“Jigsaw,” a novel written by Ted Miller Brogden from Goldsboro will be adapted for the screen and shooting will begin in the Wilmington area next summer, according to Tricia

Kent, publicist for the project. Pre-production will start early next year, including casting.

“The book is set in Greenville, Goldsboro, Kinston and Wilmington areas,” said Brogden. This is what brought the film to Wilmington.

Jigsaw is the story of Captain Cape Thomas, an ex-airline pilot who begins a casual search to find “the one who got away,” and what he discovers leads him into danger, as he puts the pieces of the puzzle together. The book is available for purchase from Amazon Books, Barnes and Noble, Books-A-Million and Borders online.

Michael Givens, director, cinematographer, screenwriter and one of the producers for the film wants to create a “solid, suspense thriller” where, at the end, the audience will see that “everything was important in leading up to this point” and every piece of the puzzle fits.

Givens learned about the project through his wife who is friends with Brogden’s girlfriend. Givens’ wife read the book and felt that it should be a movie, so she recommended it to her husband. At first he wasn’t very excited about reading it, but once he picked it up, Givens says, “I couldn’t put it down.” He agreed with his wife that “Jigsaw” should be made into a movie, and he contacted Brogden. Right now, Givens is in LA working on the funding.

“When you adapt a book into a film, it has to be something different. If you take 350 pages and condense it to 120, you’re losing stuff,” said Givens. “In a book you can write about thoughts. In a film, you have to show it. In film, everything is about subtext.”

According to Givens, he’s going to look for some big actors in Los Angelas because, “that’s how you sell films,” but he’s planning on casting more than just extras in our area. He already has a role in mind for Regan Lee, a local actress whom he worked with in his award-winning film, “Angel Camouflaged.”

According to Givens, while he “wears many hats” now, a fact he’s proud of, he started his career as a photographer and is looking forward to being able to “partner with the community” and “brag about eastern North Carolina.”

He’s been to North Carolina before, in Kinston, which he describes as “such an adorable little town.” According to Given, he is excited to film here and says it is easy to shoot in Wilmington because of all the filming done in the area.

His website: http://www.michaelgivens.com, features clips and photos from past campaigns and projects that demonstrate his eye for visual imagery.