This last Thursday, I finished the second draft of Sam Bailey, and while it looks a little like a house that's being gutted and renovated, I like where it's going.  In this draft, I created a nearly limitless well of comic opportunity, cut the budget significantly, made the whole thing easier, and gave it a much more entertaining and open feel.  I've mentioned John Irving as a constant touchstone, and I maintain that while Cider House Rules comes the closest, no movie has really captured the flavor of his films.

In many ways, the fantasy and reality of John Irving's world harkens the light but deep touch of filmmakers like Almodovar.  Can you imagine something like Volver with a Boston accent?  In some ways, that's what both Heartsgaard and Sam Bailey are going for, although Heartsgaard can afford to be just a bit more manic getting there, and as a result, has a higher budget.  This one leaves the filmmaker with no place to run but the performers, which is what a directorial debut should be all about.  I tell folks I come from the theater.  Time to put my mouth where that money is!

Right now, I've got some theater friends and a handful of others checking out the second draft of Sam Bailey, while I get into the rough draft of The Judgment of Elizabeth Sawyer - something I've been reluctant to write in the past, and which I am now beginning to feel pulled towards.  Parts of it are going to get messy, and it has some extreme content...  and I think that may make it marketable as a spec script.  Eclipse satisfies me as a director, and I don't need two apocalypse movies.  At the same time, Judgment is a fantastic story, and puts some twists into the Western genre that haven't been seen before, even with all the recent interest in zombie westerns and such.  In so many ways, the Wild West must have felt like the end days...  For Elizabeth, they will be. 

What I love about the script is how iconographic it is, and at the same time how human.  Producers love that.  They also love new twists on an old formula.  Will I twist too hard for them to recognize it?  Only one way to find out!