After eight endearing years on Scrubs (plus one not-bad season of Zombie Scrubs), Donald Faison will always be a name that stands out in a press release.  So today we bring you the announcement that principal photography has begun on Stag, a comedy which stars Faison, Eva Amurri (Californication), and Jon Dore (The Jone Dore Show).

Faison plays "the orchestrator of the hazing pranks at all of his buddies' stags - elaborate, hilarious pranks that have left many emotional scars and a few physical ones."  The film is set during Faison's bachelor party as he fears retribution from his wronged friends.  Stag is the feature debut of writer/director Brett Heard.  Hit the jump for the official announcement.

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PRINCIPAL PHOTOGRAPHY BEGINS ON BRETT HEARD’S COMEDY STAG, STARRING DONALD FAISON, EVA AMURRI AND JON DORE

January 11, 2011. TORONTO. Principal photography has begun on the comedy, STAG, Brett Heard;s feature film debut, starring Donald Faison, Eva Amurri (Californication; New York, I Love You; Saved), and Jon Dore (The Jon Dore Television Show, Just for Laughs, Host of HBO Canada¹s Funny As Hell). STAG is written and directed by Brett Heard (Life Unjarred, Motherload), produced by Anita K. Sharma (Champagne, Rock the Paint) and executive produced by Daniel Iron (The Bang Bang Club, Cairo Time, Away From Her). STAG will be filming from January 10-28, 2011 in Toronto and is slated for release in 2012.

Ken Andrews (Faison) has been the orchestrator of the hazing pranks at all of his buddies' stags - elaborate, hilarious pranks that have left many emotional scars and a few physical ones, including Luke (Dore). And now today is Ken's stag! He nervously awaits the fate that his pals surely have in store for him, comforted only by the knowledge that Carl (Pat Thornton) will be there to watch his back ­ that is, so long as Carl can extract himself from the Hollywood celebrity, Veronica (Amurri). Ken will soon discover that payback is worse than he could ever imagine.

"STAG has been an incredibly positive experience. As the first feature for Fresh Baked Studio, it's a dream come true for Brett and I. We are thrilled to have attached such award-winning talent like Eva, Donald and Jon, plus have the association of Daniel Iron of Foundry Films - it's a real testament to Brett's amazing script and comedic abilities," says Producer Anita K. Sharma.

As a twenty-year veteran to the film and television industry, both in front of and behind the camera, Brett Heard brings a valuable and unique perspective to all of his projects. After putting in his time on the ad agency side of the business working with BBDO, Brett set out to further explore his creativity, spending six years performing stand-up comedy in clubs across Canada and the United States, including a stint at the Riviera in Las Vegas. Stepping in front of the camera, he has appeared in over one hundred U.S. and Canadian commercials along with re-occurring roles in television series, movies of the week, and big budget Hollywood features where he worked alongside folks like Mathew Perry, Will Farrell, and Sylvester Stallone. (There are many stories)  Shifting his focus to the other side of the camera, Brett has written and directed multiple commercials, television pilots, short films and stage plays and was nominated for a Best Director Award at the 2006 Canadian Comedy Awards for the short film LoveGirl.

Cinematography for STAG by Arthur Cooper (One Week, Young People Fucking), production design by Craig Harris (The Shrine, Confessions of a Porn Addict), costume design by Joanna Syrokamla (The Yard, Pure Pwnage,Todd and the Book of Pure Evil), and editing by Kathy Weinkauf (388 ArlettaJ, Leslie, My Name is Evil).

STAG is being made with the participation of Telefilm Canada, The Movie Network and Movie Central, the Ontario Film and Television Tax Credit and the Canadian Film or Video Production Tax Credit.