NORTH PROVIDENCE – Staff at Twins Pizza & Family Restaurant posted on Tuesday afternoon that film crews were there to capture footage for the feature documentary “The Pizza Principal,” the first of the broader RI Docs project from filmmaker Kirk Benttinen.
The RI Docs initiative is meant to highlight the unique stories of Rhode Island that resonate far beyond the state, according to an online fundraiser that’s now at 90 percent funded. It’s raised more than $27,000 of a $30,000 goal.
The film follows Tim Chace, director of the Regional Career and Technical Center at Coventry High School and former assistant principal, as he visits 40 pizzerias in 30 days.
Benttinen’s films, according to the fundraising page, are being made specifically to bring people back to the theater for in-person events that combine film, community, and the local food to make each night out something more than just a movie.
“If you love going to the movies, and you love pizza (doesn’t everyone?) this project is for you! Keep reading!” states the page.
Benttinen is a former Ponaganset High School student who spent time elsewhere in the country before returning to to Rhode Island to start his Shooting Blind production company.
“Tim Chace is a high school assistant principal with what many might call a pizza addiction, eating pizza for lunch and dinner most nights of the week,” it states. “When the unexpected popularity of his Rhode Island pizza reviews thrusts him into the local spotlight, it reignites his lifelong dream of becoming a professional writer. He ultimately sets out to review 40 pizzerias in 30 days as part of a state-wide pizza competition, trying to grab the attention of a publisher and fulfill his dream.”
But things don’t go quite as planned, it adds. “Chace faces unexpected obstacles along the way, including illness, injury, and confrontation with his lifelong social anxiety. Still, he pushes on, determined to manifest his destiny with the love and support of his community. Will he succeed? And if so, what will that success look like?”
“This isn’t just a story about pizza or Tim’s personal dream of becoming a published writer; it’s a universal story about trying, failing, and trying again. It’s a story about dreams deferred and returned to; a story about not giving up the fight. And of course, it’s a story about how pizza is a meal that brings everyone to the table.”
Benttinen, it stats, is an an award-winning independent filmmaker from Providence, Rhode Island who’s passionate about all things film and storytelling. His documentary work can be seen on PBS, and his completed feature film Spin Junkies will be available in 2027.
