HollyShorts 2018 - Giveaway
While officiating his friends’ wedding, a man realizes his feelings for the bride.
Interview with Writer/Director Selena Lane
Watch Giveaway here:
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
A year ago, while attending a wedding, I thought about how odd it would be to officiate a wedding when you’ve always had a crush on the bride or groom (for the record, this wasn’t the case at the wedding—this is just where my mind goes when I’m waiting for an event to start!). This thought developed into the basic premise of Giveaway: a man, Garrett, officiates the wedding of his childhood friend, and during the course of his speech, he realizes his feelings for her. I knew I wanted this story to be told simply by focusing just on the speech and the journey he goes through in giving it. I’m so interested in exploring onscreen the ways that people would genuinely behave within given circumstances. Garrett wouldn’t want to make a fuss; he’d have to just endure.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
You get to see the incredible Jay Ellis do some amazing work up close! The entire short is actually shot as a close up on Garrett, so as the audience, we don’t see what his character is experiencing; we just see how he’s experiencing it, and how he has to get through that. That was particularly interesting to me in a wedding setting, where all eyes are on the altar. Garrett doesn’t have the luxury of privacy, even when he’s not speaking.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
Giveaway is a simple story, but a relatable one. I think many people can relate to a circumstance where they’ve had to fight through the urge to give into a strong emotion. And of course, at its core, this is a love story without a happy ending for Garrett. In that way, the short is really about being honest with yourself and realizing that you have to let go.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
Originally, this project was simply something I wanted to get on film. I wrote this script a year ago on a slow afternoon at my day job at the time, and I thought I would film it with some friends outside my apartment building one Saturday! Amazingly, incredibly wonderful people kept coming on board, and the production developed into something larger. Needless to say, I am very, very grateful.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
It’s been powerful to see viewers get emotionally affected by the film. Making people feel something is the whole point of storytelling for me. I don’t want to say I’m happy if I make someone cry… but I’m pretty happy if the film makes someone cry!
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
I’m a new filmmaker, so visibility never hurts in the big picture. However, I also hope people—particularly other new or aspiring filmmakers— can read about the background and development of this short and ideally feel less intimidated by making something themselves.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
We’re in the festival circuit right now, so we’d love to screen at more festivals to get more eyes on the film in the next year.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
Lots of tears! No, I just hope it resonates with viewers in a way that makes them think “I’ve felt a version of that way before.”
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
I don’t know if this is a key question, but my favorite thing to think about is whose perspective the lyrics to the final song are from—when you listen to them, they could be from any of the three characters. I loved that about the song, and it opens up the conversation about the film beyond Garrett’s perspective. We don’t know much about the backstory of the characters beyond Garrett’s speech, but I think the final song lyrics can help give everyone more of a voice beyond what’s permissible to say in a wedding speech.
Would you like to add anything else?
Before I made this short, I had been feeling like making a short film was very unattainable—there was so much I didn’t know. I decided to write a script that could specifically be filmed on an ultra-low budget in a single day. It’s still unbelievable to me that so many talented people have wanted to be a part of this project. It wasn’t something I expected or even anticipated. My advice to anyone who is intimidated by production is to just go for it. There’s no way to skip your first project. You just have to dive in!
Additionally, and on a different topic-- almost all of the production heads on our crew were women. That was great.
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
I am working on a developing a digital series and writing a feature.
Interview: August 2018
We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela
Giveaway
While officiating his friends’ wedding, a man realizes his feelings for the bride.
Length: 6 minutes
Director: Selena Lane
Producer: Karina Rahardja, Lauren Avinoam, Jed Mellick Writer: Selena Lane
About the writer, director and producer:
SELENA LANE worked as an assistant to Alan Yang ("Master of None") and Andrea Savage ("I'm Sorry") after moving to Los Angeles from Boston via St. Louis, before turning her focus fully to writing and directing, where she’s interested in bringing small emotional moments to the forefront of the big screen.
Key cast: Jay Ellis, Julie Craig, Bobby Foley
Looking for: film festival directors
Facebook: Bean Prod Film
Twitter: @beanprodfilm
Instagram: @beanprodfilm
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month?
Our world premiere will be at Hollyshorts Film Festival on August 14th.