We spoke to Jordan Hall to find out more about how her creative mind works and the idea of building a romantic comedy mixed with apocalyptic themes came to be.

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Can you start by telling us a little bit about you and How to Survive an Apocalypse?

I’m a playwright and screenwriter in Vancouver, British Columbia. I’m probably most recognized for my previous play, Kayak, which is about climate change and activism and not getting along with your mother-in-law—and in a lot of ways How to Survive an Apocalypse is a follow-up to that: A romantic comedy about preppers and hipsters and the looming spectre of the Apocalypses (whether personal, professional, or global) that await us all.

What was the inspiration for the story?

Plays tend to creep up on me. How to Survive emerged out of the collision of a lot of things I was experiencing and observing back in 2013 and 2014—There had been this resurgence of apocalyptic ideation (with movies like This is the End, It’s a Disaster, and Seeking a Friend for the End of the World), which crashed into the new visibility of the Prepper movement in mainstream culture, and the pressure of scarcity and growing inequality on the prospects for the current cohort of young adults—all of that sort of smashed together into the kernel of the play. I could see this young couple, who’d felt like they had such a promising life ahead of them, having to grapple with adulthood in the pressures of this environment—and turning to prepping as kind of an escape valve to avoid dealing with the spectres of personal and professional failure. And maybe I just have a really bleak sense of humour, but that seemed hilarious to me.

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What should audiences expect to see on stage?

A romantic comedy for the End of Days. A kind of heightened portrait of where I think people my age (and a little older and a little younger) find themselves as they face the challenges of maturity. And probably some of the least effective survival training anyone has ever seen.

What was your writing process like in creating the script?

You mean beyond: Get up, Make Tea, Open Laptop, Clutch Head?

Whenever I can, I like to engage in practical research. While I was writing How to Survive, I went through the process of getting my hunting license, took urban and rural survival courses, and even started a permaculture certificate—all to get a solid material sense of the world of prepping and survivalism.

Much of my actual writing process is really about drilling down into character. One of my biggest projects as a writer is the creation of female characters, and in particular female protagonists, who are afforded the same degree of agency and psychological scope as their male counterparts. A real challenge in How to Survive was to take the figure of the rom-com heroine, a figure that’s frequently use to reinforce unfortunate tropes about female behaviour, and to try to build a character in Jen who feels like a real person, grappling with failure and disappointment and the difficulties of navigating relationships between feminist ideals and the lingering expectations of entrenched patriarchy.

What advice would you offer to aspiring playwrights?

Be utterly, hopelessly in love with theatre. There are a lot of ways you can become a writer, a lot of ways you can become an artist—If you’re going to write plays, do it because there’s something essential about the communion with the audience that happens in that space, about the potential for magic inherent in the unity of space and time, about the flexibility the form affords to really experiment with the relationship between form and content. Write plays because you want, more than anything, the space to play with those things. The space to be as fearless as possible.

What was the biggest challenge for you in writing the play and how did you deal with it?

This was actually one of those rare plays that came together structurally quite early in the process, possibly because I knew I wanted to play with the comedy of remarriage as a genre, and that offered this amazing structural template. Which isn’t to say we didn’t push hard in workshop, driving for the moments of realism that keep the content of the play in tension with that structure—and that is absolutely where the alchemy of the play lives for me.

What’s the most rewarding element for you about writing?

I think what I love most about writing is the space it opens up for you to be deeply interested in so many things: I’ve written plays about fairy tales and climate change and particle physics and each of them was an opportunity to learn so much about a whole new world. I love the chance to try to empathize with characters whose psychology is very different from my own, to dig at the knotty, gnarly heart of the problems that they live with. I love the way writing is always an attempt to understand the infinite complexities of the world.

Also the jokes. There’s very little in the world that’s as fulfilling as an audience laughing at your jokes.

What plays, books, and authors have been influential in your career so far?

Tom Stoppard. I’m continually in awe of the way he merges the intellectually rigorous and the entertaining. Yasmina Reza, who creates comedies that are so incisive about both the hypocrisy and the human heart of privilege. I really love both Charlie Kaufman and The Coen Brothers for the ways they’re engaging with genre. And Shaw. Always, always George Bernard Shaw.

What other projects are you involved with at the moment?

I’m currently writing Season 3 of Carmilla: The Series for ubykotex and SmokeBomb Entertainment. I’m also working on a play about our relationship to biodiversity and manmade extinction called Rate of Loss, for Up in the Air Theatre. And it’s pretty new—but I was just lucky enough to be awarded a commission with Western Canada Theatre for what I’m thinking of as a “nursing home revenge comedy” called The Smallwood Solution.

Where can we find out more about you and How to Survive an Apocalypse?

I can be found online at JordanHall.ca and @save_my_script on Twitter.

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Thanks to Jordan Hall for speaking with us!

How to Survive an Apocalypse is on from June 2nd until June 11th the Firehall Arts Centre. For tickets, please visit  tickets.firehallartscentre.ca.

The post The Biz Interview: Jordan Hall appeared first on Biz Books.

One of the most anticipated films is The Birdwatcher from director Siobhan Devine, which premieres on March 9th and features Gabrielle Rose and Camille Sullivan in the lead roles.

The script for The Birdwatcher comes from the creative mind of accomplished Canadian screenwriter Roslyn Muir, who spoke to us about the film and her approach to screenwriting.

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Can you start by telling us a little bit about you and The Birdwatcher?

I’m a Vancouver writer. I mostly write movies-of-the-week and features, and do a bit of teaching in UBC’s Creative Writing Program. The Birdwatcher is having its Vancouver premiere at the Vancouver International Women in Film Festival. I’m especially proud and excited that we’re screening at VIWIFF as I was a programmer of the festival several years ago and it’s become a gem of a festival and big supporter of female filmmakers.

What can audiences expect from the film?

It’s an intimate story. It’s a mother-daughter story. It’s a story about family.

What was the inspiration behind the script?

We all go through loss at some point in our lives and when I lost my sister to cancer it propelled me to write about it. While The Birdwatcher is not a “cancer film”, it’s a fact in the protagonist’s (Saffron) life and there are aspects of my sister in her character. I was also inspired to use the theme of bird watching as I’m captivated by wildlife in the urban setting and can’t seem to get away from it in my work as well.

What was your writing process like in creating it?

I have often retreated to writing as a way to ignore the personal tragedies of life. It has helped in the healing process. I had the idea for the film at the same time I was doing an MFA in Creative Writing at UBC. I wrote drafts of it and workshopped it in Maureen Medved’s Grad Screenwriting class. The script went through many changes and the workshop feedback was inspirational.

I think the biggest thing in writing is not being afraid to try something radical. I switched protagonists and told the story from a different character’s perspective. It worked. Saffron had more agency and I could dig deeper into her psyche and mine it. I wrote drafts with and without the kids in the story. It’s a lot of work taking characters out and putting them back in again, but in the early drafts you’re chasing the story. It needs to resonate on a level that moves people.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of screenwriting for you?

Writing’s really about process. Yes, it’s great to see the film completed and up on the screen, but showing up on the page every day is a big challenge and I’ve really worked on the discipline of becoming a working writer. I work every day. It comes first. If I’m not on a script, then I’m developing ideas, writing every idea down and seeing where they fit with other ideas.

What advice would you give to aspiring screenwriters?

The more you write, the more you write. For me it’s always been easier to write than not write. I get antsy if I don’t write every day. Write, even if it’s for 30 minutes. Write anything.

Don’t give up.

Define your style. What sort of writer are you? What’s your genre? If you don’t know, ask someone to read a few of your scripts. Once you know that, you can hone it and play to your strengths.

What screenwriters do you most appreciate?

Geez. This is a big question. So many great writers out there. I love Jane Campion and Charlie Kaufman. Canadian screenwriters are doing really well in TV, Dennis Heaton (Motive), Tassie Cameron (Rookie Blue) and Semi Chellas (Mad Men) are all stand outs.

What books have been influential in your creative journey so far?

I read a lot of screenwriting books. I tend to go to them if I’m stuck or mulling a problem. I read them over and over. Usually it dislodges something in me and I can solve the problem. I like the Save the Cat books by Blake Snyder. They really dissect the plot and make the structure more manageable.

What other projects are you involved with right now?

Another bird themed movie! Director/producer Siobhan Devine and I are developing a family feature about a lost flamingo and the dysfunctional family who finds it. The Harold Greenberg Fund has funded the development of the project and we’re getting closer to a final script. We’re also in development of a one hour dramatic/supernatural procedural. And I have a new MOW that should be in production soon.

Where can we find out more about you and The Birdwatcher?

RoslynMuir.com and TheBirdwatcherMovie.com.

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Thanks to Roslyn Muir for speaking with us!

See it at the Vancouver International Women in Film Festival on March 9th at 8:30PM!

Tickets available through VIFF.org.

The post The Biz Interview: Roslyn Muir appeared first on Biz Books.

Film Details

Michael Stone, husband, father and respected author of “How May I Help You Help Them?” is a man crippled by the mundanity of his life. On a business trip to Cincinnati, where he’s scheduled to speak at a convention of customer service professionals, he checks into the Fregoli Hotel. There, he is amazed to discover a possible escape from his desperation in the form of an unassuming Akron baked goods sales rep, Lisa, who may or may not be the love of his life. A beautifully tender and absurdly humorous dreamscape, from the brilliant minds of Charlie Kaufman (Synecdoche, New York) and Duke Johnson (Community episode, “Abed’s Uncontrollable Christmas”), this stop-motion animation wonder features the vocal cast of Jennifer Jason Leigh, Tom Noonan and David Thewlis and a stirring strings-based score by Carter Burwell.  The darkly comedic and surreal stop-motion journey of a man’s long night of the soul, Anomalisa confirms Charlie Kaufman’s place amongst the most important of American filmmakers, and announces Duke Johnson as a major creative force.

In select theatres January 15th, 2016.

Anomalisa.com

Screening Details

Date: Thursday, January 14th, 2015

Theatre: Fifth Avenue Cinemas

*you must be 19 years of age or older for admittance to this theatre

Time: 7pm

How to Enter

Please send an e-mail to info@bizbooks.net and please include this information:

• Your Name

• Your E-mail Address

• Your Phone Number

• “Anomalisa Movie Contest” in the subject line

Winners will be selected at random and will be contacted by e-mail.

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The post Anomalisa Movie Contest appeared first on Biz Books.

Glengarry Glen Ross is their latest production, which opens on June 6th at the Beaumont Stage. We spoke with Christina Wells Campbell to find out more about what Classic Chic Productions is and what it’s bringing to the Vancouver artistic community.

Can you start by telling us about how Classic Chic Productions got started?

I wrote a blog post about that very thing which you can read here. That’s the long answer. The short answer, and it’s less altruistic than you might expect, is that I really wanted to play Iago and realized the only way for me to be able to do that was to have a company where women played all the parts.

Of course there are great women’s roles in the classics, but so many of them (particularly in Shakespeare) are pleading for their lives, begging for justice, or goading men to act on their behalf; from Beatrice in Much Ado About Nothing’s “Oh, that I were a man!” to even Lady M’s “When you durst do it, then you were a man” I wanted to be able to explore parts where the characters have agency in their lives—where they make choices based on their own motivations and desires—even if (or especially if?) the consequences of those choices turns out badly.

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2nd Edition Click a cover for more details Empire of the Son Ignite: Illuminating Theatre
For Young People

What do you want actors in your productions and audiences who see them to come away feeling after experiencing a Classic Chic production?

I want the actors to come away with a better understanding of how men (in general) are in the world. It’s proved to be both a fascinating and a powerful thing to feel what it’s like to put on the costume of man because it points also to how we put on the costume of woman. Men (again in general) tend to occupy more physical and energetic space than women. They state their positions without apology. They are better at letting the world know what they want. And being able or not able to do those things has repercussions for women – from having your voice heard at a board table to having your testimony believed in court.

I want the audiences to feel that too. But I also want them to be taken along for the ride—to forget the gimmick of it being an all-woman cast and be engrossed in the story.

What can you tell us about the upcoming production of Glengarry Glen Ross?

It’s going to be good. It’s vicious, funny, and a little heartbreaking.

What are the biggest challenges with running a theatre production company today and how do you deal with them?

Same as it ever was: money, time and space and not enough of any of those. We’ve dealt with them through ulcers, insomnia and general anxiety. No, I jest. We deal by having small budgets, getting things donated or in-kind and putting great people on the tasks of fundraising and marketing. The key to most things in life is relationships – making connections with people you like and respect and building a network that eventually becomes like another family.

Are there any books or specific authors that have been influential to you so far in your creative journey?

As far as influencing my creative self and spiritual self, I look to these books.

• Women Who Run with the Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estes
• On Becoming an Alchemist by Catherine MacCoun
• The Creative Habit by Twyla Tharp
• How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big by Scott Adams

Other authors and playwrights I love are: Morris Panych, Christopher Durang, Zach Helm, Charlie Kaufman, Robertson Davies, Jane Urquhart, and Carol Shields.

What can you share about any future projects that are in development?

Still evolving. I’m afraid there’s not much to report on that front. Soon though. Soon!

Where can we find out more about Classic Chic?

The Official Site, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.

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Glengarry Glen Ross runs from June 6th through June 27th at the Beaumont Stage. For ticket information, please visit TicketsTonight. You can also support the production through its Indiegogo campaign.

The post The Biz Interview: Christina Wells Campbell of Classic Chic Productions appeared first on Biz Books.

Can you briefly walk us through your creative process for the writing this film and also acting in it?

The writing began several years ago working with my co-writer, Kelly Harms. We would meet a couple times a week for a few hours, pretty light duty, until we had a first draft. It actually took a long time because we were both concentrating on other things the whole time. Eventually Kelly decided he didn’t want to work on the project anymore and I took the script to Bruce McDonald (director), Dan Bekerman and Cher Hawrysh (producers). Once they were involved I did many rewrites in a pretty short amount of time, addressing their notes and concerns as well as those of our eventual financier. At first the creative process was purely creative, just riffing with Kelly and making scenes up. We drew from books, news events and movies we liked and thought were a good match. Later on, working on my own and with Dan, Bruce and Cher, it was more about editing. Refining the ideas from three years ago and making picking the ones that are relevant. I don’t have any specific creative process for acting. Just think about it, decide how the character is and try to live with that for as long as possible before shooting. Know your lines. It was actually kind of difficult for me to concentrate on the acting sometimes because I was so involved with the production. I was going to casting sessions and location scouts a couple days before shooting began. Once we started shooting I tried to remember that I had to be Henry Andreas and not to worry about whether or not we got the right colour rental car for what we were going to shoot the next day.

What themes and ideas do you want the audience to think about
from watching the film?

I would like them to think about forgiveness, culpability, and the powerlessness you have to change irrevocable events. The movie is a character portrayal of a man unable to find a solution for his problem and unable to find a satisfying person to blame and therefore to punish. He takes on some of this blame in order to move on and continue with his life.

What was the most challenging part of the writing process?

Waiting around for months and months while people and production companies and financiers who initially showed interest deliberated behind closed doors. Writing is fun. Editing is fun. Waiting to eventually hear “we don’t think people will relate to Henry, he’s not ‘likeable’” is frustrating.

What was the most challenging part of the acting process?

In this particular case, as I mentioned above, the difficulty was being part of the crew and part of the cast. I wish I had had more time to concentrate on some of the scenes before shooting them, and that I was less distracted on set. Everybody did their best to facilitate this but I felt compelled to be involved in everything since I had been the motor behind the project since day one. In other projects I do not write I find it very difficult to deliver a joke I do not think is funny. It is like unwrapping a [crappy] present in front of the person who got it for you and pretending you like it.

From your perspective, what are the keys to creating effective drama in a script?

Make things feel authentic. Jettison cliché and corny tropes. Do your research when research needs to be done and make sure you are not writing simulacrum. Don’t be too careful about offending people. Let the character lead the story.

Who are your major inspirations for writing?

I like a lot of writer-directors such as Noah Baumbach, The Dardenne Brothers, Michael Haneke, Woody Allen, Leos Carax, Nicole Holofcener, Andrea Arnold, Mike Leigh, John Cassavetes, Charlie Kaufman, P.T. Anderson, Armando Iannucci… too many to name. Fiction I am inspired by is work by Denis Johnson (Tree of Smoke), Jonathan Littell (The Kindly Ones), Ben Marcus (The Flame Alphabet and short fiction), William Faulkner, Carson Mell, Bruce Chatwin, Hemingway, Georges Bataille. I am not sure these were all influential in writing of The Husband but they are people I draw daily inspiration from.

What about acting?

I like Sam Rockwell, John Hawkes, Ben Mendelsohn, Isabelle Huppert, Philippe Noiret, Gérard Depardieu (circa 1981), Jean Louis Trintignant, James Gandolfini, Sally Hawkins.

Are there any authors or specific books that have been influential in your creative development?

See above. Plus Sigmund Freud and The New Yorker.

What is the biggest obstacle facing writers and actors today?

Attempting to blandly satisfy what they think is expected of them. Making dreck. Copying bullshit they see on insipid TV and movies. Bad taste!

What advice would you offer to actors who also want to write?

Try to be original while thinking of your audience. Don’t write something exclusively for you to watch or perform because you like it. If you’re going to copy something, copy something good.

Are there any upcoming projects that you’re working on that you’d like to mention?

I am working on another feature called Pushing Rope about a lousy stand-up comedian and the woman he loves. I have written the script and I am now looking for the right producer to take it to the next step. I intend to direct it but have considered finding an fitting director as an option. I have a couple short films in the works and have started writing another feature, yet untitled. I am always auditioning and acting in other productions, shooting a movie this summer.

The Husband is now playing at The Cinematheque.

The post The Biz Interview: Actor-Writer Maxwell McCabe-Lokos of The Husband appeared first on Biz Books.

These days, she’s busy with her newest film role in Down River, which premieres in Vancouver at the Vancouver International Film Festival. Jennifer talked to us about the film, her growing career, and her time at Biz Books.

Tell us about Down River and what audiences can look forward to.

Down River is a very special project to us. It was inspired by Ben Ratner’s close friendship with Babz Chula who passed on before her time. While the film is classified as a drama, there are many comedic moments and we think folks will identify with its universal themes. Our hope is that audiences will come away feeling inspired to create value and connection and live their lives in the best way that they can.

How did you become involved in the film and what was your creative process like throughout the production of the film?

I became involved through the very convenient situation that I’m married to the director! My creative process started out with the basic questions an actor asks themselves about their character. Then Ben, Gloria (wardrobe) and I worked together to choose what outfits felt most like “Aki”. That was hugely helpful in getting a feel for her. The glasses we ended up using belonged to Babz. We actually used a ton of Babz’s stuff for the film: much of her clothing for Helen Shaver’s character “Pearl”, items from her apartment and Gabrielle, Colleen and I each wore one of her signature bracelets. The way Ben then guided me in going deeper and telling Aki’s story was such an amazing experience for me- he’s the kind of director every actor wants to work with. I trusted him completely and not just because of our relationship. Everyone did. He’s really good at what he does. To be exceptional in one artistic discipline is admirable enough but to be exceptional in many (directing, writing, acting, teaching, painting, making music) is a very rare thing and he actually is. OK, I sound like I’m gushing but it’s all true!

What are the key similarities and differences between you and your character, Aki? How did you address those as an actor?

I think we’re similar in that we’re both pretty nerdy, introverted and weird. Maybe I’m not quite as cripplingly shy in real life so I guess I had to “turn up” that part of myself that is.

What was the biggest challenge for you in this film?

There’s a scene where I had to dance drunkenly and bizarrely and sexually in front of a crowd so yeah I’d say there was some major fear involved in that.

What were your reasons for getting involved with acting to begin with?

I wanted to do it primarily because I really wanted to affect people- make them feel something, change them in some small way. And to me, stories and art were the way to do that. That’s what’s always affected me the most and helped me to understand what it means to be human. I wanted to help other people understand that too.

You’ve had a successful mix between television and film roles. As an actor, what do you enjoy about each medium?

I love the intimacy of both. For the actors and the audience. With film, it’s almost even more intimate than TV because the screen is so huge so the audience is really getting EVERYTHING. But with TV, more can happen in a way. There are more possibilities of how characters can develop as you evolve them through episodes and often, seasons.

Who are the performers, writers, or directors that have been influential to you?

Oh man- where to start? Gary Oldman, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Bryan Cranston, Meryl Streep, Catherine Keener, Julianne Moore, Judd Apatow, Charlie Kaufman, John Hughes, the list goes on!

Are there any books or specific authors that have been influential to you so far in your creative journey?

Many! When I first started out I remember finding The Actor’s Survival Kit which is written specifically for Canadian actors. That helped demystify the business for me. It seems like I’m always in various stages of re-reading The Intent to Live especially when I need help deepening a character. Writing Down the Bones is an amazing book on writing and the creative process and really made me realize just how important practice is to bettering oneself as an artist. Other ones that resonated with me are: The Actor’s Audition Checklist, The War of Art and I just finished reading Judi Dench’s And Furthermore which I devoured in three sittings.

Speaking of books, you were part of the Biz Books team at our old Vancouver location. How did your experience at Biz Books influence your career?

Honestly if it weren’t for Catherine Lough Haggquist, I probably wouldn’t still be in the business. Her wisdom and insight into the industry and her belief in me made me believe I could do it. I was/am lucky to have a mentor and friend like her. It’s way too easy to go crazy in this business unless you have someone you trust who has a lot of experience in it and can help point you in the right direction. When I worked at Biz, it was like we had a built-in support system. We were all like-minded friends who ran lines with each other and covered each other’s shifts when we had an audition or gig. I was very fortunate to “find my tribe”. Not to mention being surrounded by every book and resource I could possibly need to help me on my actor’s journey!

What is the most important advice you could offer to aspiring actors in Canada?

Make sure you’re always working on your craft in some way. Work hard at it. Class is usually the best way to do that. You need to be ready for when opportunities come and it keeps you engaged and reminded of why you do it. Surround yourself with like-minded, genuine people. It can be a lonely, bewildering profession so find your tribe. Don’t be an actor unless you absolutely have to and are willing to be persistent through the ups and downs.

What can you share about any future projects that are in development?

We start shooting the third season of Continuum in November so can’t wait for that! Also I found myself really fascinated with the post-production process of making Down River so would like to learn more about editing and setting up shots- maybe get involved in the technical aspects of filmmaking as well.

Watch for Down River at the Vancouver International Film Festival and visit the official site for the film at DownRiverMovie.com.

The post The Biz Interview: Jennifer Spence of Down River appeared first on Biz Books.