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Sunday, 04 April 2010 21:28 |
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Greetings everyone!
I recently returned from the 2010 Female Eye Film Festival in Toronto, Canada. The trip was very successful on a number of levels. For starters, RESISTANCE won Reserve Best Screenplay! To date, RESISTANCE has won awards or received nominations in 21 international film festival screenplay competitions and labs. WOW. The number blows me away – and my hope is that it’ll blow away a potential producer/investor, too. RESISTANCE is a film that is begging to be made.
While at the festival, I participated in the “Good to Go” program. This involved a form of “speed dating” with potential film producers and one literary agent. Sounds crazy, but it was actually well-organized. I moved from table to table, doing one-on-one pitches that lasted approximately 15 minutes each. Everyone was approachable and savvy. The process was enjoyable, not stressful.
Catherine Hardwicke was the rock star of the festival. During her special tribute, she held a mini-master class for the audience. She was so giving of her time and knowledge. I have a saying: The bigger the star, the nicer the person. Catherine Hardwicke proved this to be true.
Actors Karen Black, Wendy Crewson, and Theresa Tova also impressed me during their panel discussion about women in film. They invited the panel attendees to ask questions and share their experiences and thoughts throughout the discussion. It was inspiring, enlightening, and heartening to listen to and share ideas with such accomplished artists.
The greatest thing about the Female Eye Film Festival, though, was the people I met. Writing is such a solitary act. It was wonderful to connect with other screenwriters and filmmakers. I was able to meet Hallee Hirsh, who appeared in SPRING FORWARD, which was directed by my mentor Tom Gilroy. You may remember Hallee as Annabelle Fox from YOU GOT MAIL with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan, but she’s all grown up now and successfully making the transition from child to adult actor. Hallee’s latest film 16 TO LIFE screened at the festival. She’s poised for stardom. Keep an eye on her. I know I will!
Additionally, I got a reminder of how small the entertainment world is when I met writer/director Angela Garcia Combs and producer Richard Wilson, whose film NOTHING SPECIAL was the festival’s closing gala feature. Actor Barbara Bain stars in NOTHING SPECIAL. She is the mother of Juliet Landau, who is set to star in the live staged reading of my other script WONDER DRUG on April 18 at Cinespace in Los Angeles, California. (Visit www.wonderdrugthemovie.com for more event details.) Talk about six degrees of separation (if that!).
I left the Female Eye Film Festival with only one regret: I didn’t get a chance to speak with style icon Carson Kressley. (He associate produced the film 16 TO LIFE.) I saw him from afar at an after-party, but alas, we didn’t connect. He looked fabulous, though!
As ever,
Caitlin |
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Tuesday, 16 March 2010 00:04 |
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Hi Everyone,
Great news! RESISTANCE has been accepted into the Female Eye Script Development Program, run by the Female Eye Film Festival in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The program will take place from March 26-28, 2010.
The SCRIPT DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM is comprised of two programs: The Script Reading Workshop and the Good To Go.
The Script Reading Workshop is a competitive program whereby professional actors read select scenes from screenplay and/or teleplays followed by feedback from industry guests. Script Reading Awards are presented for “Best Screenplay,” “Industry Choice Award” & "Crowd Pleaser."
The Good To Go is a by-invitation industry event for writers with feature screenplays, teleplays or MOW’s that are good to go into production. Good To Go Awards are presented for “Best Low Budget Feature,” “Best Script” and “Best Fresh Voice.”
About The Female Eye Film Festival: The Female Eye Film Festival is Ontario’s one and only annual international independent film Festival showcasing films directed by women. It presents high caliber films in drama, comedy, sci-fi, action, documentary, experimental and animation. The Female Eye is a juried competitive film festival and presents films by debut, emerging and internationally recognized directors.
This year, filmmaker Catherine Hardwicke (“Twilight”; and “Thirteen”) is the first foreign recipient of the 2010 Female Eye Honorary Director Award. Past Honorees and jurors include: Linda Schuyler (Recipient of the 1st Annual 2009 Female Eye Maverick Award, (Co-Creator / Executive Producer of “Degrassi”), Patricia Rozema (Honorary Dir. Award 2009); Academy Nominated Deepa Mehta (Honorary Dir. Award 2005); Kari Skogland (Honorary Dir. and recipient of Best Feature Film, “The Stone Angel” 2008); Gail Harvey (Honorary Dir. and recipient of Best of Show, “Some Things That Stay” 2007); Deborah Kampmeier dir. “Virgin” starring Elizabeth Moss (Best Actress Award 2003) and dir. “Hounddog”, starring Dakota Fanning and Robin Wright-Penn (Winner Best of Show 2009) and Ann Marie Flemming (Honorary Dir and Award Winner Best Feature, “The French Guy” and Recipient of The Honorary Dir. Award (2005).
The Female Eye Film Festival attracts film enthusiasts to seasoned industry professionals: writers, actors, directors and producers of film and television. Its audience numbers continue to grow annually, with attendance of over 5,000 filmgoers and supporters.
For more information about the festival, please visit www.FemaleEyeFilmFestival.com.
I will be sure to post photos and provide an update after the festival. As always, thanks for your support!
As ever,
Caitlin |
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Tuesday, 26 January 2010 22:33 |
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A new decade and new opportunities for RESISTANCE. So far, I’ve had back-to-back interviews about the project: one on live blog radio; and one taped for television. I’ve also started conversations with a potential executive producer for RESISTANCE. I couldn’t be more pleased with the developments.
My blog radio interview took place on a show called “Notebook Writer with Mike Marcellino.” It lasted one hour. During that time, I discussed RESISTANCE and another screenplay of mine that’s in development, called WONDER DRUG. I also answered questions from the show’s host and callers; and read scenes from RESISTANCE and WONDER DRUG. A podcast of the interview can be found at this site: www.wonderdrugthemovie.com/Press.html.
My TV interview was for a program called “Flipside.” It’s scheduled to air on WCCA TV-13 on February 8th at 7:30 p.m. US eastern time. For those who don’t live in Central Massachusetts, you can watch a stream of the show that date/time at this site: www.wccatv.com. At the end of February, my episode will be available on demand (for free!) at that site.
With regard to the potential executive producer...I can’t publicly share details about our conversations yet. However, I can say that this person is very talented, smart, and respected. Even if our conversations don’t lead to a deal, I’m honored that RESISTANCE has attracted the time and consideration of this person.
I truly believe that it’s only a matter of time before RESISTANCE secures financing and heads out of development and into pre-production. Like Si, I don’t know where this feeling is coming from. But it’s there. Thank you for sharing this journey with me and believing in the project.
Onward and upward!
Caitlin |
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Monday, 21 December 2009 00:26 |
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Hello and welcome! So glad you came for a visit. Please allow me to introduce myself. I'm Caitlin McCarthy, the screenwriter of RESISTANCE. I'm based outside of Boston, Massachusetts, in the good ole U.S. of A. Good fortune has connected me with award-winning UK director Si Wall. RESISTANCE is going to be a true global production, with talent from around the world. I can't wait for the cameras to roll!
Here's a little history of the screenplay's development. Vera Laska was my big sister Erin's political science professor and mentor at Regis College in Weston, Massachusetts. Whenever my sister called home from school, she always talked about her favorite course entitled "Women in the Resistance and in the Holocaust." This course shared the same name as a book by Dr. Laska. When Erin came home for visits, I borrowed the book from her. I was still in high school at the time, and completely entranced by what I read.
A few years later, I followed in my sister's footsteps and matriculated at Regis College. As a freshman, I begged my way into Dr. Laska's course. It was normally reserved for upperclassmen, but I convinced her that I could do the work. (I think Dr. Laska's soft spot for Erin, whom she had nicknamed "Pookie," didn't hurt!) Little did Dr. Laska know that I had practically memorized "Women in the Resistance and in the Holocaust." I wound up receiving an "A" for the course.
I remember thinking during Dr. Laska's lectures that her life would make the best movie. When I started writing screenplays after graduating from the Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing program at Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts, I decided to write that movie myself.
By this time, Dr. Laska was dying of lung cancer, so she didn't participate in the screenplay's development. The universe sent me a "guardian angel": Marguerite Guzman Bouvard, another professor of mine from Regis College, who also happened to be a dear friend of Dr. Laska's. Dr. Bouvard provided me with insight and emotional support during the writing of RESISTANCE (formerly known as VERA). I based the screenplay on Dr. Laska's interview with the USC Shoah Foundation Institute for Visual History and Education (formerly Survivors of the Shoah Visual History Foundation), a nonprofit organization established by Steven Spielberg; "Women in the Resistance and in the Holocaust: The Voices of Eyewitnesses" by Dr. Laska; and "Vera Laska" from "Women Reshaping Human Rights: How Extraordinary Activists Are Changing the World" by Dr. Bouvard. (All film rights have been secured, in case you're wondering!)
To date, RESISTANCE has won over 15 awards and nominations at international film festival screenplay competitions and labs. A full list can be found at www.imdb.com/name/nm2337491/resume. I'm very proud of the honors my script has received thus far, and I know RESISTANCE will continue to blossom under Si Wall's care. In this time of war and rising anti-Semitism, Si and I both believe that RESISTANCE is a film worth making.
I look forward to updating you on the continued development of RESISTANCE. If you ever have comments or questions for me, please feel free to send me an email through the contact page at this website.
Until again,
Caitlin |
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