Two suicidal paraplegic addicts take to the streets of Los Angeles — looking for their next fix, and a reason to wake up.
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In Los Angeles, two suicidal paraplegic addicts — Mickey Cole and Drake Jones — take to the streets as their only legs, scavenging for their next fix and a reason to wake up.
A desperate need for cash drives them through the city's underbelly, where every block brings a new hazard and a fleeting shot at outrunning their addiction — until the streets demand a final price, and the only way out is finding a purpose worth surviving for.
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An original orchestral score, recorded live. Watch the scoring session, then stream the album.
Born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Donavon grew up knowing he was destined to be an actor. He moved to Los Angeles fresh out of high school and spent his first eight months living out of his car. Working nights at the post office and studying acting by day, he wrote Wheels, then founded the production company Loaded Dice Films.
Born in Boston, Tim's favorite toy growing up was his father's VCR, helping him memorize his favorite films frame for frame. He shot and edited his first video at 15. After graduating the prestigious Emerson College Film Program, he moved to LA, lived out of his car, and has since worked on more than 35 feature films across nearly every crew position. Wheels marks his directorial debut.
It wasn't until Patrick watched Peter O'Toole in Lawrence of Arabia that he considered acting for a living. Today, creating characters that explore the human condition is what drives him. Some of his stops along the way: Raines with Jeff Goldblum, In Justice with Jason O'Mara, and shows like Sons of Anarchy, Justified, Whitney and Key and Peele.
Diana Gettinger was born on July 27 in New York City. She is an actress, writer and producer, known for Ex-Best (2015), Porthole (2018) and 90210 (2009). Formerly an Associate Fashion Editor at Vogue Magazine, she left to pursue her love of film. She attended Cornell and Columbia Universities.
WHEELS was directed and produced by Donavon Warren and Timothy Gagliardo. The team came together with the belief that they could shoot a high-quality film with no budget. The project took 62 days to shoot and was in production for over six months. It cost less than a luxury car.
"The universe provided. This film was meant to be made." — Patrick Hume
We had an amazing crew that volunteered their time, and sponsors from all around town. Everyone was incredible. Tim lost his apartment, sold his possessions and lived in a friend's office until one morning his friend found him sleeping on the couch. Donavon sold his car during production and became a medical test subject — while only eating an apple and a can of tuna a day to play a drug-addicted Mickey.
"Without any money, we wanted to make a film that looked like we spent millions. So we spent the only asset we had — time. We [Donavon and Tim] even landscaped the front of a production studio in exchange for shoot hours." — Tim Gagliardo
We really didn't have any money and wanted to shoot this epic low-budget film. We had 83 sets and 57 locations…
Patrick Hume even broke his fingernails with pliers to play Drake — a larger-than-life homeless paraplegic heroin addict. To give the audience a genuine experience, both Donavon and Patrick spent time living on Skid Row in Downtown LA.
Donavon Warren dropped 53 pounds for Mickey's drug-induced transformation — 196 lbs for the first half of the film, a wilting 143 lbs for the second.
"Fan made" street art. Drake has inspired Wheels supporters to paint the town blue — literally. This piece popped up in Downtown Los Angeles.
Wheels The Movie worked with the United Spinal Association to help create an acceptance campaign for people with spinal injuries. United Spinal Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit membership organization dedicated to enhancing the lives of disabled and paralyzed Americans and their families.
Drake Marketing.
Drake Jones — a larger-than-life homeless paraplegic — took on a life of his own. "Storytime with Drake" is the official cartoon web series inspired by the character, and the film's own street-art marketing rolled through the city. Patrick Hume broke his fingernails and lived on Skid Row to bring Drake to the screen.
Meet Drake — watch Wheels
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