While on a camping trip to a remote lodge, three cousins awaken something mysterious in the woods.

Interview with Producer Terra McQuillen

Congratulations! Why did you make your film?

We made “Duffy’s Jacket” out of love for the works of the author of the story, Bruce Coville. We love the story itself, and it hits just the right notes of a genre we wanted to emulate. The story had such distinctive visuals that we couldn’t wait to bring those words to life!

Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?

To be entertained! It’s a fun, spooky romp through the woods with an awesome creature (played by Doug Jones, who has played creatures in Hocus Pocus, Pan’s Labyrinth, Hellboy, Crimson Peak, etc.)

How do personal and universal themes work in your film?

Duffy’s Jacket shows that we are often surprised by what motivation and intelligence drives someone (or something).

How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development and production?

Since we were working with a short story, we wanted the screenplay to embody the spirit of the original source. We went through a series of edits figuring out how to best translate the page to the screen.

What type of feedback have you received so far?

We have been humbled by incredibly positive and encouraging feedback, especially from children! We screened the film at the Twin Cities Film Festival to a theater of over 100 children ages 8-18. We were delighted by listening to children gasp and giggle, and the kids were anxious to ask questions about the film. We were fortunate enough to meet Bruce Coville and watch the film with him, and he really enjoyed the film, which is the biggest compliment we could hope for!

Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?

We’ve been surprised and delighted that we were able to transmit so much of the original story’s tone into the film.

What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?

We would love to have more people experience Bruce Coville’s wonderful story. We’d love it if it encouraged young people to read his works or make films of their own. Hopefully, it will help garner support for our future projects in this genre.

Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?

Film festival directors, educators

What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?

I hope that it helps young people see what wonderful things can happen when they have a vision and passion. Duffy’s Jacket was made possible because we shared our vision and our passion for the idea of the film. When we are ready to work hard and choose to be brave and bold while ignore the naysayers, we can assemble incredibel teams to make wonderful projects possible.

What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?

How can we translate fantastic stories from the page to the screen? What types of written stories make the best films?

Would you like to add anything else?

We absolutely loved working with everyone involved in the film. It was truly a coming together of people from all over South Dakota, and we had incredible support from our families and hometown community of Aberdeen, South Dakota. The student actors in the film are wonderful, talented young people; we were so lucky to have them on board, and we were so excited to have these kids working with Doug Jones, who was generous, affectionate, and unbelievably encouraging all around.

What are the key creatives developing or working on now?

We are working on several other projects in the genre and would love to do more story/novel adaptations in the future.

Interview: November 2016

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We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series and music video. 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

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Duffy’s Jacket

While on a camping trip to a remote lodge, three cousins awaken something mysterious in the woods.

Length:

00:09:40

Director:

Brian Hoesing

Producer:

Terra McQuillen

Writer:

Brian Hoesing and Terra McQuillen

About the writer, director and producer:

Brian Hoesing was born and raised in Aberdeen, South Dakota and works for Labyrinth Films. His credits include “Bonejangles,” “Dust of War,” and “Until Forever.”

Terra McQuillen is a 12th grade Advanced Placement Literature teacher living in Aberdeen, South Dakota. This is her first work as a film producer.

Key cast:

Doug Jones, Jacob Womack, Isaac Seaton, Jayde Gauer, Angie, Cleberg, and Lori Harmel

Looking for (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists):

Funders:

Kickstarter Backers

Made in association with:

Bruce Coville and Labyrinth Films.

Release date:

No official Release Date.

Started the festival circuit in September 2016.