When the State Theatre nearly managed to sell out a film screening last fall, they relied not on a blockbuster hit but on an independent film set right here in State College.

After a successful first showing, Happy Valley will make a return visit to the State Theatre, 130 W. College Ave., this Sunday with shows at 4 and 7 p.m.

"I told them I was going to sell out the movie, and they said they don't sell out movies at the State Theatre," said Tina Murgas, the writer, director and producer of Happy Valley.

Kristy Cyone, the State Theatre's sales and marketing manager, said the film's November screening drew a crowd of about 450 to 500.

"Can you believe I beat Doctor Zhivago's record at the State Theatre? That's going to be my claim to fame," Murgas said. The high attendance came in spite of the unfortunate timing of the show -- the day before Thanksgiving, meaning students who had gone home were unable to attend.

Happy Valley tells the story of a woman who was left comatose after a childhood accident and a friend who feels that he can save her.

"He knew her when she was a child, and she was young and vibrant," Murgas said, adding that the man wants to "get her back to how they were when they were running around at 6 years old."

Cyone said many members of the audience could identify locations used in the movie, which was shot in August 2004.

"There was a hushed murmur throughout many of the scenes: 'I think that's the Phyrst! I think that's Zeno's!'" Cyone said. "People were recognizing their front yards or their cars."

Murgas, who said she has spent half her life in New York City after relocating there from State College when she was 20, added that using local landmarks was a deliberate decision.

"I was definitely visualizing State College itself, not just small-town anywhere. [In one scene], I knew it was going to be in one of those big booths in the Corner Room facing Allen Street," Murgas said.

The chance to screen the film here again is a welcome opportunity to Murgas, who said she is not "young and energetic" enough to promote it at film festivals.

Murgas said she has been to the celebrated Sundance Film Festival in Utah every year for the past nine years while working as a makeup artist for Access Hollywood, and the experience has soured her take on the film festival circuit.

"What they call independent film, for me, is not independent film," Murgas said. "It's all political and hype and celebrities. It's not what it used to be."

Murgas noted that her film might go up against, for example, a film starring a name like Jessica Alba and with resources much greater than Happy Valley's $200,000 budget.

At a question-and-answer session during the film's November screening, Murgas said she spent more money on the film than her parents did on their house.

Murgas, who is still working as a makeup artist, said another challenge facing an independent filmmaker is the time commitment that's necessary to promote a movie.

"If you're actually working, you can't take the time off to schlep your film all over the place," Murgas said.

Instead, Murgas has been fortunate to receive word-of-mouth support and receptive audiences. In addition to Sunday's showing, Murgas will show the film in New York in several weeks, but where the film goes from there is uncertain.

"Ideally, it would go to theaters, but I think that, realistically, I'd sell it to DVD or Netflix," Murgas said. "It's already on the Blockbuster Web site, and I have no idea who those people are. It has information on the movie and me, and when you click on it to buy it, it says 'unavailable.' "

Murgas said the creation of the film went smoothly. The rough draft of the script took her only a few days to write.

"[As a writer], sometimes you can sit there for hours and nothing comes to your head, and some days it's already in your head and you're trying to keep up with it on paper," Murgas said. "That's what this whole thing was for me; I could see the film in my head."

Finding a cast was similarly straightforward. She called actors she had met while working on makeup for other independent films, and no one turned her down.

"It fell in place like a zipper falls in place," Murgas said. "My next film will probably be the biggest catastrophe ever, but not this one. It just fell into place."