the wait press kit

7/31/2019 The Wait Press Kit

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A film by AnnVerrall


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SHORTWORKS PRODUCTIONS PRESENTS A SHORT FILM BY ANN VERRALL THE WAITFEATURING SEAMUS MORRISON, LEAH MACDONALD, NATHAN MACINTOSH, SIMON HOWELL SOUND ARAM KOUYOUMDJIAN,REN BEAUDRY MUSICSUPERVISOR COLIN MACKENZIE EDITOR THORBEN BIEGER ARTDIRECTION DAVE CROFT DIRECTOROF

PHOTOGRAPHYJAY FERGUSONCO-PRODUCERSARAM KOUYOUMDJIAN, JAY FERGUSONWRITER, DIRECTOR, PRODUCERANN VERRALL

WITHMUSICBY:CONTROLLER.CONTROLLER, THE WEAKERTHANS, RAISING THE FAWN,MATT MAYS & EL TORPEDO, SIMPLY SAUCER, THE UNICORNS, UNIVERSAL SOUL, THE

PHOTOGRAPH:JUL

MALET-VEALE

POSTER

DESIGN:SPECTAC

LE

DESIGN


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never under estimate the profundity ofplain cheese pizza Tom (The Wait)

High school is over, summer is ending andJakes best friend is leaving. To avoid theinevitable heartache, he seeks out escapeby any means possible. Somewhere,between now and forever is a moment whereplain cheese pizza is profound, freaking outis ordinary, and saying goodbye is just thebeginning.

FORMAT: Drama

ORIGINALSOURCE: DVCPRO50SCREENINGSOURCE: DigiBeta, Beta SP, DVDLANGUAGE: EnglishTIME: 23:50 minutes

DEVELOPEDTHROUGHTHESHORTWORKSSTORYINTENSIVEWITH: Angela Clarke, Josh Hatt,Simon Howell, Leah MacDonald, NathanMacIntosh, Seamus Morrison, MelissaMurphy and Grace Smith

Shot on location in Nova Scotia

WITHMUSICBY

Controller.ControllerThe WeakerthansRaising the Fawn

Matt Mays & El TorpedoSimply SaucerThe UnicornsUniversal Soul

The Vees

[email protected]

shortworksPRODUCTIONS


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A film by AnnVerrallshortworksPRODUCTIONS

shortworksproductions.ca

youre up for mass distraction,youre up for gut reaction

from Historyby Controller.Controller

SYNOPSIS

High school is over, summer is ending and Jakes future awaits him.

Right now his Dad is on his case to go to university and his best friend

Sarah is moving to Montreal. His buddy Charles dreams of driving

to Toronto to become a stand-up comic, and Jake just wants to not

be stuck where he is. In his mind Sarah whisks him away. In reality

his confession of love and the desire to go with her, is spurned with

laughter. The sting turns Jakes world upside down and he searches

for an escape from saying goodbye. As he slaps endless amounts of

pepperoni on pizza in his dead-end job even Charles foolish dreams

start to have appeal. But Jakes real escape route leads not along theopen road but in the direction of a morose stranger, whose daily ritual

of picking pepperoni off his pizza slice sends Jake over the edge.

CAST

Jake Seamus Morrison

Sarah Leah MacDonald

Charles Nathan MacIntosh

Tom Simon Howell

Pizza Joint Girlfriend Gillian Wesley

CREW

Writer, Director & Producer Ann Verrall

Co-Producers Jay Ferguson

Aram Kouyoumdjian

Director of Photography Jay Ferguson

Art Director Dave Croft

Editor Thorben Bieger

Sound Aram Kouyoumdjian/Ren Beaudry

Music Supervisor Colin MacKenzieStills Photographer Jul Malet-Veale

Post-Production PowerPost, Halifax, Nova Scotia


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ANN VERRALL

Writer, Director, Producer

Born in Orillia, Ontario, Ann Verrall has spent most of her life in

Halifax. A graduate of the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design,

Ann discovered her love of moving images in her nal term after

studying sculpture and textiles. As she moved from the experimentalgenre into drama, she began studying acting to strengthen her ability

to direct actors. She attended the National Voice Intensive at UBC

and has taken numerous workshops at Equity Showcase Theatre in

Toronto. Anns lms combine a visually rich cinematic style with

genuine performances from young actors.

The Waters Tale (1996, 45 min.) received a Special Jury award from

New York Exposition of Short Film and Video, Experimental Drama

Bronze Award from Worldfest in Houston, Texas and three awards

from the Atlantic Film Festival including the Margaret Perry award for

Best Produced Film. Rain (2000, 19 min.) won Best Atlantic Short atAtlantic Film Festival and was curated into a Best of the Canadian

Film Centres WorldWide Short Film Festival which toured Australia

in 2002. The Wait(2006, 24 min.), Anns most recent lm, was devel-

oped through a two-year workshop process with the teenage cast.


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FILMOGRAPHY

The Wait (23:40 min.) writer, director, producer 2006

Toronto International Film Festival, World Premiere 2006

Awards Joy Post Award from Linda Joy Media Arts Society

Rain (19 min.) writer, director, co-producer 2000

Broadcast: CBC, Canadian Reections & 2002-4

Atlantic Region

ViewFinders International Film Festival for Youth, 2003

Halifax, NS

FlickerFest, Sydney & Melbourne Australia 2002

(Best of Canadian Film Centres WorldWild Short Film Festival) Canadian Film Centres WorldWild Short Film 2001

Festival, Toronto

Reel World Film Festival, Toronto 2001

Local Heros, Winnipeg, Edmonton 2001

Raindance, London, England 2000

Atlantic Film Festival, Halifax 2000

Awards

Best Atlantic Short, Atlantic Film Festival

Linda Joy Media Arts Society

The Waters Tale (45 min.) writer, director, editor, producer 1996

Atlantic Film Festival 1996

Worldfest, Houston, Texas 1996

New York Exposition of Short Film 1996

Awards

Atlantic Film Festival:

Margaret Perry Award for Best Produced Film

Best Editing

Best Cinematography

New York Exposition of Short Film: Special Jury Award

Worldfest, Houston Texas: Experimental Drama Bronze Award

Linda Joy Media Arts Society


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CO-PRODUCERS

JAY FERGUSON & ARAM KOUYOUMDJIAN (Roomtone Productions)

Jay got involved with The Wait two years before shooting. He

and Ann spent a year discussing the story, characters and script

before a camera was even mentioned. They met by chance in Halifaxin 2003.

Jay: We just started talking about it and it was such an amazing idea,

I was immediately drawn to it. Because of my acting background the

idea of working with the cast to create the script had a huge appeal. I

think it is every cinematographers dream to work on a project in the

early stages of script development. That way the cinematography is

something that gets integrated into the story.

Aram got involved a few months prior to shooting. He began with

location scouting and production management and lled in all thegaps along the way - focus pulling, driver, sound recordist.

Aram: The rst time I meet Ann she told me stories from her youth

most people wouldnt tell. I decided on the way home that I would

help her make this lm.

Ann knew the cast inside out. I think it might have surprised her how

well they knew her too. They were like a big family.

JAY FERGUSON: Director of Photography + Script Consultant

Jay (Toronto) worked as an actor, producer and director for the stage

in Ottawa before studying lm at Concordia University. He has shot

12 feature lms, various commercials and music videos, as well as

television episodic and life-style programming. He was won a best

Cinematography Award at the Atlantic Film Festival (Animals) and

received nominations from Le Rendez-vous de cinema quebecois

(Les Mules et les emeraude), The Gemini Awards (Animals), and the

Canadian Society of Cinematographers Awards (Alter Egos). As a

Director in his own rite, he has produced a feature Posthumus and

just nished production on a pilot Ten to Go.

Working with the kids, with their energy. It was so amazing the

energy of that shoot.


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ARAM KOUYOUMDJIAN: Production Manager; Sound Recordist

Raised in Moncton, NB, Arams sound recording career has run the

gauntlet of lm and television production from big budget feature

lms and television series, to MOWs, docs, commercials, shorts,

independents and art lms. He now travels the planet recording

sound for documentaries. He has produced/co-produced short lmsand music videos including Decoding the Undertow (Canadian/

German co-pro 1/2 hour dance lm). He is this years recipient of

the CBC/NSFDCs Bridge Award Program for a 1/2 hour drama The

Lullaby of Mike Bossy. The Waitwas Arams rst experience wearing

both his producing and sound recording hats due to lack of available

crew a situation he would not want to repeat.

Ann: I know it was difcult for Aram doing 2 divergent jobs but it

was perfect for me. He was such a big part of the project I felt very

fortunate to have him at my side on the day.

Aram: It was a busy summer in Halifax so our crew was made up

mostly of graduates from the local screen arts program and eager

recruits looking for on-set experience. What we lacked in technical

skill we made up for in soul. I dont think we could have made this lm

without that soul.

THORBEN BIEGER: Editor

Originally from Newfoundland, Thorbens editing credits include

Camelia Friebergs feature lm A Stones Throw, Paul Donovans

co-production The Conclave, the television comedies Rabbittownand The Gavin Crawford Show, as well as Andrea Dorfmans award

winning short lm Theres a Flower in My Pedal. His work on the

political satire Snakes & Ladders earned him a nomination in the

2004 DGC Craft Award for Picture Editing.

Ann: We had such intense discussions about this piece, specically

the ending. There was a time I thought we were not going to be able

to agree on how to end the lm. But then suddenly it clicked for both

of us.




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SEAMUS MORRISON: Jake + Story Contributor

I have gone places I never thought I could.

Seamus (Sydney, Cape Breton) has always dreamed of being an

actor. At age 12, he was cast as the lead in Ann Verralls previous

lm Rain. Around the same time, Seamus was also cast as one ofthe miner boys in the CBC Television family series, Pit Pony. At 16,

Seamus got the call from Verrall to be involved in her next project.

Now at 20, Seamus writes:

I didnt do very well in high school. During those years this project

was the only thing I really focused onthe most important thing this

experience has given me is the drive to be something that I truly want

to be. I couldnt have asked for three better summers than the ones

I spent with Ann and those other crazy teenagers. It was the hardest

work I have ever done in my entire life but it is probably the best thing

I have done in my entire life.

Seamus has acted as Lead in Jay Fergusons Ten to Go and a principal

in Homeless to Harvard, MOW for Hard Rock. He is currently a student

in the acting conservatory at York University, Toronto.

I wait in 4/4 timecount yellow highway linesfrom Left and Leavingby The Weakerthans (Seamus song pick)

LEAH MACDONALD: Sarah + Story Contributor

We knew these characters like the back of our hands because we

grew up with them.

Leah (Annapolis Valley, NS) began acting in plays when she was 10

years old at Centre Stage, the local community theatre in Kentville.

Over the next eight years, she acted in 10 plays. After high school,

Leah went to York University in Toronto to study theatre. Since

then, she has decided that comedy is where her heart is and she is

currently enrolled at Humber College. Her aspiration is to perform at

Second City in Chicago.

During that time I had to face a lot of challenges. I had and still have

a lot of walls up when it comes to intimacy. It was challenging to let

my guard down and let people into my personal space. My favorite

thing about shooting the lm was how real it all felt, the emotions

brought forth by all the actors.


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SIMON HOWELL: Tom + Story Contributor + Music Advisor

there are still many traces of my younger self in Tom

Simon (Halifax, NS) had studied theatre but it had never occurred to him

to get involved in lm until he saw the notice for this project at school.

My experience with the project has largely been in sync with the

growth and confusion of my teenage lifeunsure of myself, feeling

depressed or dejected As we got closer to nalizing the story, my life had

mellowed considerably.It was a unique and engaging process that,

even as it frustrated me, helped me to grow as a person.

Simon is currently studying Electroacoustics at Concordia University

in Montreal, hoping to nd a career in sound design/engineering.

see right through, right through you

from Tuff Ghostby The Unicorns (Simons Song Pick)

NATHAN MACINTOSH: Charles + Story Contributor

Nathan (Halifax) was interested in being a stand up comedic from

an early age but wasnt ready to pursue it as a career. He thought

he would take the more practical route and study a trade at college.

When Ann introduced the idea of Nathans character Charles going

to Humber College (Toronto) to study comedy performance, she sent

him information on the program. In the year that followed high school,

Nathan worked a variety of boring jobs and began making his ownplans to apply to Humber. Nathan is now living in Toronto where he

does stand-up comedy all over the city.

My goal is to one day get paid for it, and maybe end up in a pepsi

commercial. Ah what the hell, lets shoot big here, a series of pepsi

commercials.


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PRODUCTION NOTES: the extraordinary journey of creating The Wait

Simon: the plotchanged a million times more then any normal lm ever

could. Old scripts would have absolutely nothing to do with this one.

Melissa: It was like starting from scratch and that was really

exciting because then I knew that anything we wanted to do wasdenitely a possibili ty.

The story of The Wait began in 2002 with the selection of eight

teenagers from across Nova Scotia. I did not have a story, just a

theme the idea of teenagers waiting. I wanted to develop a story

through a workshop process using improvisation. I had never done

anything like this before. I looked up improv exercises on the internet

and began. I told them it was an experiment and invited them to take

part. The door was always there if they wanted to leave. There was

no money involved.

It was to be a summer project to create a 10-minute piece. But over

15 days of workshops throughout that rst summer, I realized there

was too much material, too many possibilities, so I decided to write a

feature script. By the end of the summer I gave the teens the option

to continue on or leave the project. I told them I could not guarantee

that the lm would ever be made. They all stayed.

We met on sporadic weekends, Christmas Holidays and March Break.

In between the workshops, I would write. Much of the rst year was

spent developing characters, exploring relationships, getting to know

each other and always searching for the elusive story. There were

many, many versions and many, many tangents.

THE CRISIS OF SPRING 2003

It became clear that we were not ready to go into production and

I had to tell them I was postponing until summer 2004. It was the

worst moment for me in the whole process. I again gave them the

option of leaving. After emails and phone calls and tears and talks with

parents, they all decided to stay.

Leah: I couldnt say goodbye. It is something that you put so much

time into.Weve raised the script. Its a baby. She wrote it but it is

part of us.

SUMMER 2003 YEAR 2

Summer 2003 focused on performance. I brought in two acting

instructors to do week-long intensives with the teens. I needed to see

what they were capable of as actors. This would impact the direction

the script took and help me prepare for directing.

Grace Smith

Angela Clarke

Josh Hatt, Melissa Murphy,

Seamus Morrison

Leah MacDonald

Nathan MacIntosh

Simon Howell

(year 1 2002)


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In the year that followed we saw less and less of each other. They

went on with their lives and I battled it out with the script. I realized I

needed to shift my focus away from them and on to the characters to

nd the story that would work. I postponed again.

Early in the process Nathan joked with me about only staying for 5 years.

Nathan (2004): Its past the point of no return no turning back. Ill

be 38 and still coming to Anns backyard, bringing my kids

Leah: There were times I would read scenes that Sarah would have

to go through and I would feel really uncomfortable with it.

Seamus: When I read it I was like what the hell is this. Has Ann been

hanging outside my window for the last couple of months.

The most special thing for me in the process was seeing them grow

up, seeing how art and life mixed. I was writing their characters olderthen they actually were. So I was writing about things that they had

never experienced, like being in love, breaking up, having sex, leaving

home. Months later we would get back together and inevitably there

would be someone who had had a new experience. Suddenly they

knew about what their character was doing. They would be excited

and more open to taking risks.

PLAIN CHEESE In a meeting with Grace and Simon I ask them what

kind of pizza Tom would order. I felt it should be something unusual.

They both said immediately Plain Cheese. From that seed came the

Plain Cheese story line.

FEBRUARY 2005

Although I felt the script was nally ready, the producing side of the

project was rife with problems. It was becoming clear that I would

not be able to raise the funds for a low-budget feature. The kids

were getting old and I couldnt go through another year with them

waiting for me. So I made the decision to say goodbye to 4 of the

characters, write a short version and shoot something that summer

with my Canada Council Grant. Ironically, in writing the short, I feel I

have nally found the story.

I was drawn to this subject because there is something very profound

and mysterious that we go through as we navigate this transitionary

time of life. We no longer feel at home with where we have been but

have not gured out whats coming next. My own experience was full

of turmoil, intense crazy times, restless boredom, and waiting for life

to begin. It still haunts and inspires me.


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shortworksproductions.ca0

I did not set out to tell my own story - and in many ways I have not.

But somewhere over the three years I spent interacting with these

teenagers (now young adults), our stories have merged to become a

work of ction. As a story, it belongs to none of us and all of us.

FINALLY ON SET

Simon: Holy crap theyve actually got one of those scene cutterthings. Thats amazing.

I was fully prepared to come back here and have Ann with a little

handy cam and just wing it.

It goes from like us in this dark room seemingly just wanking around

for 2 years and then suddenly its likedid I miss a meeting?

Melissa: Im so excited. I cant believe this is happening.

TOMS DANCE

It was pretty clear from the beginning that I was going to have an

outsider role.Simon Howell (Tom)

When I rst began working with the teens I thought that in the story

they would all be a group of friends. But even after all of the relationship

building exercises we did, they all said that their character would not

be friends with Tom. I was mortied. I started to doubt the ethics

of what I was doing. I had set up a situation that enabled a kid to be

shunned by his peers. So Simon/Tom was destined to be an outsider

and the story developed in another direction.

I was using dance as part of our warm up. Some of them would barelymove, some would dance a bit but Simon, who was always serious

and subdued, suddenly came to life. He would go all out 100 percent

in his own frenetic, free-form style that shocked the others. I started

to incorporate Simons dancing and the reaction of the group into

the story. As Simons character Tom developed, his humanity was

revealed. The others started to admire Tom and warm up to Simon.

Simon: Tom isolates himself because he is different from everybody

else and that was clear from the rst day I was there and I dont mind

because I think Tom brings something interesting to the story.


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sex in the script. So then the next stage was to gure out who would

do what with whom and why. Writing it was one thing but knowing that

they could perform it was another.

In the summer of 2003 we began our 3-week session by exploring

sexual relationships in the studio. Then armed with 2 video cameras,

we all traipsed over to a friends house to do fully clothed improvisationson her pull-out couch. The improvisations focused on before and

after sex but not sex. In the nal version of The Wait, I added a new

character and therefore a new actor, who would become the sex

partner a stranger. It was the only way to go there.

THE KISS

You know what boning is?Leah asks Ann (June 2004)

June 2004 I met with Sarah and Josh in the Annapolis Valley to

discuss the new script. I was still trying to gure out what the

relationship should be between Jake and Sarah. Are they in love?Are they just friends? I felt it existed somewhere in-between.

Leah: I see something pureyou watch those movies and kids are

just boning. You know what boning is?You know they are doing

the old niss nass but I think Jake and Sarah are just back to the old

fashioned way, so what ever happens with them it should be special.

Something as pure as she kisses him.

In the nal version Jake and Sarah do not really kiss - only in Jakes

imagination - but the kiss is a big moment. In all the improvisations

they did, no one actually kissed anyone. After three years of living

with the idea that their characters were the love couple, they hadbecome awkward with each other. I brought in a coach, Anne-Marie

Kerr, to work with them the day before we shot the scene. When I

returned a few hours later, they performed the scene and I almost

cried. We had overcome a big hurdle.

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