I found out last week that my script Home made the top 7 (out of approximately 1000 entries) in the Writemovies Screenplay Competition. And to add to this excitement, my friend Domenica (Mima) Hoyes was also in the top 7. The odds of both of us placing in the top 7 of a screenwriting contest are not high given the subjectivity of these competitions. There were prizes for the top 3 positions. The good news: Mima placed 2nd! The bad news (or sad news or what have you): I did not place in the top 3. Once again, so close.
The day I found out the result, I remember going back to my script Walk (which I just finished re-writing, now called Play Ball) and thinking to myself ‘why do I keep doing this?” Well the answer is obvious – I actually like what I do. But there are days when it’s tough to continually find the motivation. These days do not last long, as there is always a new project to get excited about.
Speaking of new projects, Children of Light is my latest theatrical production which is deep in rehearsals. I have been working with two composers who just finished writing music to songs I wrote. The actors are at the stage where they are learning their lines and the play is beginning to take shape. I am a blessed man to be surrounded by people who genuinely care about what they do. I said to my cast the other day that, “you need to be ready, before you’re ready”. This essentially means, the hard work is now, not the week before you open. That last week before you open is saved for putting all the final pieces in place. Children of Light plays Dec 8 & 9.
My brother Adam’s film The Lady of Names, is having a screening on Friday Nov. 9 at 7pm in Hamilton, as a part of the Hamilton Film Festival. Check out their link here. If you have not seen the trailer for The Lady of Names, check it out here. And if you are at all interested in animation (which is what his film is), check out this great interview Adam gave here.
If you are an artist out there, keep striving. Success is doing and keep doing…and hopefully a reward awaits. You never know how close you are.
Congratulations on placing in the top 7! … appreciated reading about your brother’s process in the making of The Lady of Names. Amazing! …. and thanks for the encouragement to “keep doing”. 🙂 At the moment, that is deeply appreciated.
I was mesmerized by the first play I saw that you’d written. The insight, the humor, and the thought provoking world into which you catapulted the audience was spectacular and memorable. Bear in mind for every competition, for every judge, who reflects on your work and prizes something different other than your vantage point, there are thousands of people like me who’s lives you’ve already impacted. What you bring to us is a gift from God, and for sharing it, we say thanks!