The indie film world has lost a hidden treasure in actress and producer Robin Ritter. If you don’t know who she is, just take a look at her official biography to get an idea of just how hard working Ritter was:
“Robin Ritter is an award-winning actress, writer, producer and artist, but it has been a long and difficult road for this resilient young woman. At the age of five while crossing a neighborhood street, she was hit by a speeding drunk driver in a Mack truck, and drug for 100 yards. Robin almost lost her leg and her life. Miraculously, she recovered, but after long years of self-rehabilitation and exercise. This is what began Robin’s interest in physical education along with her spirituality.
In adulthood, Robin became involved with the health and nutrition business for several years, educated in holistic and natural health. Along with this, Robin had the desire to begin a career in the entertainment industry as an actress, and ironically a stunt performer. Robin’s energy and giving spirituality has gained her great respect among her industry peers. As an actress, Robin has appeared in a wide variety of popular television shows, including NYPD Blue (1993), Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987), and The X Files (1993), and movies such as David Lynch’s Mulholland Dr. (2001). She co-starred in René Besson’s acclaimed feature Boxes (2000), which premiered on the Independent Film Channel.
As a stunt performer, Robin has performed alongside some of the top stunt coordinators in the business, including Greg Anderson and Mark Steven Grove. As a producer, in 1999, she was one of the first filmmakers to produce an all-digital feature film, Specter’s Rock (2003). That film, in which Robin also starred, featured a cast of over sixty actors, and required over forty locations. Despite the ambitious nature of the project, principle photography was completed on time and under budget.
Specter’s Rock went on to become a featured selection at the New York International Independent Film and Video Festival, and it was screened at Cannes and the AFM. The editors of the online magazine Gathering Darkness included it on their list of “Must See” horror, sci-fi, and fantasy films. However, the most rewarding moment for Robin came when David Lynch, with whom Robin had previously worked on Mulholland Drive, personally chose Specter’s Rock to be included as a special feature on the Season 1 DVD of Twin Peaks. Robin was a pioneer in her next effort as a producer. The Caretaker (2001) was one of the very first films to explore in-depth the serious but rarely-discussed problem of elder abuse. The Caretaker won the Gold Special Jury Award at the WorldFest Houston International Film Festival.”
For the last year of her life, Robin Ritter battled with encephalitis, never giving up her fight. I first discovered Ritter in the film Caesar and Otto’s Summer Camp Massacre which she also produced. She even returned for the first sequel, Caesar and Otto’s Deadly Xmas. Both films were written and directed by one of the film’s stars, Dave Campfield. Through him, I’ve learned just how important Robin was to her friends and family.
Campfield has put together a very loving tribute to Ritter, featuring rare behind the scenes footage as well as archival interview clips. So take a few moments out of your day to pay tribute to a true artist, a woman who was talented, adored, and will be missed very much.
