Nino Ricci & Paul Quarrington Review 2008 Moving Stories Films

Curator Paul Quarrington speaks with Film Advisor Nino Ricci about the page-to-screen film adaptations represented  in the Moving Stories Films 2008 program.

 

A LETTER TO COLLEEN: Dir. Andy London / USA / 8:30 / Fiction / Based on the graphic novel A Letter to Christine by Andy London - Haunted by the events of his 18^th birthday, Andy London writes a letter to Colleen in an attempt to put his demons to rest.

 

THE CAVE: Dir. Michael Ramsey / USA / 3:00 / Fiction / Based on The Republic by Plato - An evocative claymation adaptation of the allegory of the cave, a classic commentary on the human condition.

 

NO BIKINI: Dir. Claudia Morgado Escanilla / Canada / 9:00 / Fiction Based on the short story “No Bikini: included in the collection Close to Spider Man by Ivan E. Coyote, Published by Arsenal Pulp Press - A young girl pretending to be a boy discovers the freedom that comes with no bikini.

 

PAVANE: Dir. Paul Quarrington / Canada / 5:30 / Fiction / Based on the novel The Ravine by Paul Quarrington - Connected by debilitating memories, bottomless drinks, and the pretense of being strangers, Phil and Jay play out a darkly comic ritual in an effort to redeem themselves, and each other, of a terrifying childhood incident.

 

THE GARGOYLE: Sei’s Story: Dir. Bert Kish / USA / 5:30 / Docu-Drama / Based on the novel The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson Published by Doubleday US / Random House of Canada - Author Andrew Davidson recounts the story of Sei, a beautiful Japanese glassblower caught in a dilemma of love and loyalty.

 

Shot live on location at the Vancouver International Writers Festival.  Thanks Hal!

 

© 2008 BookShorts Literacy Program

 

Adapting

By Ken Tsui
Director of Soucouyant

It was early on a sunny afternoon when Judith Keenan of Book Shorts called with the exciting news. I was on a bus ride home when she called and amidst the roar of traffic, I managed to hear her tell me that we had won the competition.

We went to work immediately and realized quickly the elaborate process involved with adapting a one page treatment in to five pages of script. The first draft came quickly but felt like a scattershot burst of all the ideas bottled up from the days we waited anxiously to hear if we had won the competition. As we progressed through the drafts, Brittany and I received valuable feedback from peers and supportive members of Book Shorts such as Judith and Paul Quarrington. As we received critiques, we in turn churned out new drafts, removing dialogue, adding scenes and even at one point eliminating a character. After more than a month of constant revision, the first draft feels like a lifetime ago and has become six pages of embarrassing script we retrospectively laugh at. 

How it all started

It all began when my roommate Choo-Kien Kua spotted a posting for the Moving Stories competition on the Emily Carr website. Knowing that I was a film maker, he immediately sent me the link and needless to say the opportunity to adapt one of three well respected literary works piqued my interest. I enthusiastically began to read the books and kept in mind interesting elements that would be useful for the adaptation. After a week of reading and research, my enthusiasm began to wane as the reality of condensing a novel with an involved narrative into a terse three minute short film became a daunting task. Most of my free time was spent wearing down the delete key on my computer as a brainstormed for ideas. It wasn’t until I began to collaborate with my friend Brittany Junek were we able to finally decide on adapting David Chariandy’s novel Soucoyant. Brittany had read the novel previously and her understanding of the it immediately propelled the project out of ennui. With only several days before the deadline, Brittany and I hurriedly put together a treatment which we were very excited about. We sent it off at the eleventh hour and waited anxiously for a reply.

 - Ken Tsui, Filmmaker & Winner of the Emily Carr / Vancouver International Writers’ Fest Competition

 

Ken Tsui, Brittany Junek Guest Bloggers

Congratulations to Ken Tsui and Brittany Junek, winners of the Moving Stories MAKE A FILM ON OUR DIME Competition. They will work with author and filmmaker Paul Quarrington and producer Judith Keenan to translate their creative treatment of David Chariandy’s Soucouyant into a short film.  Their film will premiere on October 25 along with the cull curated Moving Stories Film screening.

Read Ken and Brittany’s blog here to follow their progress!

Ken Tsui is a 23-year old from Vancouver, British Columbia currently studying film and media at the Emily Carr University of Art and Design. Recently participating in Vancouver Asian Film Festival with two films co-directed with Jeff Chan, Ken continues to balance his studies with his work in short film.

Brittany Junek graduated from Emily Carr in 2008, specializing in painting, textiles and the incorporation of language into visual art. Since graduation she has focused her energies namely in writing, including short stories and free verse poetry.

 

The program is sponsored by Emily Carr Institure of Art + Design and Vancouver International Writers Festival.

Moving Stories Screening At Festivals Near You

2008 Confirmed Event Dates

Sep 28
Winnipeg, MB
THIN AIR 2008: Winnipeg International Writers Festival
http://www.winnipegwords.com

Oct 17-18
St. John’s, NL
St. John’s International Women’s Film Festival
http://www.womensfilmfestival.com

Oct 22
Ottawa, ON
Ottawa International Writers Festival Fall Edition
http://www.writersfestival.org

Oct 14
Banff 5nd Calgary, AB
WordFest: Banff-Calgary International Writers Festival
http://www.wordfest.com

Oct 25
Vancouver, BC
Vancouver International Writers Festival
http://www.writersfest.bc.ca

November 26
Toronto, ON
Pages Books & Music “This IS Not A Reading Series”
http://pagesbooks.ca/events.php?type=event&id=250

More Canadian and US host venues to be announced. Contact judith@bookshorts.com to request preview DVD and to enquire about hosting an event in your area, your library or bookstore!