Long Road
Over the last few months I’ve received lots of rejections from film festivals all over the world. It’s disappointing to get those “I’m sorry but…” type emails. The best one I got was from Cannes. Everything I needed to know was right there in the subject line.
I did appreciate the clarity and straight forwardness. No ambiguity there!
I knew it would be difficult to get into some of the prestigious institutions I submitted “Aidan” to, but the effort has not been in vain.
I still have a lot to learn about how to tell a story and figure out what I want to say. “Aidan” kind of wrote itself from my subconscious. I purposely avoided trying to follow a formula. I tried to write naively in search of a more pure expression, something magical not entirely by me but potentially through me. I’m inspired by visionary artists that worked hard on producing work that transcends the individual parts of the what make up the film. Something like poetry. Lofty, but that’s what I attempted.
I still get pumped when I watch the film. When that last song, “Shut the Lights Out” by Migraine Aura comes on and Alyse drives off to a new adventure, in my head I’m like “YEAH!, LET’S GO!”
My original script is about how Aidan and Alyse travel to San Francisco to confront Aidan’s creator. I based the short script on the first part of the story. I tried my best to create a story arc that showed how Aidan and Alyse both break out of personal prisons with help from one another.
What I wanted to say in this story is how we need friends to help us break out and get free of the things that hold us back.
I played around with a few titles and one of them was called Breakaway. I thought about the film “A Man Escaped” and how help from others was key to that story. I could have called the film “Aidan and Alyse” because its really about friends helping each other.
We still have a lot of festivals to hear back from and I hope more good things happen for Aidan. I am very thankful for the opportunity to screen the film where I have so far. I am working everyday, when I have time, to learn how I can write better stories and hone in on my specific voice.
One last thing. Below are links to the songs in the film. Please listen to them and please buy albums from these artists. They were so gracious to allow me to use their songs and they are an essential part of the soul of this film. Hopefully my film can help get their names out.