CARLSBAD — Carlsbad native Gavin Jaramillo is no stranger to the historic La Paloma Theatre.
Next month, the 20-year-old filmmaker will experience the iconic venue from a new perspective when his debut feature film, “Armada Dr,” premieres on the silver screen.
Shot entirely in Carlsbad and Encinitas, the film tells the story of Kevin, a young loner whose movie obsession deepens his isolation from family and friends. Kevin’s relationship with a girl initially draws him out of his shell, but as the romance progresses, he’s confronted with old habits and new challenges.
“He’s almost so entranced in his films that he can’t even connect with anyone,” Jaramillo said. “It’s just him trying to cope with that realization that he is the problem and it’s not anyone else.”
Jaramillo, a Carlsbad High School graduate, drew inspiration for the film from personal experience.
“I did have a spell where I was going to the movies a lot,” he said. “It was a dark time in my life where I got that idea from.”
With no prior filmmaking experience, Jaramillo took on the challenge of writing, directing and shooting the film himself, using his own home and La Paloma Theatre as key settings.
“I didn’t have the camera, I didn’t have connections, I didn’t have a mic or a set or anything,” Jaramillo said. “I was initially writing the script just to write it. But then about halfway through, I realized I was writing stuff that was like from my own life and places that I can actually film at.”
To make the project happen, Jaramillo saved around $10,000 to purchase equipment, the only significant expense of the production. The cast, drawn from current students and alumni of Carlsbad High School, volunteered their time, and Jaramillo’s friends pitched in behind the scenes.
“Principal photography for the shoot was about two weeks on the dot, and it was every day from like seven to midnight,” Jaramillo said.
In addition to completing “Armada Dr,” Jaramillo co-founded Tanglewood Pictures, a small production company that creates original short films and recreations of iconic movie scenes for social media. Through that venture, he has connected with other local filmmakers and worked on various projects, including serving as a camera operator.
Looking ahead, Jaramillo is writing his next feature film, which will focus on a mother-daughter relationship. For now, though, his attention is on the June screening and sharing his first full-length film with the community.
“It was exhausting, but it was so fun, and it was really just an awesome time,” Jaramillo said of the production process.
The screening of “Armada Dr” will be at 7 p.m. on June 26 at La Paloma Theatre in Encinitas.
