AUBURN — Jayson Lobozzo stopped angling for a big Hollywood break years ago. The price was too high, for himself and his family.

“We live in Maine because we love living in Maine,” the 40-year-old Lewiston native said Tuesday. “Obviously, you don’t live here because you want to be a famous director of photography.”

But Lobozzo, a father and husband who earns his living by shooting commercials and instructional videos, still has stories to tell.

He needed a passion project.

So, when a hole appeared in “Damnationland,” local movie promoter Allen Baldwin’s thriller series, Lobozzo jumped.

“These projects reinvigorate you,” he said.

And it wasn’t just him. Lobozzo had been working for the Maine Department of Tourism on a piece about lighthouses with a filmmaking buddy, Ben Kahn. He jumped, too.

The pair took a legend they heard while researching the state project and crafted a story set at Seguin Island near Popham.

They called it “Keeper’s Refrain.”

The result is a lean, 22-minute-long thriller that will be shown at special screenings Friday and Saturday nights at Flagship Cinemas in Auburn. The film is part of Baldwin’s 90-minute collection of low-budget horror movies and thrillers that are making the rounds of Maine cinemas this season.

Other films in the Damnationland series include the spy story “Forgiveness,”  a wintertime creeper “Are You the Walkers?” the animated short “American Waste” and the suspenseful “Telephoto,” which Lobozzo also photographed. All were conceived and shot here in Maine.

“These are not just special screenings for fans of scary movies,” Baldwin said. “This event is for anyone who appreciates independent film, and for people who want to celebrate the spirit of the season.”

Lobozzo’s film has its share of jolts, but it starts out quietly. It begins with a lighthouse keeper and his bored, young wife. Soon, obsession divides the couple and the drama unfolds.

It features a cast of three, little dialogue and minimal action. Instead, it has mood to spare.

Lobozzo shot the story in rich black and white, and the sound features more creaks than a roomful of rocking chairs.

All of it was done with volunteer help and a lightning schedule.

“We didn’t start our film until the middle of September,” Lobozzo said. “We only had four weeks to make it happen.”

They shot on the island for a day, spent three in a South Windham farmhouse and one day on the shoreline.

Then, they compiled the footage.

Almost everything was completed with volunteers.

“Filmmaking is a super-collaborative process,” Lobozzo said, giving credit to friends who acted, edited, carried booms and schlepped to the island in dingies. Among them was his dad, Vincent.

“That was especially fun, because he’s always been an inspiration to me,” he said.

Lobozzo is unsure how many people will see his film. He said he is grateful that Baldwin is working to get it to audiences around Maine. There are no plans to take it further.

That kind of fame is overrated, Lobozzo said.

“I know the sacrifices you have to make and that’s just not my deal,” he said.

Screenings will be held at Flagship Cinemas in Auburn on Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.

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