My sister has a plan. She is driving hard towards a career in the film industry. She attended this past Cannes Film Festival via a school program. She wants to go back next year not as a student but as a member of the industry. Her plan? To direct and then submit a short film. Apparently, the actual entry requirements for Cannes are not terribly rigorous. The trick is all the incidentals: transportation, lodging, food, etc. How do I fit in? The script, baby. I am the word man.
I made a deal with her. I would write the script over the month of June and then she would film it and submit it to the festival. It is now July. Last week, I delivered my short (about 10 pages) script to her via email. She liked it which is good since she's got to translate it from page to screen.
From the first, I knew right off the general setting of my mini-oeuvre: the corporate world. Well, my twisted vision of the corporate world. If there's been one positive about my time working for a mega-corporation, it's been fertile ground for the darker aspects of my imagination.
I'm excited to see what's done with my little script. My attitude I intend to be hands-off. I've written it and I've handed it off. If she asks for input, I'll certainly give it but, from this point, it's her thing and she can run with it however she likes. At least, this is what I'm telling myself. Whether I can hold onto this attitude once it begins to transform into an actual, physical, visual thing may be something else entirely. I might implode. But, until then, I shall display Buddha-like tranquility. Serenity now. Serenity now.
I don't know what the timetable for this flick is. Originally, the plan was to shoot it in California since she's there for the summer but it looks like the plan has changed. She'll shoot it in Philly or thereabouts. She also wants to submit it to other festivals like Berlin. The more's the merrier, I guess.
It's all rather exciting but, until it hits celluloid, it feels unreal. When I find the first bit of video jammed into my mailbox, I'll know its real. Whether or not it ever gets actually made, it was a fun time writing the thing and it's really gotten my spirit energized. Now I just need to keep that going and wait for the first dailies to arrive. I'm ready for my close-up, Mr. DeMille.
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