz’s children also saw the film and, according to YouTube red carpet interviews, seemed to find it moving and heartwarming.

“Ageless Love” was ranked number two out of 276 films in the running and was featured in Hollywood trade magazines such as Variety and the October issue of The Hollywood Reporter, as well as being featured in the HFPA Golden Globes, highlighted in Women In Film (WIF), screened at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival and the Jewish Federation of New Jersey Israeli Film Festival.

In addition to Delaware County talent from Caponigro and McAdoo, other cast members include stars Nick McCormack, Danny Plaza, Allison Kessler and the late Yale Schwartz, as well as co-producer Fetteroff Colen.
“Ageless Love is a human story, a true love story that everyone can relate to, young or old,” Coates said. “It’s about following your heart, even if the odds may be against you. In this story, you will discover that true love is in the eye of the beholder.

“Ageless Love,” which opened in Los Angeles theaters in October, has already been released in Latin American territories. The 99-minute film will be available to the public via video on demand (VOD) in April. To see the trailer and watch the red carpet interviews, search “Ageless Love Movie” on YouTube.