I Love To Talk About Screenwriting

I recently had the pleasure of being interviewed by Joe Compton for his excellent web series "Go Indie Now." Most of the interviews that I do center on my experiences as an indie film producer, but my heart is truly in screenwriting. If that's your thing too, check it out at the link below - my part starts at minute 53. Our discussion includes things like why I chose to actually STUDY screenwriting at the New School; my pre-writing process (yeah, that's a thing, at least for me!);  and my first one act play, which was produced by Love Creek in the immediate aftermath of 9/11.

20 Episodes Already....

It's hard to believe we've already released 20 episodes of the web series Big Brain Tweeting, but here it is! The new administration is a comedy gift that keeps on giving.

Carlo Fiorletta and I wrote it from an idea we got from our friend Bruce Kanin - it's inspired by the classic Abbott and Costello routine "Who's On First?"  Carlo stars as Trump, while Randy Johnson debuts as Vladimir Putin and Hilde Skappel returns as Melania.

Updated Script Consulting Web Site

In addition to writing my own screenplays, I have an active consulting business in which I critique and/or re-write other people's scripts. I also adapt short stories and novels into screenplays. My client base ranges from New York City to western Canada, Sweden, and Paris - and I look forward to expanding it further.

Check out my web site, and click "contact me" for more information.

Mara Lesemann Script Consultant

The Comedy Gift That Keeps on Giving

Carlo Fiorletta as Trump

Our new President here in the U.S. is the comedy gift that keeps on giving, so Carlo Fiorletta and I are making the most of a crazy situation. Our web series Big Brain Tweeting is releasing its 9th episode tonight and we've already got several others in the (proverbial) can.

The great Norman Lear described his iconic television series All In The Family as satire rather than comedy, and that's definitely what we aspire to with BBT.

It's been a lot of fun to put together a project that's the complete opposite of making a feature film in terms of equipment and crew, but we've been adding guest actors, musicians, and sound effects as we go forward. Carlo is the lead writer and director, and stars as Trump. I hold the camera, edit, and occasionally write an episode or part of one.

You can check out Big Brain Tweeting on YouTube at this link; if you like it, subscribe! You can also keep up-to-date with new episodes by liking our Facebook page: BBT on Facebook.

New Web Series: Big Brain Tweeting

Here's episode 5 of my latest project, Big Brain Tweeting - it's political satire about you know who :)

Sign up on our new blog to get updates on new episodes and guest stars:
http://bigbraintweeting.blogspot.com/
And follow us on Facebook:
Big Brain Tweeting on Facebook

Fun With Salon Radio & Int'l Women Artists' Salon

l to r: Simi Toledano, Penny Jackson, Marina Zaccaria, & me

It was great fun to be on Thursday night's  Salon Radio show on City World Radio.
I was interviewed by the wonderful Marcina Zaccaria  along with playwright Penny Jackson in an evening curated by Simi Toldenano. The weekly show airs at 8 PM and is re-broadcast at midnight; it's a project of the International Women Artists' Salon.

I followed that up on Saturday night at Dixon Place on NYC's Lower East Side with a presentation for the Salon's monthly performance evening on the theme of Traditions - perfect for the holiday season.  It was a terrific prompt to think about DETOURS feature from a different perspective, and I put together this short video. The first scene (with Richard Kind and Tara Westwood) reflects a cultural tradition of lighting candles and praying or meditating before taking on a challenge. The other clips (which feature Carlo Fiorletta, Kim Director, Ashley Lanzoni, and Paul Sorvino ), illustrate traditions of the (fictional) Giraldi family.

Enjoy the clip, then watch DETOURS on Amazon Prime: tinyurl.com/DETOURS-on-Amazon

Delightful DETOURS Reviews

It's been a joy to see the delightful reviews of DETOURS, both on Amazon Prime, where we're thrilled to release it, and on our IMDB page. It's now available in both the US and the UK, with additional locations expected soon.

These are mong my favorite comments from fans: "what a charmer!" "wonderfully poignant," and "I love uplifting, poignant movies and this is one of those!" Our stars - Tara Westwood and Carlo Fiorletta - are "outstanding" and the supporting cast - which includes Richard Kind, Paul Sorvino, Michael Cerveris, and  Phyllis Somerville - is "delectable."

But this might be the best of all so far: "I am so glad that I purchased this movie as I plan to watch it over and again."

Amazon Prime members watch for free, and rental is just $2.99 for non-members.

Click the link belong to watch and see for yourself.

Detours on Amazon

DETOURS Now on Amazon Prime in the US and the UK!

I'm delighted that my new feature, DETOURS, is now available exclusively on Amazon Prime in the US and the UK!

Prime members can watch for free; rental for non-members starts at $2.99.

I hope you'll check it out, and if you like it, please give it a good rating and review - for indie movies like this one, that truly is our advertising.


Click here to watch DETOURS

DETOURS to be Released on Amazon Prime November 25!

I'm delighted to announce that my 2nd feature film,  DETOURS, will be released on Amazon Prime on Friday November 25! Prime members will be able to watch for free, while rental will start at $2.99 for non-members.

I'll share the Amazon link, as soon as it's available, but it will also be accessible via the IMDB page, as they're owned by Amazon.

DETOURS is a road-trip dramedy about a newly-single New Yorker (played by Tara Westwood ) who re-locates to Florida for a new job. She travels south with her widowed dad (Carlo Fiorletta ) and her mom's ashes in a coffee can. 

The wonderful supporting cast includes Richard Kind, Michael Cerveris, Paul Sorvino, and Phyllis Somerville. The director is Rob McCaskill; I wrote the screenplay and produced it. The wonderful cinematography is by Chris Eadicicco.

The soundtrack features music by Lane Turner,   Michael Cerveris, Jon Lee, Katherine Hughes, and Andre Fratto. 

 Our terrific new poster by photographer David Spagnolo is here too!

I'm delighted to share DETOURS, our story about family, over Thanksgiving weekend,

Photo Shoot for a New DETOURS Poster

As we prepare to launch DETOURS feature on Amazon Prime, we've realized that it's time for a great new poster, so it was a pleasure to spend this past Monday at the Brooklyn studio of photographer David Spagnolo. He did a tremendous job with our 2 stars Tara Westwood and Carlo Fiorletta. It was clear that David had not only watched DETOURS, but he had a great handle on the characters and how to show their essence in a single photo.  I'm very excited to see what he comes up with.

Be sure to check out David's work at www.davidspagnolo.com - his combination of fashion and sports photography is amazing.

More to come soon, including our release date!

DETOURS: Coming Soon to Amazon Prime!

I'm delighted to announce that DETOURS will be released soon exclusively on Amazon Prime! This means that it will be free to watch for members, and available to rent or buy for non-members. I'll post an exact date as soon as I have one.

It's great to be working once again with Distribber on this - they've been terrific with my first feature, Surviving Family, and I'm looking forward to continuing the relationship.

Here's a small taste of Detours - one of my favorite scenes featuring Carlo Fiorletta and Peter Graham, with Tara Westwood at the wheel.

Lower Prices, or the McDonald's Effect

One of the challenges of indie filmmaking - like many other small businesses - is figuring out the best price point for your product.

My first feature, Surviving Family, is available on iTunes and Amazon Prime. Prime members can watch for free but for iTunes and regular Amazon, I set the price. The split is 70/30 for iTunes sales and 60/40 for their rentals; it's 50/50 with Amazon. I work with Distribber for the set up and to collect revenue; they do not take a percentage of sales or rentals.

I recently decided to reduce the rental price in both places to $0.99 - it took a bit of persistence (and help from the Distribber support staff) to make that happen, as it's what the companies consider a "promo" price rather than a "regular" price.

Why did I do it?  For a small movie with some recognizable actors (Billy Magnussen, Tara Westwood, Katherine Hughes, Vincent Pastore, and the wonderful Phyllis Somerville) but that is not widely known to movie watchers, I need people to take a chance with their entertainment budget. I figure $0.99 is the cost of a cup of coffee at McDonald's and a reasonable amount to gamble on an unknown movie.
 
Was this a good move?  I'll let you know in 6 months!

Golden Door Festival Awards & Nominations

Tara Westwood - Best Actress Winner

Carlo Fiorletta - Best Actor Nominee

We had a great DETOURS screening at the Golden Door Film Festival this past weekend, which culminated in terrific recognition at the awards ceremony.

The Loews Jersey City theater is a beautiful movie palace that opened in 1929; it's only been partially restored so far but the lobby is spectacular, the screen is enormous, and the

Richard Kind - Best Supporting Actor Winner

was very good (stereo not Dolby, alas). Our road-trip comedy looked and sounded amazing. A great aspect of the location is that it's across the street from the Journal Square PATH train, which runs from Manhattan, and that's where much of our (very appreciative) audience came from.

The terrific festival wrapped up on Sunday with the awards ceremony: our wonderful star Tara Westwood won the Best Actress award; Carlo Fiorletta, who is equally good as her dad, was nominated for the Best Actor award; and the always excellent Richard Kind received the Best Supporting Actor award.

All in all, it was a very good weekend indeed.

Great DETOURS Screening at The Strand!

We had a great screening of DETOURS on September 18 at the Strand Theater in Lakewood, NJ - it was a terrific return to one of the Ocean County locations where we shot back in October 2014. The team at the Strand was wonderful, both then and now, and I hope to have the opportunity to work with them again.

The crowd included a lot of our wonderful extras, and I was so glad to see that they really enjoyed the movie. It was such fun to actually HEAR when people recognized themselves on the screen.

Photos: 
Top left: Actress Celia Schaefer, director Rob McCaskill, stars/producers Tara Westwood and Carlo Fiorletta, me, and actor Craig Wollman.

Center: Stars and producers Tara Westwood and Carlo Fiorletta

Bottom: Carlo Fiorletta taking photos with our extras in the lobby of the Strand before the screening

Our Return to the Jersey Shore - DETOURS at The Strand, Sunday Sep 18 at 7 PM

Carlo Fiorletta at Bay View Cafe

Tara Westwood & Paul Sorvino

We're very excited to be screening DETOURS at the beautiful Strand Theater in Lakewood, NJ on Sunday September 18 at 7 PM!

It will be almost exactly 2 years since we went into production right here in Ocean County, New Jersey.  Everyone was wonderfully helpful and supportive, and we're thrilled to bring the movie back home.

In addition to shooting at The Strand Theater itself - a gorgeous venue that dates back to the roaring 20's - we hit a lot of great local spots. The photo at the top left is DETOURS star Carlo Fiorletta on a return visit to the delightful Bay View Cafe in Lavallette, with a photo that was taken of him, his co-star Tara Westwood, and director Rob McCaskill by our stills photographer Hank Gans.

At the top right is the wonderful Paul Sorvino with Tara Westwood at another great Jersey Shore location - Charlie's Farm Market in Normandy Beach.

Tickets are $15 in advance at www.strand.org and $20 at the door. Join us on the 18th for a delightful father/daughter road trip comedy from NYC to Florida, with a lot of Jersey beautfy!

Great DETOURS Review

A good review is always a thrill, and I'm especially happy with this one:The Independent Critic on Detours.

It's especially complimentary about our two lead actors: "[DETOURS is] a rather quirky yet relatable piece of cinema that benefits greatly from the co-leading performances of Tara Westwood and Carlo Fiorletta who humanize the film's dramatic and humorous moments with emotionally honest yet laid back performances."

And on our terrific DP: "Chris Eadicicco's lensing is clear and intimate despite the challenges of shooting a road picture on a lower budget."

All in all, it's great to see our entire team, including musicians, get such positive feedback.

Interview With Artist Carson Grant

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing artist  Carson Grant about his upcoming shows at the pop-up gallery 11 Kenmare Street. You can check it out here:

Interview With an Artist

DETOURS Nominated for Best Picture at AOF; Will Screen Saturday Sept 3

I'm absolutely thrilled that DETOURS has been nominated for the Best Picture award at the 12th annual Action on Film (AOF) festival! Our screening will be on Saturday September 3 at the beautiful Krikorian 12 Movie Theater in Monrovia, CA; tickets are available HERE.

I've been a part of AOF as both a writer and a filmmaker since 2007 when my very first short, Albert and Mandy, screened there. Founder and Festival Director Del Weston has done a great job of developing the festival since its earliest years, when movies screened at the Long Beach Convention Center (and I was overjoyed to be there!).

If you're in the area - Monrovia is just 45 minutes north of L.A. - I hope you'll come out to see DETOURS on the big screen.

DETOURS in Jersey City - Saturday Sept 24 at 4 PM

Historic Loews Theater in JC

I'm very excited to announce that DETOURS will screen at the historic Loew's Theater in Jersey City, NJ on Saturday afternoon September 24 at 4:00 PM. It will be part of the 6th annual Golden Door International Film Festival.

The theater is directly across the street from the Journal Square PATH train station, so I'm hoping to see lots of NYC friends as well as Jersey City people there - and yes, the PATH accepts your Metro card :)

Click the link below to buy tickets - they're just $10.

DETOURS at the Golden Door

The Strand Theater - More Prep & Promotion for DETOURS screening

Exterior

Fran Whitney of the Strand Staff

Today's DETOURS project was a visit to the beautiful Strand Theater in Lakewood, NJ, which is where we'll have our New Jersey premiere! We shot a great scene there - through the magic of cameras and editing, Tara Westwood and Carlo Fiorletta walk through a theater entrance in Florida (the The Palladium Theatre in Saint Petersburg, FL) and the subsequent interior scene is in the Strand. This beautifully restored theater was built in 1922 and is a national historic landmark.

I dropped off our posters for the event, tested the hard drive with their tech guru (it worked, always a good sign!), and got a tour from the delightful Fran Whitney.

DETOURS screens at the Strand on Sunday evening September 18 at 7 PM; tickets are $15 in advance at www.strand.org or $20 at the door. The address is 400 Clifton Avenue, Lakewood, NJ. There's a municipal parking lot across the street.