HBO adapting 'Skate Kitchen,' with LI's Rachelle Vinberg, as a series, report says
Actors in the film "Skate Kitchen," from left, Kabrina Moonbear Adams, Rachelle Vinberg, Brenn Lorenzo, Ajani Russell, Jules Lorenzo and Deedee Lovelace. Credit: Corey Sipkin
Long Islander Rachelle Vinberg, the star of 2018's "Skate Kitchen," will reprise her role as a rough-and-ready skateboarder in a new HBO series based on the film, according to Variety. With the new title of "Betty" — a slang term for any young female who skates — the series will follow a group of girls trying to navigate the male-dominated skateboarding culture of New York City. In the movie, Vinberg played a Long Island girl who frequently hopped the Long Island Rail Road to meet up with skater friends in Manhattan.
Vinberg, the product of a peripatetic childhood that included stops in East Meadow and Massapequa, was spotted riding the G train with a friend by writer-director Crystal Moselle in 2016. A conversation ensued, followed later by a short film and then by "Skate Kitchen." The film took its name from Vinberg's Instagram account, which she launched as a way to raise the profile of her all-girl crew.
Variety reports that “Betty” will feature other nonprofessional actors from the film, including Nina Moran, Moonbear and Dede Lovelace. Moselle will write, direct and executive produce. HBO is said to have ordered six half-hour episodes; production has begun in New York City.
