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Batavia filmmakers Thad Vassmer and Ed Plamondon
Two Batavia filmmakers spent eight years documenting one of the Chicago area’s most mysterious cold cases — with a little help from their neighbors.
“MR CON,” the first feature-length documentary from Thad Vassmer and Ed Plamondon of Batavia-based Shumway Studio, premiered Oct. 24 at Emagine Theaters in Batavia for an invite-only crowd of cast, crew, friends, and family. The film follows former attorney Donnie Rudd, a man who escaped consequences for decades, and the three stepdaughters and detective who helped bring him to justice.
Here’s what to know:
The case behind the film: Rudd’s 19-year-old wife died on Sept. 14, 1973. Rudd was 31, and they’d been married less than a month. He staged a car crash in Barrington Hills to cover up her murder and then collected on her life insurance. He was arrested in 2015, convicted in 2018, and sentenced to 75 to 150 years in prison. He died behind bars in 2022 at age 80, 49 years to the day after her death.
Where the name comes from: Rudd built a career on condominium law in the 1980s and called himself “Mr. Condo” (he even had a license plate with the name). As complaints from clients piled up, Vassmer said, a local paper suggested a more fitting nickname: “Mr. Con.”
Inside the production: Vassmer filmed inside the Cook County courthouse during Rudd’s trial, including the moment the guilty verdict was announced. Dateline and the Discovery Channel have covered the case, but Vassmer says his film aimed for something less sensational. “It shows the human toll Donnie took on the humans around him,” he said.
Made in Batavia: Many of the reenactments were shot locally. Builder Mike Spillane opened up several Batavia properties, including a house with untouched 1970s décor and a basement where the crew built a water tank for a flood scene. The Batavia Chamber of Commerce office became a police station and Moss Family Funeral Home hosted a funeral scene.
The film has other Tri-Cities connections, too. Geneva’s Derek Vanderlaan lent his 1978 Ford Pinto wagon for the film’s pivotal 1970s crash scene. Local friends played police officers and detectives.
“At times it felt we were putting on a community play,” Vassmer said.
Vassmer got hooked on the story through his siblings, who were friends with Rudd’s stepdaughters. According to Vassmer, those sisters later wrote a book about the dysfunction of growing up with Rudd.
The self-funded film isn’t available to watch yet while the team pursues a distribution deal, but you can see the trailer and sign up for updates at mrconmovie.com.
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