Viroqua native Chris Mellem graduated from high school in 1996 and headed west to realize his Hollywood dreams.

On Friday night, Mellem -- now Kris Black -- will have a showing of his most recently completed film “The House that Jack Built” at Vernon Square Cinema in Viroqua at 7 p.m.

The movie will be at the cinema with two showings per day for a week.

An independent film produced by FourTwoFive Films, a collaboration by Black and Bruce Reisman, “The House that Jack Built” is a thriller that pokes fun at the horror-film genre while also having a heart.

Black is in the title role and shares the screen with such well known Hollywood stars as Joe Mantegna and Gail O’Grady.

The film had its official opening in Hollywood in July. Black has brought it to Viroqua to give local residents a look at his work.

“I’m excited to show the people back home what I’ve been up to these past few years,” Black said. “It’s been almost two years since I’ve been back home and I really look forward to seeing my friends and family.”

The film tells the story of Jack Jr., played by Black, an heir to a Hollywood Italian-American dynasty. As his father, Jack Sr. (played by Mantegna), lays dying, he asks his only son to preserve the family estate, and to never tear it down. However, within a year, Jack Jr., a cocky music producer, demolishes the estate to build his “party palace.” What follows are the ramifications of that act.

The film had its original release in July and will be shown in a limited release around the country, Black said. Then it will be made available to the DVD market and also be released on a new internet-based film application called mycontent.com.

Black said “The House that Jack Built” is a template film for FourTwoFive Films. He said the company has other films in the works that will likely continue to attract big-name actors and lead to a larger studio release.

In interviews about the film, Mantegna said his role was a “lynchpin” for the story.

“I’m a big proponent of independent film and helping young film makers, so we’ll see what happens.” he said.

Starring along with Black are also Michael Guarnera and Shar Jackson.

When not working on films, Black is an abstract artist who was named by Los Angeles magazine as “One of the Top 25 Renaissance Men in Los Angeles.”

FourTwoFive Films, roster of upcoming movies includes “Five Good Years” in which Black will star as Alex Winston, a young West Virginia coal miner who begins boxing to pay for medical treatments for his mother. Other movies in the works are “Boarding School 3-D,” which will be Black’s directorial debut and “4:20” from a script by he and Reisman.

Black originally went by the name “Christopher Michaels” in Hollywood. His first role in a movie was in 2002’s “The Provoker” and it was the first of five completed films in which he has played a part.

Black will be attending the premiere on Oct. 9 joining his old friends and family.