Tuesday, August 07, 2007

Chronicles 48 - Post-vacation splurge

Hello campers. Just got back from vacation and fly to NYC on Saturday so although I'm overdue with a proper literary memoir-style Chronicle piece it'll have to be a vomit-like brain dump for now.

I was away in Italy for 2 weeks but while soaking the sun I got the news that our short has been selected for the Los Angeles Short Film festival. Whoo Hooh! Especially since Cannes, Flanders, Hamburg and Rhode Island gave us the big thumbs down. Philistines!

We have also been offered a distribution deal for the short film to sell to TV stations world-wide.

Before I left I was literally in the process of fielding 4 different contracts, 2 being collaboration agreements with American producers (LA and NYC), 1 being the short film distribution agreement (which we can't sign yet since it messes up some film festival applications) and I'm signing my second script commission with a UK producer. Up until this year and after 12 years of writing I'd never seen ANYTHING resembling a contract. I'm pretty damn sure that I could wallpaper my room with all the rejection letters/emails/phone calls I've received since I started writing in 1994.

Just got an email today that the UK producer wants me to sign an additional contract for the 3rd commission which makes it 3 scripts and a play that I have to finish by the end of the January so I think I'll have to ditch my idea of not taking my lap-top with me on my travels to NYC and the UK. Damn, I've got some serious work to do here. Yikes!

I got a rejection while on holiday (just to balance the good news re. the short film). I didn't recieve development funding for my rom-com, they felt the project was too close to production and they also had notes and felt that we wouldn't be open to rewrites at this late stage. Bummer. I thought we were in with a good chance. Anyway, I got positive feedback on the black comedy (the exec said he preferred my dialogue to Pinter's!) and since that project is in early development my fingers are crossed that we at least get a few crumbs from their funding table.

It was great to get away from the computer for 2 weeks although I did write out a rough treatment in long hand for the new script commission which I have to write up and tweak.

After catching up with long lost friends I was amazed that some people still follow this blog so many thanks for checking in with me and all the encouraging words of support! Hopefully I have a bit more to report when I get back from the Big Apple which will also be a chance to meet up with some fellow screenwriters some of whom I've been corresponding with for years but never met. The wonders of the net!

Ciao for now

SWU