ST. PETE, FLA. — A St. Pete business owner had her boutique turned into a movie set earlier this month.
Jackie Zumba, owner of Jackie Z Style Co., opened a luxury clothing store nearly 10 years ago. Her business first opened in Sarasota before she relocated to St. Petersburg about 7 years ago.
Earlier this month, she said a movie director came into her store asking for styling help.
"He normally has a team for that, but he was actually out and about himself that day. He came in when I was here. He was in here for probably about 4-5 hours," said Jackie Zumba, owner of Jackie Z Style Co.
Zumba said film crews returned weeks later to shoot inside her store. She was offered a small speaking role.
"A week later, he texted me and was like seriously, what do you think about us maybe using your store for part of the movie?" recalled Zumba.
Zumba said crews filmed at her store earlier this month.
"The set people showed up around 4 p.m. and they were here until 7 a.m. the next day and so they filmed all night long and I stayed here with my husband, Brian," said Zumba.
Danny Roth, a producer for Almost Never Films, told ABC Action News by email that he has filmed movie scenes throughout Pinellas County. He said, "I shoot all over the country, but definitely looking to make this area a home."
Roth said the plot of the film focuses on a mother who uproots her family and her thriving business after her husband gets a promotion. "She thinks things couldn't get much worse, but when she joins the PTA at her kids' new school and learns more about the recent mysterious death of one of the other mom's, she might be in for more than she signed up for," said Roth in an email to ABC Action News.
Roth said most of the films he makes get sold to Lifetime or Hallmark. He said this independent film has not been sold yet.
Zumba said this was a great, unique opportunity for St. Pete and her business.
"My daughter was like, "wait a second, you were in a movie and you didn’t have me there to be on set!" I said, "Well, you have school the next day and couldn’t be hanging out at 4 a.m. so it’s been really funny and really exciting. I told my customers, I’m only signing autographs on Tuesdays and Thursdays so come on those days . We're just having fun with it," joked Zumba.
"I think it’s going to be great for our little town and for our community and for all the local businesses, certainly great for my local business," she added.
For more information on Jackie Z Style Co. visit: https://jackiezstyle.com.
