January 2017 Winning FAMILY Best Scene Reading.

SYNOPSIS:

Genre: Family, Drama

When two foster brothers lose their carer they find themselves in danger of being separated. They go on the run, finding new family along the way.

Get to know the writer:

What is your screenplay about?

After the death of his foster mother, sixteen-year-old Mark goes on the run- fulfilling his promise to keep him and his eight-year-old foster brother, Tristan, together. But when their car dies in a small town, Mark finds that hiding out and caring for a young child with PTSD isn’t as easy as he thought.

What genres does your screenplay fall under?

Family Film, Drama

Why should this screenplay be made into a movie?

It helps us to look at what it takes to consider someone family. With the country divided in so many ways right now this movie shows that people of any age, race, or religion can come together to form a family. And the sacrifices that family makes for each other.

How would you describe this script in two words?

Brotherly sacrifice

What movie have you seen the most times in your life?

Star Wars and the Lord of the Rings Trilogy. I’ve been a nerd for a very long time.

How long have you been working on this screenplay?

Honestly, not long. I wrote it in one week last July. But I am a very quick writer. This was my first screenplay. I’ve edited it half a dozen times since then, but that’s about all. I’ve been a published author for three years and so when an idea hits me I bang it out quick.

How many stories have you written?

Stories? Man, I have no idea. I currently have 18 novels published. And sixty plus ideas still waiting to be written. I have four screenplays and a pilot I’ve written in the last six months. And several unfinished works as well.

What motivated you to write this screenplay?

My son. He is eight and he’s an actor and I have wanted to write something that would really showcase his funny, quirky, loving personality. And he has a friend who is also an actor who is sixteen. So I thought, realistically where would an eight year old and a sixteen year old meet and become best friends?

What obstacles did you face to finish this screenplay?

Making sure if felt real and authentic. I wanted this to be a story that people could watch and see themselves in, or someone they know and relate to it with characters we cried with and rooted for. That takes some doing.

Apart from writing, what else are you passionate about?

I am a homeschooling mom of 4 beautiful kids. Three daughters and a son. I spend a lot of time driving them around to auditions and dance classes and other classes. We as a family love Comic Cons. We go to about seven a year and cosplay. So sewing and prop making and crafting take a lot of my time as well.

What influenced you to enter the festival? What were your feelings on the initial feedback you received?

I loved the title. Festival for Family. I felt that was exactly the kind of audience I wanted to appeal to. The initial feedback I have gotten is awesome. Some of the notes were ones I had already been thinking about myself and so they just confirmed the changes I already wanted to make.

Any advice or tips you’d like to pass on to other writers?

Write what you are passionate about not what you think the market wants. The market is always changing and if you try to write to what you think people want to see by the time you are done, the market will have changed. But if you write what you are passionate about and what you love, at the end of the day, even if no one sees it, you will love what you did. And that’s the most important thing of all.

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Producer/Director: Matthew Toffolo http://www.matthewtoffolo.com

Casting Director: Sean Ballantyne

Editor: John Johnson

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