Thursday, February 22, 2007

I spent the afternoon at Le Grand Flirt, an event Telefilm organized to put producers together with writers who've written screenplays (or treatments) in the Telefilm-funded Writers First Program. Ten producers, ten screenwriters, one hundred rencontres.

My throat is sore from pitching three projects every fifteen minutes.

It says something about the system in Québec that I knew two out of the ten producers. Granted two of them produce only in French, but that still leaves six I'd never met, although I've been here six years and I don't exactly have a low profile. So blessings on Telefilm's governmental head that they organized this. It does no good to fund scripts if the producers don't ever see them. (Number of Québec producers who have called me because I co-wrote the film that broke the Canadian box office for a Canadian film: 0.)

I got to meet Kim McCraw, who produced the film that grabbed the Jutra for Best Film and Best Director and a bunch of other Bests. And a bunch of fellow screenwriters I didn't know, because they don't come to the annual WGC cocktail party.

My French is definitely getting better. I had about half my conversations in French, and didn't feel I was stumbling too much over my vocabulary. I'm still lost when I have to listen to a conversation, but I can hold my own one-on-one.

I was particularly tickled that no one didn't want to read my romantic comedy just because I want to direct the sucker.

This evening I'm following up with everyone, emailing scripts. Let's see what comes of it.

Labels: Alex, free money, this writing life

6:11 PM

1 Comments:

Hey Alex, congrats!

I hope you can make Canadian films more entertaining (like you did for Bon Cop). :)

By  Unknown, at 8:29 AM  

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