Pitch I: A recorded music major wakes up one morning to discover her 9-year-old self is visiting from the past. Over the course of their day together, she learns about her own forgotten dreams of becoming a songwriter and realizes how to embrace her inner child again. It ends with a touching scene with our protagonist singing with her guitar.
Problem: Besides the recorded music major part, my colleagues point out to me that this is basically the plot to the early 2000s Disney film "The Kid" starring Bruce Willis. While my brain fights for reasons of how my story would be different, the plot becomes too complex and we ultimately decide to scrap the idea.
Pitch II: A French new wave film following a girl as she goes behind the screen of a movie theater where she passionately kisses her suave boyfriend. The film takes a turn for the humorous when a mid-Western American tourist walks in on them. I even started casting the film with my Parisian friend Louise in the starring role.
Problem: Movie theaters are an incredible headache to rent out. Even small local flicks won't answer my calls. So I’ll have to fake it in a small sound stage. And the gag of an American disrupting a French love scene doesn't really work the more I think about it.
Pitch III: A French girl writes a song for an American pop star.
Problem: This isn’t a story. Total lack of conflict. Really, this film looks like a gimmick to make a cheesy movie musical. But who am I kidding. I love movie musicals…
Pitch III, Version 2: Two female European indie artists record with an American pop star over Skype. Their friendship and their successful career is in jeopardy.
Problem: While the story now has conflict, it’s confusing on several points. Why isn’t this story taking place in a recording studio? Why were they selected to record a pop song if they obviously hate it so much? Again, the whole concept seems a bit forced. I start looking for recording studios to shoot in. I get the same reply from everyone I talk to: filming in a state-of-the-art recording booth is around $200 an hour, plus sound engineering fees. I have a budget of zero.
Pitch III, Version 3: The indie European singer songwriting team TWINN is made up of Brooke Davies from London and Emilia Eklund from Sweden. Brooke sees working with American pop star Kelly Nightingale as their big break. Emilia sees it as a threat to their reputation as quality artists.
While there are still many production problems, the storm begins to clear. A lot of the story starts blossoming from casting my good friends Malin (a Swedish actress) and Katusha (a filmmaker from the UK) in the leading roles. The story focuses more on their friendship now and less on recording a pop star. After a week of location scouting, I discover utopia. A mom and pop run recording studio in the East Village welcomes me with open arms for a fraction of the price. The recording booth they set up for us was the exact room were David Bowie recorded American singles back in the '80s. The vibe is perfect for our little production.
Every frame, every cue, every action was a conscious choice made by our spectacular cast and crew. Beautiful, smart films need to gestate for quite a bit before we can even touch a camera. It’s good to look back and see how your creative process works. Maybe you will make a cheesy movie musical. All that matters is it's a story you care about.
