Change Your Image
ScripTeach
Since then I've written several produced scripts and also wrote and directed the award winning independent feature film CHARMING BILLY, a dark and intense dramatic story that imagines the unimaginable: what could cause an "ordinary man-next-door" to snap, climb a rural water tower with a rifle and open fire on the world below.
The script to CHARMING BILLY (which is not based on the book of the same name by Alice McDermott) was a three time finalist at the Sundance Screenwriting Lab. Lead actor Michael Hayden won the Best Actor award at the Los Angeles AFI International Film Festival "for his bracing, courageous perf as Billy," as the VARIETY review exclaimed.
I have also co-written three more produced screenplays:
*BLADES a "dead-on parody of JAWS," was theatrically distributed, broadcast on both HBO and Cinemax networks and is now available on home video.
What can I say? This was my first ever paid screenwriting job and is the best damn possessed lawn mower movie/parody of JAWS ever made! John McCarthy in his book SPLATTER MOVIE GUIDE, VOL. II (now there's a reference you don't see cited everyday!) said it "produces quite a few laughs and actually generates some tension and suspense." Thomas R. Rondinella and I were hired to co-write this fresh out of NYU film school and we were just thrilled to be making a movie. He got to direct it while I helped produce, and although it has its flaws (the first 30 minutes move too slow, the lead actor is too stiff...), once it kicks in, it's pretty fun ... if a bit twisted. And you know, your first always has
a special place in your heart.
ALL'S FAIR is a comedy (and I use that term loosely) starring George Segal, Sally Kellerman and Robert Carradine, theatrically distributed, broadcast on both HBO and Cinemax networks and is now available on home video.
This is a classic evil Hollywood story. My co-writer, Thomas R. Rondinella, and I were the original screenwriters but we were rewritten by 5 other writers, then denied any screen credit at all. We went through Writers Guild arbitration to get our names on the moive, won an injunction against the producer, who then promptly slapped a $10,000,000 lawsuit against us to try and scare us off, but then dropped it when the arbitrators decided we indeed did deserve credit ... only to have our names then put on what turned out to be a terrible movie! I swear, we had nothing to do with the fat female referee and the wimpy boyfriend Warren!
A GIRLS' GUIDE TO SEX is a "relentlessly perky" (according to VARIETY) romantic comedy that is not a porno film, I swear. It was broadcast on the USA Cable Network but is not yet available of video. Despite what her IMDB bio states, this was Catherine Dent's first film. She now plays a much different role on the award winning TV series THE SHIELD. It was also the film that "introduced" vivacious actress Bridget True, probably best known as the spunky African-American witch in the film THE CRAFT.
I've also had the opportunity to branch out and write animation for different series and I found the experience of writing for this market both more challenging and fun than I had anticipated. The first series was a time-jumping syndicated program called @DVENTURERS: MASTERS OF TIME.
I just finishing writing episodes for a brand new series, THE SCHOOL FOR LITTLE VAMPIRES, a fun show with a great premise, for Hahn Film AG. Since the scripts were just finished, it will be a while before the program is ready to air, as there is a l-o-n-g lead time in animation.
Back in the feature film world, my script SHE DIED TWICE, co-written with Doug Huebner, has "enjoyed" a spate of development hell. The script was under option for the last two years with the Spice Factory and even had a director attached and everything, but when they were not able to get the exact star they wanted, they let the option expire. Of course I'm sure all the terrible rewriting that was done by the other writers they hired had absolutely nothing to do with this star passing on it, right? ;->
So we have the script once again and are returning it to the way it was and freshening it up some to take back out. And already the previous producer is sniffing around again. You gotta love this business!
And oh yes, of course I'll be helping lots of other writers by consulting with them on their scripts! In that capacity my fourteen years as a screenwriting instructor at The New School in New York City comes in handy by giving me experience, knowledge and a good "desk-side manner."
Finally, I live in West Harlem with my wife, fashion designer Hillary, who does her best to make sure my couture doesn't embarrass her refined sense of style.
Lists
An error has ocurred. Please try againReviews
Are You Feeling Lonely? (2003)
One Of The Finest & Funkiest Short Films Ever!
No description really relays the experience that is this film; it's not about plot, it's about how writer/director Rosario Garcia-Montero takes an offbeat character and situation, one that should make us completely aghast, and makes us laugh (albeit nervously) while also moving us as we watch the protagonist go about his very unorthodox way of finding connection with the opposite sex.
That Baadi works in a morgue only heightens the sense of alienation he experiences while also setting the stage for his inappropriate action that he undertakes with such unabashed ardor. And a great use of the title of one of Elvis' biggest hits!
A real treat that shows cinema is not always about the plot points, but also about character and a director's unique outlook.
Maestro (2004)
Cute & nicely shot but too l-o-n-g for a short film.
This cute short film starts off really strong with a fun little montage that quickly brings us up to date on the story: a mysterious composition, AIR, written by a composer who promptly hung himself upon its completion, has frustrated composers down through the years -- not to mention destroying them much like SPINAL TAP destroys drummers -- finds its way on to a bowling alley jukebox and insinuates its self into the head of the lead character when he is a boy. He becomes obsessed with it and begins his pursuit of becoming a conductor.
But once this montage is over and we jump to the present day, things s-l-o-w down and a lot of the fun of film is dragged down with the pacing. The story moves too slowly toward a nice but sappy ending. Why do filmmakers nearly always think longer is better? Short films should be _short_; get in as quickly as you can, make your point and get out while the getting is good! That's why they're called _shorts_. Had this film been edited down to under 20 minutes it would have been much more enjoyable. A much snappier editing pace would have glossed over the simplistic story and spotty acting and highlighted the good qualities that are definitely there.
The camera work is nice, the sets are beautiful and colorful -- if a bit too obviously set-like -- and Seth Meyers as the protagonist is engaging ... but not quite up to the task of really bringing us inside the character; he's more of a sketch comic than a true empathetic actor. And the music used to represent AIR was a very funky choice. A repeated refrain from a U2 song? I love U2 but using something so modern and well known does a disservice to this story about a supposedly rare, complicated and overwhelming classical composition.
Still, a cute idea with some moments of nice execution. The filmmaker's next film is worth looking out for.