Take My Heart
Running out is easy, coming home's complicated.
Interview with Writer/Director Anna Simone Scott
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
There are always internal and external forces in my life which inspire or force me to write a story I must realize first obviously as a script, then as a film. In this case, I wanted to add to other stories I've been writing/filming about Los Angeles and its rich, diverse culture. I want the stories to interconnect and ultimately become a spec TV pilot. My partner, Peter Sands, and I have shot two other sequences for our pilot, The Other Day, (El Otro Dia) in English and Spanish. Take My Heart is the third sequence. So the film is a stand-alone short as well as an interconnected story in the pilot. The internal workings of the story come from my own life where I grapple to connect with and ultimately forgive a parental figure.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
To experience a simple, beautiful story told with tenderness and joy and be entertained by fabulous music, powerful singing and superb performances. The film expresses the beauty and pain that we all go through in our lives with our family and our choices.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
On a personal level, I realize, often after I've written a script or chosen a film to direct, that finding what your family means to you and how your choices in life reverberate in your family's lives has been a recurrent theme.
On a universal level, I'd say the personal choices are universal as we can all relate to discovering family and getting to know them in a way that may have been unavailable in the past. We are all one, connected in time and space. For me, that includes the earth and all beings... human and animal.
I feel that we must strive to ease pain and loneliness in our lives as well as those around us. To be connected in joy and hope is a worthwhile universal goal.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
The script, as I mentioned, as the third story in a larger project, has greatly evolved from the first draft. Bringing in the element of music and making the lead character, played by the exquisite Joy Sunday, an aspiring singer, really lifted the piece to another level. The power of music can never be underestimated. In this case, it connects a father with his daughter and brings hope for the future.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
The feedback to the script exceeded what I could have imagined. I was surprised and happy that the story resonated with the actors, our casting director, cinematographer and so many in the crew. It was clear from the commitment and work during filming that all were doing their very best work. The feedback to the trailer alone has been outstanding. The film is not yet available online as we've just started to submit to film festivals. We've been told we're in the final selection for a couple of excellent festivals but don't yet know when they'll be taking place due to our unprecedented global situation. We hope that in the not too distant future we'll be able to physically attend the festivals as the experience of seeing the films in theatres with an audience is irreplaceable in my opinion.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
I'd have to reserve my answer to this question until the film is released.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
Well, I'd love the film to come to the attention of film festivals, perhaps the ones who are already considering us, as well as other platforms down the line which might be viable for distribution. Also for the actors, the producers: Peter Sands and Sophia Monroe, our wonderful casting director Julianne Gabert, our DP Ricardo Jacques Galé, all to be recognized for their work.
On a personal level, I'd like to be offered more scripts to direct as well attract funding for several I've written and intend to direct.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
Although Take My Heart is a short, as part of our spec TV pilot we need distributors, film festivals directors and perhaps journalists to help us take this to the next step.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
I'd like the film to have an uplifting effect and for people to want to see more of the story resulting in opportunities to develop it as a TV series shot in Los Angeles.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
How did we attract such superb actors and where will this story go to? Also was there a particular actor who inspired the role of the father?
In this case, there was!
Would you like to add anything else?
Thank you for the thoughtful questions. I wish everyone good health and hope we create something completely unexpected during this challenging and rather crazy time. Hopefully, with the aid of brilliant minds working to find a resolution the pandemic, our lives will return to normal soon, albeit a new normal.
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
With my partner Peter Sands and our company VisionFire Films, we're working on the spec TV pilot mentioned as well as two feature films: The Art of Deceit and Tough 2 Love. We're also planning on shooting a short together, Love in the Time of Isolation, during this time of isolation!
Interview: May 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
Take My Heart
Running out is easy, coming home's complicated.
Length: 18:00
Director: Anna Simone Scott
Producer: Peter Sands
Writer: Anna Simone Scott
About the writer, director and producer:
ANNA SIMONE SCOTT is an actor, produced playwright, award-winning filmmaker and a dual Irish/Australian-US citizen whose work has spanned the globe from Australia to Europe and the US. Anna played leading film and TV roles in Australia, followed by Repertory Theatre in the UK for four years, including lead roles on the London stage in Theatres such as: The Roundhouse and ICA. Films that Anna has either written and/or directed have screened at over 70 film festivals worldwide, including Academy Award Qualifying Festivals; won many awards and sold to Television. Anna is the recipient of a British Academy of Film & Television Arts of Los Angeles, Platinum Award: Best Film and Screenplay for Chasing Chekhov at the BAFTA/LA Member Film Festival. The film also won: Jury Special Mention in Milan. (The jury comprised of: Ridley Scott, Miranda Richardson, Rutger Hauer, Paul Verhoeven, Christopher Nolan, Joan Chen). Anna directed for the theatre prior to films. It was a segment of The Grass Couch Anna directed for a festival at the Stella Adler Theatre in Hollywood, which brought her to the attention of writer/producer Terri Sissman. Terri hired Anna to direct her debut film, The Aerial Girl, which garnered six awards and four Nominations stateside as well as Internationally. Awards include: Filmmaker Award at LA Femme Film Festival. Best Drama at Women with a Vision; AOF Festival; Cinematic Excellence Merit Award from Rochester International Film Festival and more. The film screened at thirty-eight Film Festivals, including: Lone Star, Lady Filmmakers, The Courts Métrage, Cannes Film Festival; and thrice aired on PBS. Other award-winning films Anna wrote and produced: Coming Into Money, The Red Scarf, (starring legendary actress, Frances Bay). Recently, Anna wrote and directed the dark comedy, Finding Momma. The film has hit the festival circuit. Very successful screenings at The Garden State FF, the NYC International Film Festival and more. The drama, Take My Heart, is Anna’s latest work as writer-director. The film stars the extraordinary Joy Sunday and Emmy Award winner, Kim Estes. It is a stand-alone short and will be interwoven with two other stories for a spec TV pilot: The Other Day, (El Otro Dia) shot in English and Spanish. Memberships: The Dramatists Guild; BAFTA; AEA; SAG-AFTRA.
PETER SANDS has an extensive and remarkable career both on stage and in Film & TV taking him from the UK to Hollywood. As an actor, he co-starred with names such as George Clooney, Omar Sharif, Elliot Gould and Rutger Hauer. He has also worked with prestigious directors Terry Gilliam, Tony Richardson and Antoine Fuqua among others, and was commissioned by the BBC in London for his original screenplay The Spiral. His writing credits include writing the SyFy's The Secret Adventures of Jules Verne and the pilot for the new TV series of Honor Harrington based on the best selling books of David Weber. For the stage, Peter wrote Undertow and Visions In The Fire and he wrote and directed the Academy Awards® qualifying short, Blacktop Afternoon. It went on to screen in festivals and sell to TV worldwide including Channel Four UK. Chasing Chekhov, a film he directed; produced by his company, VisionFire Films, written by partner Anna Simone Scott, won the Members Best Film Award at the British Academy Los Angeles Short Film Festival. He also directed the award-winning short films Coming Into Money, Girl On A Train and the spec TV pilot The Other Day. VisionFire’s Films have competed at Academy Award Qualifying and other prestigious festivals throughout the world. Peter also produced the features Only In LA; A Leading Man, as well as the award-winning short The Aerial Girl and his latest; Take My Heart, directed by Anna Simone Scott.
Key cast: Joy Sunday (Mackenzie), Kim Estes (Ray), Roy Williams Jr.(Fox), Lana Danielyan (Lee), Marisilda Garcia (Maria).
Looking for: film festival directors
Facebook: Anna Simone Scott
Instagram: @annasimonescott8
Hashtags used: #drama #shortfilm #awardwinningfilmmakers #filmfestivals
Website: www.visionfirefilms.com/takemyheart
Other: IMDb
Made in association with: VisionFire Films, Inc.
Funders: Self-funded
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? Film Festivals to be announced.