Like Blanche DuBois in "A Streetcar Named Desire," independent filmmakers typically depend on the kindness of strangers.

Case in point, Mike Amato, who is currently shooting his latest movie, "A House Divided," in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. The Franklin filmmaker is the first to acknowledge the debt he owes to others in order to get his low-budget movie made.

"The critical thing when you make an independent film is you have to rely on the graciousness and generosity not only of individuals but businesses," says Amato.

For example, his film company, Jodom Pictures, was able to shoot scenes at Southwick's Zoo in Mendon, Cafe Espresso in Bellingham, Emerald Square Limousine in Plainville and Prescott Farm Audubon Center in Laconia, N.H., all for the very reasonable price of zero. Ditto for the services provided by the police and fire departments in Framingham.

Amato also shot scenes at no charge in the homes of Bob and Elaine Willis in Mendon and Kelley Cloonan in Framingham. The house used in the movie's poster, meanwhile, comes courtesy of Laconia's Lynda Brooks.

Amato won't reveal the budget of "A House Divided" basically because he doesn't want to see his marriage divided. "In the interest of staying married I can't publicly announce that," says the film's director, writer and producer. "My wife has been tremendously supportive. You have to be when somebody's doing films like this. She told me she doesn't want to know so I'm going to honor that request." His wife's name is Lynne, by the way.

Filming for "A House Divided" began in September and is expected to wrap by Thanksgiving. The movie tells the tale of a woman with multiple personalities married to a Kennedyesque senator who, as a child, witnessed a murder and now, as an adult, becomes embroiled in another. The detective assigned to investigate the case is also trying to deal with his own wife's mental problems.

In addition to filming in New England, Amato has assembled an all-New England cast and crew. The major roles belong to Anthony Villa of Bellingham, who plays Detective Nick Roncarati (Villa has also appeared in Amato's three previous films); Elizabeth Rose of Framingham, who plays Laura King, the aforementioned troubled woman; Peter Brown of Norwood, who plays Laura's husband, Sen. John Franklin King; Pamela McIntyre of Franklin, who plays Nick's wife Vicki; Brian Hoffman of North Easton, who plays Dr. William Redmund, the psychiatrist treating Laura and Vicki; and Andrea C. Ross, 12, of Franklin, who plays Laura as a young girl.

To continue the film company's local ties, Jodom Pictures is named after Amato's sons, Joseph and Domenic.

Amato's previous films include "Kilroy Was Here," a semi-autobiographical comedy about a man who decides to pursue his life's dream; "After Midnight," a dramatic thriller about a man who wakes up in a park with no memory and begins to suspect he has a connection with the widow who saved him; and "Limelight," a comedy about an everyman who gets exposed to fame and tries to deal with his newfound celebrity.

All of Amato's films have garnered a variety of honors and awards. For example, "Kilroy Was Here" was nominated for Best Feature and won for Best Actor (Villa) at the 2001 Rewind International Film Festival; "After Midnight" was selected for the 2003 Chicago Indiefest Film Festival, nominated for eight awards at the 2002 Rewind festival, nominated for Best Feature at the 2002 DEADcenter Film Festival and won Best Story (Amato) and Best Actress (April Cresey) at Rewind; "Limelight" was selected for the 2003 Rewind festival and won its prize for Best Actress (Cresey); and "A House Divided" has already won the grand prize award at the 2003 New England Screenwriting Contest and received the second place award at the 2003 Chicago Indiefest Screenwriting Competition.

It's an impressive track record for the 45-year-old Springfield native, whose background is more in high-tech than Hollywood. Still, he has long been interested in film and storytelling.

"I've always liked to write," says Amato. "The movie we're doing currently is based on a novel I had outlined 11 or 12 years ago. I was halfway through it when my first son was born. I realized I wasn't going to be able to devote the time to it so I set it aside and went on to other things....But I always intended to come back to this story."

His start as a filmmaker actually evolved from his marriage. "I got editing software at home just to re-edit my wedding video, then I decided I needed more challenging projects," he says. "Despite the lack of film school, I figured the best way to learn was to make movies, and there's a clear quality arc in the movies we've done. Each one has been better in terms of story and production value, and this one is by far the most compelling one we've done."

Amato is financing "A House Divided" out of his own pocket, which he admits is challenging since he was laid off in April from his previous job as vice president of client services for a Marlborough software company.

"At this level, it's very difficult for independent filmmakers to get financing, but I had set aside funds to make this film and then once it's made and we show it at film festivals, our aim is to get it distributed, hopefully in theaters but at the very least get it distributed worldwide on video," says Amato. "We haven't pursued distribution with the other three. They were self-distributed through our own Web site and we sold several copies, but we didn't feel they were of a high enough professional quality to pitch them to distributors. We may redo 'After Midnight' with a high-quality production value down the road."

A late spring/early summer 2004 release date for "A House Divided" is planned.

If there's a silver lining in the black cloud of unemployment, Amato has used his free time to make "A House Divided" a high-quality feature.

"We've assembled the best acting talent available in New England," he says. "That's what really sets this movie apart from not only other movies we've done but other independent movies we've seen around New England."

After "A House Divided" is completed, Amato has a couple of ideas in the pipeline. One is a thriller about a woman whose daughter has died yet she begins seeing her and suspecting she may not really be dead. The other is a road-trip comedy about a group of friends who decide to establish their own religion they believe is more in line with their lifestyles and embark on a pilgrimage to Las Vegas.

As a filmmaker, Amato clearly rides his own streetcar named desire. "Filmmaking is an incredible amount of work, especially at the independent level because don't have the big crew you have in a major film," he says. "You have to really love what you're doing because you're going to immerse yourself in it totally.

"I love the entire process -- the planning of it, working with the actors, setting up a shot that is going to sell the movie, having those moments in the film where the audience sits there with their mouths open. To me, that's what it's all about.

"Our motto is we make moving pictures. That's the key for us. We don't want to do knock-offs or sequels to other people's movies. We are about doing movies that move people either to laughter or to tears. Those are the movies you remember, movies where you walk out of the theater and you're still thinking about days later. That's the essence of filmmaking."