Local Filmmaker Bringing Killer ‘Bears’ to Town

Forget “Snakes on a Plane. The real thriller coming to theaters is “Bears on a Ship,” which will premiere at The Chabot Theater next month. 

Director Eduardo Castrillo was born in Hayward and graduated from the San Francisco Art Institute. This is his tenth feature film. He’s been making award-winning films in the Bay Area for over a decade and says he’s really excited for audiences to see his latest creation. 

“I want the audience just to laugh and enjoy themselves, and leave the rest of the world outside,” Castrillo told the Forum. “I want them to enjoy the characters and the visuals and have a really fun time. I also think it’s important for people to see the movie in theaters because I want the audience to experience the movie at the same time. This is why the live experience in a movie house is so important.” 

The premise for “Bears on a Ship” is pretty straightforward. During an airline strike in Mexico, a group of stranded passengers decide to take a ship voyage back home to the United States. Unbeknownst to them, however, there are two more passengers aboard that ship—specifically man-eating bears. 

Inspired by the likes of “Jaws” and the disaster movies of the 1970s, Castrillo says he loved the idea of bringing together all kinds of different personalities who happen to be dealing with the same event simultaneously. 

“You have the hero, the young folks, poor people, rich people, happy people, and sad people,” Castrillo says. “And when the disaster unfolds, they will either work together and make it through the danger… or you know what comes next.” 

“Bears on a Ship” was filmed on the MV Aurora, a 1955 passenger ship built in Germany that was also used as a filming location in the James Bond movie “From Russia with Love,” and an episode of “Baywatch.” Unfortunately, the vessel began to take on water and sink soon after Castrillo and crew wrapped up filming in 2023. In December 2024, the ship was towed to Mare Island for drydocking and dismantling. 

In addition to a sinking set, filming for “Bears on a Ship” coincided with the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike and Castrillo had to rely on non-union actors to finish the job. Thankfully, there were enough Bay Area cast and crew to finish the film. 

“My favorite part of shooting was seeing all the different actors and their styles come together and just seeing the chemistry that happens,” Castrillo said. “I know a lot of times when people do low-budget movies that they look like they were shot on videotape or something, and the actors and crew slack off. But everyone gave their all on this movie and was professional.” 

The movie premieres on Friday, April 25, with a second showing on Saturday, April 26. Both shows start at 7:00 p.m. The screening will include a live Question-and-Answer session, a meet-and-greet, and an autograph session with the filmmakers and cast of the movie.

Tickets are available at The Chabot Theater website: thechabot.com/