Ari Selinger's New Film 'On the End' Recreates the Life of a Legendary Montauk Character

Though he lives in New York City, filmmaker Ari Selinger has strong ties to the East End. He first came to the area as a baby, and since 2004, his parents have had a home in Sag Harbor.

So, it should come as no surprise that when it came time to make movies, he returned to the East End. In 2011, Selinger shot his NYU thesis film, “Deuce and a Quarter,” in Montauk and in February 2019, a short film followed titled “The Ghost of Hank Williams,” which was shot at The American Hotel in Sag Harbor.

Now, he’s back with his latest film — his first feature — titled “On the End,” which has its world premiere at Sag Harbor Cinema on Saturday, October 4, as part of the Hamptons International Film Festival.

It’s one of a handful of films in this year’s HIFF with a local connection, and in the case of “On the End,” the story is taken right from the pages of East End newspapers. It tells the story of the late Thomas Ferreira, a Montauk mechanic who went to war with East Hampton Town over the operation of Automotive Solutions, the car repair shop he ran from the yard of his home on Fort Pond Bay.

The back story is that Ferreira, who died in 2024, had licenses from both the state and town to operate his business on Navy Road, which saw a zoning change from commercial-industrial to residential in 1983. It was a classic example of a preexisting nonconforming use. But the neighbors weren’t happy about the cars and the clutter piled up on the property, arguing it was a safety hazard, and in 2009, the town hired contractors to remove the vehicles and equipment.

In response, Ferreira hired a lawyer and brought a $55 million civil rights lawsuit against the town. It was a suit he ultimately won. Seven years after the seizure, the town settled and in 2016 paid Ferreira $150,000 plus half of a $20,000 lien imposed on the property, which was the cost of the seizures.

“It’s a good story,” said Selinger, who notes that the late Russell Drumm, a longtime reporter and columnist for the East Hampton Star, championed Ferreira’s cause in the paper throughout the ordeal.

Ironically, Selinger first came to know Ferreira while shooting “Deuce and a Quarter,” which was set in Alabama.

“I was looking for some ramshackle mechanic shop in a rural area and went on an expedition throughout New York, all the way up to Albany,” Selinger said. “I ended up at Navy Road, and Tom Ferreria let us shoot in his yard. He became a friend of mine.”

During the making of his short film, Ferreria asked Selinger to consider directing a documentary about his ongoing battle with the town.

“I was 20 and not interested in zoning and the legal happenings with a mechanic in Montauk and was not sure I was the one to do it,” Selinger recalled. “But he talked to me about it. I visited him and his girlfriend, Freckles, when she got sick around 2015 and started talking about it a little more. Then in 2016, an article about him came out in The New York Times and I started thinking, ‘Maybe there’s something here?’”

During the pandemic, Selinger found he had even more time to mull over the idea. He asked Ferreira what he thought about a narrative version of his story focusing on his relationship with Freckles (aka, Cathy Anne Tobin) who supported Ferreira throughout his ordeal and died in 2017 at the age of 47 due to complications of Type 1 diabetes.

“I’d sit on the porch and he’d give me the lowdown on what happened, and I turned it into a script,” Selinger said. “Since 2011, I’d been talking to him about it. I wrote it during COVID and by 2023, we got the money together and started filming.”

Though Selinger had used Ferreria’s property for his student film, the house where Ferreria lived with Freckles and two brothers, including Milton, who is depicted in the film, was in too much disarray to consider as the set of “On the End.”

“We shot it two doors down from his house,” said Selinger, who explained that the location was owned by the town and slated to soon be torn down, which meant it was perfect for a film crew.

“Originally, we were going to shoot at his house. If we had, we would’ve needed an on-site medic,” Selinger said. “It was really rough looking. By the time it looked like this film would happen, I told him we’d need access to the breakers and electrical stuff and he basically freaked out.

“As a hoarder, once someone is going to be in your space, you have a bit of a freak out, which is what I think went down with the town,” he continued. “They didn’t understand this is a guy who is battling some demons, they took it as him being difficult. But I think a lot of it was from this stigma of trusting people around his stuff. You see in the movie, he was adopted and had a tough relationship with his folks and his aunt who lived next door, it all led to a standoff with the town.”

Selinger explained that when Ferreria’s aunt went to sell her house, she was unable to find a buyer, so she and another disgruntled neighbor pointed to Tom and his property as the issue.

“Tom’s argument was, ‘I know I’m messy and I’ve had this paradise to myself, but there’s nothing you can do to get me out of here,’” Selinger added. “It snowballed. His reticence to engage with anyone was the problem. His curmudgeonly ways brought this big problem upon himself. I loved him dearly, but I heard from everyone that they hated him. The town used this litter law to clean up his area.”

Even when they were shooting, Selinger felt the wrath of those who were not fans of Ferreira.

“We had an angry neighbor who would drive by and flip us off. She would frequently call the town on him,” Selinger said. “The case continues to be referenced, so new issues arise.”

In the end, Selinger found that focusing on Ferreira’s relationship with Freckles, rather than his protracted battle with the town and the neighbors, was at the heart of the story.

“The love story turned out to be so compelling that the legal aspect became the backdrop to the romance,” Selinger said. “That was where I was able to have some fun.”

By all accounts, Ferreira was pleased by the direction of the film as well.

“Tom passed away a year ago. He was pretty sick by the time we were filming, but he watched from his porch,” Selinger said. “He had tenants who stayed with him over the summer and who now live there full time and take care of Milton. They would all get out folding chairs and watch this circus unfold in middle of Navy Road.

“We didn’t talk that much during the production — the two months leading up to it and then two months when we shot,” Selinger added. “I think he was afraid to engage further. But to see his story and Freckles honored, he was proud. When it came close to filming time, he got very shy — it was a blessing in disguise and allowed me to create this character and not insult my friend.”

In the end, Selinger feels he has told the kind of Montauk story that more recent arrivals can no longer witness themselves — that of a hardscrabble, blue-collar resident fighting the rising tide of wealth and popularity.

“There was a sweetness to the fact it was two against the world. Freckles gave him the backbone to do this. He fought back for her,” Selinger said. “He was a real happy camper when Freckles was around. She gave him a second wind. He used her spirit to push me to write this story.

“Through Tom, I found a way to have a portal to something I think is more American than some of the other stories I was telling,” Selinger added. “It’s a story of an American beach town that has different people living in it. I wanted to tell a story I thought people were unfamiliar with. I don’t think there’s a Montauk film like it.”

“On the End” stars Tim Blake Nelson as Tom, Mireille Enos as Freckles and Matthew Maher as Milton. Other cast members include Anna Chlumsky, Lois Smith and Sawyer Spielberg. The film will screen in the Spotlight and Views From Long Island section of the Hamptons International Film Festival and has its world premiere at Sag Harbor Cinema, 90 Main Street, Sag Harbor, on Saturday, October 4 at 5:15 p.m. with cast and crew present. A second screening will be held on Sunday, October 5, at 7:30 p.m. at the Regal UA East Hampton Cinema, 30 Main Street, East Hampton. For tickets, visit hamptonsfilmfest.org.