Good morning, fellow artists! Welcome to another exciting edition of my weekly Hollywood blog. I have a big win to announce! Our feature film script, “The Third Act”, is headed to this year’s Cannes Film Festival!
But first, let me quickly catch you up on our script’s journey. It started in September 2019 when master teacher and actor Richard Lawson pitched a story idea to his Professional Development Program 3.0 Collective. The Collective worked together each week in class to develop Richard’s story idea. In mid-2022, the journey evolved when the Collective appointed Kelly and me to take over and write the actual script. Kelly and I devoted the rest of 2022 to making sense of all the extensive work, notes, and research that the Collective produced. We combed through various story ideas, numerous character possibilities and breakdowns, visuals, and other inspiring production design elements. We revised the logline and central question to reveal and support the story we ultimately decided to tell. In January 2023, we took the big step of writing the script. On May 9th, 2024, Kelly and I finished the first draft of the script. It came in at 166 pages LOL. Keep reading below 🙂
We then had a successful table read on July 14th, 2024. This reading proved that we had a special and viable story on our hands. Immediately after the reading, we continued to receive wonderful feedback from fellow artists and industry professionals who had also read the script, including Emmy-nominated writer Jeffrey Alan Schechter, further cementing the fact that we had a powerful story in our possession. The Collective met weekly again to read through and organize all the feedback we received. In addition, we had a director come to class to expand upon the notes he provided. We also had a prominent industry executive share his wisdom and expertise on marketing, distribution strategies, budgeting, pitch decks, and the various components that make a script engaging and commercially viable. Finally, Kelly and I received our marching orders to work on a second draft of the script. We carefully combed through the feedback and either implemented or discarded it. We met consistently to write. We then encountered life challenges that temporarily took us off the path. We overcame them and reunited to write again. We persisted through several ups and downs. Keep reading below 🙂
Recently, on March 24th, the Collective had a meeting during which Richard shared some exciting business developments for the script, including inroads to potential investor opportunities through an amazing program called Largo. Largo “benefits a feature film script by providing data-driven, scene-by-scene analysis to optimize storytelling, emotional intensity, and character consistency. It helps filmmakers identify genre, predict audience reception, and suggest suitable casting, allowing producers and writers to refine narratives for better financial and creative success. Additionally, Largo.ai hosts pitch competitions at major film festivals like the American Film Market, Berlin International Film Festival, and Cannes Film Festival. These events provide filmmakers with a platform to present their projects to a global audience of industry professionals, increasing their visibility and potential for funding and distribution deals.” Read the full article here. Richard informed us that he submitted “The Third Act” for Largo’s pitch competition at this year’s Cannes Film Festival! Keep reading below 🙂
On April 8th, Richard reached out to the Collective to say he was selected to pitch “The Third Act”! The email notification said, “Thank you again for applying to Largo.ai’s pitching event at the Marché du Film in Cannes…We are very happy to announce that you have been selected to pitch The Third Act on stage!” Woo hoo! Out of the numerous submissions received, Largo only selected 20 people to pitch! Woo hoo! Richard also shared the incredible news the following day in his class. Richard, Kelly, and I met on April 13th to finalize the script and include it in the pitching package for Largo. Keep reading below 🙂
This pitch opportunity is an incredible win, and we are postulating amazing results. We are grateful. We are excited. I can’t underestimate how big this win is. It’s a testament to showing up and sustaining the effort. Richard told us that he’s pitching on May 14th. I looked at my calendar and told him that the 14th is “Ascension Day.” This day commemorates Jesus Christ ascending into heaven 40 days after resurrecting from the dead on Easter Sunday. I said that’s a beautiful, powerful day to pitch because God will literally be with us! Keep reading below 🙂
See you next week!
Chasing The George 