Movie on Starz

We shared with you that in addition to Tryin’ to Sleep in the Bed You Made, Far From the Tree is also in development for film. And as those of you have kept up with our bulletins, blogs and newsletters know this summer we also talked a lot about Something Is Killing Tate, the first full length feature produced by our Far From the Tree producer, Jessica Funches. So we wanted to let you know that Something is Killing Tate will premiere THIS WEEK on the Starz (In Black) cable network on 11-25-08, 11:20PM PST / 11-26-08, 2:20AM EST. The film won 11 festival awards this year! So watch if you’re around and/or up and please TiVo or DVR it if you’re not!
Thanks a bunch!
D&V

No Is Not an Option!

This is another message from Sherri James the producer of the film of our book Far From the Tree...

Many of you know from the previous blog that Jessica and I have begun fundraising for Far From the Tree. Prior to starting what I call the "no-is-not-an-option" fundraising cycle, we invested 4 1/2 months of our time into developing an organized production plan that will ultimately deliver a product that is technically superior, dramatically compelling and financially profitable. A curious by-product of the "no-is-not-an-option" fundraising cycle is that it makes one incredibly self-reflective.

This self-reflection has caused us to unearth the fundamental motives behind our desire to turn Far From the Tree into a movie. After all, when no is not an option, you need some strong fuel to keep going after you get the obligatory no's that inevitably come with any fundraising process. Some of what I discovered was pretty basic. I want to create good entertainment. I need to continue fulfilling my dream of being a movie producer through making my third feature film. And, I enjoy doing work that feels like play.

But one of the drivers I uncovered was that I care deeply about the way Black/African American women are represented in cinema. These images travel all over the world as statements about who we are. And, I feel compelled to take some responsibility for which images get pushed out through cinema.

Now, don't worry…I'm not going to get on another soapbox. But, I do want to share with you why Far From the Tree is such an important story for me. As a child, I went to the movies a lot and my favorite films were E.T., Star Wars and Big. The fantasy in those stories was captivating and I remember wishing I could live out some of the things that were being shown to me on screen. But, no matter how much I loved those movies, it never made sense to me that not even one of the characters in these really fun worlds looked like me.

Of course, at ages 7, 8 and 9, I had no way to articulate the intricacies of race, discrimination and prejudice. I just knew that something wasn't right.

I didn't revisit this feeling until I was out of film school. Today, one of my favorite movies is Stepmom, which starred Susan Sarandon and Julia Roberts. I saw this film shortly after graduating from film school. What struck me most about Stepmom was that, except for the cancer storyline, that movie could have been my story. And, I began to wonder, "Why couldn't a story like that succeed with African American women in those roles?" The thinking in the industry is that stories like that with African American characters won't find an audience. But, clearly those stories happen in our world because it had happened to me. So, why wasn't I seeing those stories show up in our storytelling? That bothered me. And, you know when something bothers you, that's the universe's way of calling on you to do something about it.

Cut to ten years later. I now have the talent, resources and expertise to take responsibility and deal with the things that bother me. Far From the Tree has given me the opportunity to positively contribute to the images of Black/African American womanhood. We love the Frazier women – they are real and highly relatable. We know these women. They are our mothers, our daughters, our sisters, our friends.

For me, this story must be told. No is not an option.

SJ

We Can See Clearly Now

There is a point in any project we’ve done, where we look at it, or read it and we can sense—That’s it! All of the tinkering, tossing, turning, sweating and re-imagining have led us to the place where whatever dream we had when we started with a blank computer screen, is suddenly visible, tangible, real. That doesn’t mean we’re finished, and can kick back and congratulate ourselves on another completed caper. Usually, there is still a long march ‘til the end, but we can at least see where we’re headed and we know we’re going in the right direction.

We had that moment this week with the script for Tryin’ to Sleep in the Bed You Made—The Movie. Our screenwriter, Desha Dauchan, has been working diligently to get the screenplay to a reasonable length (because this cannot be a movie marathon), while keeping the heart and soul of Pat, Gayle, Marcus and Ramsey. This is a Kilimanjaro-sized task. To play up one scene, you have to remove another. To strengthen one character’s dialogue you have to gyp another. It was a constant struggle to find the balance, make the most with the least, make every second count. A page a minute—the whole movie opening to closing credits has to be under two hours. From a 400 page book! Aargh!

But this week, when we sat down to read the latest draft, we could both feel it. We could see Regina King as Gayle, in that maid’s uniform, cleaning up Pat’s hotel room, or looking up and seeing Ramsey for the first time, standing beside her car after her ‘marry me or else’ showdown with Marcus. It gave us both shivers. There are several actors we have been talking about for the major parts, and we could hear them saying the lines, imagine how they would be with each other as Pat and Marcus in the basement, sharing that kiss, or as Ramsey sweating to convince Bessie he’ll come up with the money. There is still tweaking ahead of us, but we’re there, ready to proceed to the next steps, and all four of us who make up 4 Colored Girls Productions (that includes our partners, Tyrha Lindsey and Tracey Kemble) are very excited.

So, while we’re getting the script copied, bound and ready to go, let us know who you see in the parts of Pat, Marcus and Ramsey. We have our choices in mind and have made phone calls to let them know the screenplay is coming (that just gave us a shiver, too), but we’d like to hear who you imagined when you read the book. Maybe we can reach out to them too.