Santa Barbara International Film Festival / Oregon Short Film Festival 2020 – The Takeback
Kobi takes things from others to avoid giving himself to anyone. Until he gets caught.
Interview with Writer/Director/Producer Jesse D. Turk
Watch The Takeback on Revry
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
Thank you! I made The Takeback as a way of examining how we handle the complex emotions behind casual encounters in the gay community. Despite being vulnerable physically, it's often more difficult to be vulnerable emotionally--even sleeping over can be too much! That dissonance leads to a need to cope, sometimes in damaging ways. I was hoping to delve into that through a flawed, gay character and his compulsions.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
I think it's important for LGBT representation to include films that don't have a happy ending. I think audience members need to be exposed to all parts of the LGBT world, even the ones that need work. It's how we realize we're all human.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
Some of my own experiences, very loosely, played into some of the emotions in the film like the idea of being scared to be vulnerable or feeling like you can't fall asleep due to anxiety. But more than that, I think everyone has worries that they're too scared to share with others for fear of being ridiculed. We keep our walls up until we're forced to tear them down. Despite Kobi ultimately messing up, he does attempt to open himself up to someone willing to listen and that changes him.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
Initially, this was a script more about the lead dealing with his compulsion to steal than to do so in the scenario of one night stands. But when I got down to the root of why he stole, it had to do with being unwilling to give up control. With the help of friends' feedback, I arrived at a more romantic approach, which heightened the stakes and made the plot more intimate and emotional.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
I've gotten a lot of positive reception so far from audiences at festivals as well as from industry professionals. It's been really rewarding, especially, to hear from LGBTQ+ audience members who related to the core messages in the film and have come up to me to tell me their own stories and why they relate.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
I think feedback so far has reaffirmed why I made this film and I'm hoping more LGBTQ+ audiences get to see the film, which I'm sure will bring up different perspectives. It's intentionally a very specific film but is meant to open up conversations about our community and how we handle one another in intimate situations.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
I'm hoping for more people to know about the film and hopefully find a good home for it online or elsewhere once it's done on the festival route as well as be included in more festivals.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
Ideally, I'd love for the film to be hosted by LGBTQ+ festivals and/or sites to provoke conversations about its story and characters and the flaws they both trip over and deal with.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
If the film relates to you, that's amazing. If it makes you upset, I want to hear more! It's not meant to represent anyone and everyone, it's meant to show one moment for one person and how he handles an issue poorly.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
Who did what things wrong in this story? Why did they?
Would you like to add anything else?
Working on this film with this cast and crew was an absolute pleasure and I couldn't be prouder that people are getting to see it now.
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
I was lucky enough to be selected as a mentee for the 2019 Ryan Murphy Television Half Initiative, so that is the most immediate next endeavor. I'm also writing a feature having to do with gay cruising in the '60s, directing another short film written by my two best friends about an estranged brother and sister having to spread their mother's ashes and developing a play with music about Richard Nixon. More to come!
Interview: January 2020
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
The Takeback
Kobi takes things from others to avoid giving himself to anyone. Until he gets caught.
Length: 14:11
Director: Jesse D. Turk
Producer: Jesse D. Turk
Writer: Jesse D. Turk
About the writer, director and producer:
JESSE D. TURK is an LA-based director and producer originally from Boston. He is a 2019-20 Mentee of the Ryan Murphy Television Half Initiative and has worked in all corners of the industry. His most recent work includes festival award-winning short, Holding, a dark comedy about two people who are put on hold by a suicide hotline as well as new contender The Takeback, a drama about a gay man who steals from his one night stands to cope with his vulnerability. He also has a strong background in theater recently working off-Broadway on new musical, "Far From Canterbury," which is currently in workshops for Broadway. He has also worked on films including Sony’s "Money Monster" (dir. Jodie Foster), Magnolia Films’ "Please Stand By" (dir. Ben Lewin) and festival hit "In The Hollow" (dir. Austin Bunn). Upcoming projects include a play with music about Richard Nixon and a feature about cruising culture in the '60s. He is passionate about telling stories that represent the LGBTQ+ community in unexpected and dynamic ways.
Key cast: Wolfie Trausch (Kobi), Chad Westbrook (Peter), Andrew George (Someone)
Looking for: distributors, film festival directors, sales agents, buyers
Instagram: @thetakebackfilm
Hashtags used: #thetakeback
Website: www.jessedturk.com
Other: IMDb
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? Oregon Short Film Festival/Portland, OR- Feb 23rd, 2020