There's a monstrous secret at the cold heart of the blackly comic drama The Second Wife, director Michael Steinberg's stylized foray into the macabre.

Jennifer Beals plays a suburban California mom oblivious to the horror that awaits her in this insidious mystery about an apparently all-American family, the Christiansons, that could be the natural offspring of Spielberg and Polanski.

Producer Frank Beddor comments, "[The film] starts off cheery and inviting and then it sucks you in. It's twisted but it's also very funny thanks to the incongruities of certain situations." Newcomer Julia Stiles, a 15-year-old who is co-starring with Brad Pitt and Harrison Ford in The Devil's Own, Alan Pakula's latest, has the lead as Ellie, an eighth grader whose angelic demeanor mocks a dangerous maladjustment. "It's Greek tragedy set in a gated community, a heightened melodrama grounded in fundamental psychological reality," says Steinberg.

Steinberg took a break from directing to produce Sleep with Me in 1994. He was trying to set up Hot Lava, a noirish screwball comedy, with producer Joel Castleberg, when his agent, David Cantor, slipped him an early draft of Wife, a spec script by newcomer Eric Weiss. Steinberg, an avid skiier, then met Beddor, a former U.S. Ski Team star who'd parlayed stuntwork on several films into an acting career and had just signed to co-produce a World War II ski feature (Whiteout) at Paramount. The two joined forces and Beddor went to equity investors for financing he describes as in the low-seven figures.

The Second Wife's 33-day shoot rolled November 11 at a San Fernando Valley sound stage with seasoned indie cinematographer Bernd Heinl shooting 35mm Fuji. The filmmakers expect a finished film by May; all rights are available.

Cast: Julia Stiles, Vanessa Zima, Chelsea Fields, William R. Moses, Linda Hart, Louise Myrback, Michael Parks, Patrick Muldoon. Crew: Producer, Frank Beddor; Associate Producer, Greg Steinberg; Screenwriter, Eric Weiss; Director, Michael Steinberg; Line Producer, Jamie Beardsley; Cinematographer, Bernd Heinl; Production Designer, Dominic Watkins; Costumes, Sara Jane Slotnick; Storyboards, Kasia Adamik. Contact: Frank Beddor, Flipped Out Productions, 535 North Poinsettia Place, Los Angeles,CA 90036. Tel: (213) 634-0600, Fax: (213) 634-0633.

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Liar - Josh Pate & Jonas Pate
Little City - Roberto Benabib
Louis and Frank - Alexandre Rockwell
Push - Jason Jennings
Remembering Mario - Val Franco
The Second Wife - Michael Steinberg
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