-When you plan the making of a film project, what are your goals?
Every time I begin a film project, my main desire is to share some of my reflections with others or to involve them in considering situations we often consider distant from ourselves. I prefer psychological themes because they fascinate me, and I think I can safely say that my main goal is to capture the attention of as many people as possible and bring them into the “world I’ve created” to tell them stories that, I hope, will make them think.
-With artificial intelligence, cinema is undergoing a transformationeven more radical than the one that occurred in the 1920swith the transition from silent films to talkies. What is your opinion onthis?
Artificial intelligence is a tool, and as such, it can be used for good or bad. I believe it represents a very beneficial opportunity to better tell, with sound and images, the stories our imagination creates. I’ll use it in my next short film too, but only as a small support… The biggest mistake would be to replace our creativity, the actors, and many other people who create cinema, with AI.
-To which production or distribution company would you like to propose your new project? Describe it to us, including some examples.
I’d like my short film titled “ELIA” to be distributed on some platform and thus become accessible to more people… from the high-speed train entertainment portal to more traditional streaming platforms.
-WILD FILMMAKER can now “sit at the table with the big names” along with The Hollywood Reporter and Variety during the Cannes Film Festival Festival, but we have chosen to remain a global cultural event A movement with an ethical mission: to bring democracy to cinema, placing the Work of Art at the center of our project rather than Marketing. Do you think we’re doing a good job?
Giving independent filmmakers the opportunity to showcase their work is certainly a great thing. The lack of resources shouldn’t prevent independent cinema from gaining visibility.
When you plan the realization of a film project, what are your objectives?
At Paradigm, every project begins with what we call the synergistic cooperation between art, science, and business — the three pillars on which our entire philosophy rests. Great films, in our experience, emerge only when artistic vision, technical craft, and commercial discipline are pulled into balance. Any one of those elements working in isolation produces something incomplete, and the audience always feels it.
Our objectives, then, are straightforward but uncompromising. We set out to make films that advance the art and language of cinema rather than imitate it; that transcend the ordinary in story and execution; that are produced with the kind of fiscal rigor that keeps creative ambition tethered to reality; that carry keen public appeal across cultures and generations; and that ultimately deliver strong returns to the people who invest in them. Anything less, in our view, is a missed opportunity — both for the audience and for the medium itself.
With Artificial Intelligence, cinema is undergoing a phase of transformation even more radical than the one that occurred in the 1920s with the transition from silent films to sound. What is your opinion on this?
The comparison to the silent-to-sound transition is apt, and we welcome it. We have always been firm proponents of the synergistic cooperation between art, business, and science in filmmaking, and AI is simply the newest expression of the science side of that triangle. We have incorporated it into our process— in previsualization, in archival enhancement, in workflows that would have required months of labor a decade ago. As a tool, it is genuinely thrilling, and filmmakers who refuse to engage with it will find themselves left behind.
But it is a tool, and it must be regarded as one. AI can simulate the surface of human expression with impressive fidelity, but it does not possess — and in our view will never possess — the lived humanity required to strike the universal chords that reside at the core of our being. Great cinema speaks to something deeper than pattern recognition; it speaks soul to soul. The danger is not that AI will be used; the danger is that filmmakers will forget that the human element is the thing being communicated, and that no degree of computational sophistication can substitute for it. Our position is therefore clear: embrace the tool, and never confuse it for the artist.
To which production or distribution company would you like to propose your new project? Give us a profile, including some examples.
Our slate is positioned for the major streaming distributors — Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, Amazon, — each of which is actively seeking premium documentary and narrative work that travels internationally. We have three productions currently in play.
AMERICA BOXED IN
A feature documentary directed by Casey G. Williams and Ian S. Williams that uses the freight container — that unassuming steel box — as a lens through which to examine the seismic consequences of globalization. The film traces how the container has compressed the world, transferred power from governments to non-state actors, fractured political systems, and shifted wealth and influence from West to East. It is a meditation on the architecture of the modern world, told through the object that built it. The film has earned more than 100 awards worldwide.
THE WOVEN PATH
A Chinese scholar retraces the extraordinary journey of William Taylor — the only American POW to escape Japanese captivity and traverse occupied China during the Second World War, rescued and protected by Mao Zedong’s Eighth Route Army. The film weaves together a story of courage, cross-cultural compassion, and the enduring human threads that bind China and America across generations — a timely meditation on what the two nations once shared, and what they might share again.
THE ORNAMENT: A Christmas Story of Forgiveness and Redemption
In 1959 small-town America, a bitter, childless shopkeeper — whose wife was killed decades earlier by a drunk driver — receives a mysterious crystal ornament from a young boy. As the ornament gradually reveals a personalized vision of Christ’s compassion, culminating in the healing of Malchus’s severed ear, it awakens in the old man a capacity for forgiveness he had thought long dead. The story crests when he surrenders everything he has — including the ornament itself — to the very man who destroyed his life. It is a Christmas story about forgiveness and redemption.
WILD FILMMAKER can now “sit at the table with the big players” alongside The Hollywood Reporter and Variety during the Cannes Film Festival, but we have chosen to continue being a Global Cultural Movement with an ethical mission: to bring democracy into cinema, placing the Work of Art at the center of our project rather than Marketing. Do you think we are doing a good job?
Unequivocally yes. In an industry increasingly dominated by algorithms and marketing departments, no organization matches Wild Filmmaker’s commitment to placing the work of art at the center of the conversation — and no one matches your support for independent filmmakers. The decision to remain a global cultural movement with an ethical mission, rather than be absorbed into the trade-press establishment, is precisely what makes your voice indispensable. We hope to remain aligned with Wild Filmmaker, in any capacity that proves useful, for many years to come.
I am an explorer of words, but also of the silences between them, who believes in the magic of stories to transform the world into a more beautiful reality. As a fiction writer, poet, and screenwriter, I divide my time between the structure of society and the imaginary worlds I create, always searching for that point where emotion becomes universal.
-Do you remember the exact moment you fell in love with cinema?
It was a gradual revelation, but the defining moment came when I realized that a film can “write” with light and silence what I was trying to express through pages of prose and poetry. That ability of cinema to suspend time captivated me forever: light can become language, silence can be more powerful than any answer. That’s when I knew it was no longer just fascination, but belonging.
-Tell us about your project “The Bride From The Depths”.
“The Bride from the Depths” is a deeply personal project that started from a fascinating urban legend from the city of Câmpina, Romania, shaped by my obsessions: love, death, trauma, memory. It first took the form of a novel, where I explored themes such as war, death, and parental violence within a mystical atmosphere, and later became a film screenplay. It is a story that weaves Romanian folklore with magical realism. For me, this project represents the bridge between literature and image, an attempt to give visual form to a legend that has haunted the imagination of locals for generations.
-Which Director inspires you the most?
I am drawn to directors who have a strong visual aesthetic and literary depth, such as Tarkovsky for the poetry of images, or Pedro Almodóvar for the way he portrays feminine strength:
Manuela in All About My Mother loses her son, but rebuilds her life by helping other women—her empathy becomes strength.
Raimunda in Volver survives abuse, hides a crime, and protects her daughter.
Benigno & Alicia (in mirror) in Talk to Her: Alicia, though in a coma, becomes the moral center of the story; the film explores fragility and feminine autonomy.
-What do you dislike about the world and what would you change?
I am saddened by the lack of empathy and the speed with which we judge without listening. If I could, I would replace the background “noise” of today’s society with more introspection and a genuine desire to understand the other person’s story.
-How do you imagine cinema in 100 years?
I believe it will become a total sensory experience, where the barrier between the spectator and the screen will completely disappear. However, regardless of technology, the core will remain the same: the human desire to experience a good story.
-What is your impression of WILD FILMMAKER?
I see WILD FILMMAKER as a vital space for creative freedom. In an industry that can sometimes become too commercial, platforms that celebrate artistic cinema and give a voice to independent creators are essential for the survival of the artistic spirit.
Jeffrey George Moline grew up a cowboy on a farm on a dirt road outside of Austin Minnesota – where the meat product Spam is created. He was a stranger in his home due to his sexuality. He grew up in a musical family. In 1980 at 19 years old he left his home and family and moved to Los Angeles where he overcame more adversity. He became strong and created a wonderful uniquely American family of his own. I have been a creator, an artist all my life. Life on lifes’ terms can be challenging and disappointing. We have jobs, bills, expectations, illness, misfortune – that stall or stop our idea of progress based on our perceived idea of what success looks like. It was age 65 when my lifetime of experience as a musician and storyteller combined with filmmaking and the support of friends and loved ones, that I was able to bring Grandpa’s Got A Brand New Pill to life.
Do you remember the exact moment you fell in love with cinema?
I was 8 years old and Mae West was my first – Hollywood Diva. On saturday nights at midnight KROC TV station out of Rochester Minnesota played old Hollywood Comedies. I was breaking the rules by staying up late, with my face inches from the old black and white television in the basement, the sound down low. Miss West impressed me because she wrote her own material and strutted across the screen, but I also loved W.C. Fields, The Marx Brothers. From then on I read any and everything I could, about film, film stars, the picture business and Hollywood. When I moved to Hollywood I would often go to watch these classics on the big screen at revival theaters.
Tell us about your project “Grandpa’s Got A Brand New Pill”.
Our short musical film began as a song inspired by my then 80 year old mothers boyfriend taking too much Viagra and thinking he was having a heart attack. I then decided at age 65 to reinvent myself as a musical artist and take my talents outside the world of dingy clubs and into the world as a musician and filmmaker. So I wrote a short story about a fiesty woman on the eve of her 96th birthday who insists on a happy ending so she shows up with Viagra and weed. The senior residents of Shady Nook get happy and the police are called. Having lived in Hollywood so long I’ve met many actors so I reached out to my friends and tailored the parts for their particular talents. Grandpa’s Got A Brand New Pill has provoked laughter around the globe. Our next short musical comedy film is titled Two Tears In A Bucket and begins shooting late this summer of 2026.
Which Director inspires you the most?
Luc Besson – I enjoy the world he creates in his films. The Fifth Element is one of my favorite films. The color, the costumes and characters are amazing. I also love Indian films with dancing scenes.
What do you dislike about the world and what would you change?
Obviously LGBT hatred. It is difficult to navigate a hostile world. I practice Nichiren Buddhism with the SGI USA. I believe a person can undergo an inner transformation, a human revolution, a change in their character and that act itself provokes change and transformation in our physical environment. I have seen this play out in my own personal life. So I am helping make a change for the better by continuing to listen, learn, grow and change and cultivating my humanity daily.
How do you imagine cinema in 100 years?
Everyone will be able to use AI to make personal films.
What is your impression of WILD FILMMAKER?
It feels like a wonderful opportunity to connect to other filmmakers, connect to festivals and meet other wonderful people who create and love art.
I am a creative producer and writer focused on film and television content. Storytelling is a world I love to go to and see how far I can take it. To develop quality, but original high-concept stories, or story-driven intellectual properties – I care deeply about developing original, high-concept, story-driven projects that feel both engaging and on a journey you might never explore.
My focus isn’t on chasing what fits a big-budget mold, but on creating stories that genuinely connect with audiences—work that feels human, authentic, and lasting. I’m especially interested in stories that open a window into different cultures, with the hope that they not only entertain, make you feel, but also broaden understanding in a real and thoughtful way.
Do you remember the exact moment you fell in love with cinema?
When I first felt the magic, the impossible possible, the power of opening the mind and being inspired.
Tell us about your project “THE ARMCHAIR TRAVELLERS”.
The story is a wholly original and a high-concept screenplay, with multi-award-winning recognition both here in the US and on the international stage as Best Fantasy/Sci-Fi, and Thriller.
The Armchair Travellers is a genre-defying cinematic journey – blending fantasy, historical literature, rom-com warmth and thrilling fearless adventures. In a world where books come alive, the most extraordinary story is not found between the covers – but between the lines.
What begins as a miraculous gift of human desire, all play out across worlds beyond the written word. As the female led ensemble chase their deepest wishes, they discover that dreams can come true- but only some come without a price.
The “Chair” / Does the chair possess a consciousness of its own, quietly observing and deciding who may wield it? Is it inherently benevolent, guiding its occupant toward healing and revelation, or does it harbor a darker intent, subtly steering events toward chaos?
It’s full of Wild Magic with Heart. www.thearmchairtravellers.com
-Which Director inspires you the most?
There isn’t one. The directors like the Cohen Brother, or Wes Anderson, to Peter Jackson are just a few because they are not afraid and with vision.
What do you dislike about the world and what would you change?
Opportunity is still unevenly distributed. There’s more information than ever, but not necessarily more clarity, and I think because of this, we seem to be in short supply of kindness, realizing we are all human and beings. I’d want a world that’s a little more intentional and a lot more giving.
How do you imagine cinema in 100 years?
Honestly, with A.I. at our doorstep, I find it hard to answer. However, I believe good stories, by humans, will remain the light in the dark and we will be choosing films to watch, based on human versus A.I. It is already happening.
What is your impression of WILD FILMMAKER?
What matters most to me is that you’re continuing to support the arts at a time when everything is changing so quickly. That kind of commitment isn’t small—you’re helping shape where things go next.
By standing behind storytelling, you’re opening hearts, shifting perspectives, and giving space for work that truly connects with people. That has real impact.
Wild Filmmaker feels fearless in that way, and willing to support bold stories, meaningful voices, and projects that say something. You’re not sitting on the sidelines of change.
And it really does feel like a wave, a big one. The industry is evolving, the world is evolving, and you’re helping carry that momentum in a direction that values stories not just for the moment, but for what they can mean over time.
– When you plan the realization of a film project, what are your objectives?
My objective is to create an experience that continues after the film ends.
With Asherah: A Love Odyssey, I wasn’t interested in simply telling a story—I wanted to construct a space the audience steps into. The film moves through five movements—invitation, witness, origin, completion, and declaration—designed to be felt as much as understood.
I’m not trying to deliver answers. I’m trying to activate recognition. When it works, the audience doesn’t leave with a conclusion—they leave with the sense that something has opened.
That’s the objective: not closure, but continuation.
– With Artificial Intelligence, cinema is undergoing a phase of transformation even more radical than the one that occurred in the 1920s with the transition from silent films to sound. What is your opinion on this?
AI is accelerating cinema—but it’s also exposing it.
The tools are no longer the barrier. Images, voices, even structure can now be generated at scale. That shift forces a deeper question: if anyone can make something, what makes it matter?
The answer is intention.
AI can replicate form, but it cannot originate meaning. It doesn’t live, it doesn’t risk, it doesn’t choose. What we’re seeing isn’t the replacement of filmmakers—it’s the removal of excuses.
Cinema is moving from execution to authorship.
This isn’t the end of something—it’s the beginning of accountability.
– To which production or distribution company would you like to propose your new project? Give us a profile, including some examples.
I’m looking for partners who understand that cinema is evolving beyond a single format—it’s becoming a living ecosystem.
Companies like A24, Neon, and CJ ENM stand out because they support work with a clear identity that still travels globally. They recognize tone, authorship, and cultural positioning—not just output.
Asherah is designed as a chaptered narrative universe, with the feature film as its opening movement. The right partner sees beyond a single release and understands how story, character, and world evolve together over time.
This is not just about distribution—it’s about alignment.
– WILD FILMMAKER can now “sit at the table with the big players”… Do you think we are doing a good job?
Yes—and more importantly, you’re doing the right job.
Cinema has always existed in tension between art and commerce. What you’re doing ensures the work itself doesn’t disappear inside that tension. By keeping the focus on the film—not just the market—you preserve the reason the industry exists in the first place.
That doesn’t oppose the system. It stabilizes it.
Without spaces that prioritize the work, the industry loses its center—and everything becomes noise.
What you’re building cuts through that.
Final Line
I don’t see cinema as something we inherit fully formed.
I see it as something left open— not abandoned, but waiting for us to complete it.
-When you plan the realization of a film project, what are your objectives?
First off, I thank the WILD FILMMAKER editorial staff for including me in the Cannes Film Market. My primary objective upon the conception of a new screenplay is to tell a story derived from my personal experience in a manner that will resonate with many moviegoers. I have learned that is the most essential aspect of a story from Tammy Gross of ReelAuthor (tammygross.com) my friend and film script guru since 2022. My film scripts American Money and Padre Guns do just that. I have signed an Artist-Producer agreement with Incandescent Pictures, an independent film producer based in Nashville, to produce American Money in the near future. Padre Guns, a film script addressing sacrifice & redemption, will likely hit the market in late April. On the other hand, an example of one of my film script ideas that needs a lot of work is Peace Of Mind, the story of my 1990 exit from Wall Street. Tammy read the “barf” draft of the script and made the astute and valid comment about a key character, who was based on my extramarital girlfriend at the time, “No man will want to watch this movie with his wife.” So, it’s back to the drawing board to make that aspect of what I believe to be a great story that would have been completely screwed by the fictional Lana Grace, whom I love but everyone else would have despised.
-With Artificial Intelligence, cinema is undergoing a phase of transformation even more radical than the one that occurred in the 1920s with the transition from silent films to sound. What is your opinion on this?
The effects of AI on all art are akin to a major earthquake caused by the movement of major tectonic plates. I’ve read filmmakers can easily duplicate intellectual property such as musical performances and visual designs. AI has even given filmmakers the ability to “manufacture” a person; there’s no need to discover a Norma Jeane Mortenson in a World War II airplane factory because AI can simply generate a Marilyn Monroe. So, those artists need legal protection. In my humble opinion, writers are better protected, for now; I believe the current state-of-the-art of AI cannot write quality film scripts, but AI is getting better and better as the calendar pages flip. I’m 92 days away from my 70th birthday. By the time I live out my natural life, by the grace of God, AI will be as good as Tammy and I are now. I love to paraphrase the idea Al Franken expressed in an article on the subject of AI versus native intelligence published in The New Yorker during the recent Writers’ Guild strike: Artificial Intelligence has never hugged the porcelain throne puking its guts out from food poisoning after being jilted by a lover. Native intelligence rules…for now. Stay tuned. Don’t touch that dial.
-To which production or distribution company would you like to propose your new project? Give us a profile, including some examples.
Film festival juries since February 2025 have primarily steered American Money toward indies and arthouses. Then, in November I signed with Incandescent Pictures. I believe this trend is because of how I tend to write, and I’m thrilled with those prospects. One indie producer has already committed to read Padre Guns. Once I make Lana Grace more palatable, I can see Peace Of Mind headed toward arthouses. A fourth film script idea for which I’ve written the ending, Soaring Dove, may have the potential for more mainstream production. An Everyman helps a woman who is the future of benevolent American politics resolve a threat to her constituents. It’s set in the mid-1990s and has a Notting Hill feel to it. So, we shall see about that one. I love how I got here and I like where I’m headed. Indies and arthouses are fine with me.
-WILD FILMMAKER can now “sit at the table with the big players” alongside The Hollywood Reporter and Variety during the Cannes Film Festival, but we have chosen to continue being a Global Cultural Movement with an ethical mission: to bring democracy into cinema, placing the Work of Art at the center of our project rather than Marketing. Do you think we are doing a good job?
Absolutely! WILD FILMMAKER is doing a wonderful job, and I’m speaking both as an artist and a fan of film. Every movie begins with an idea; placing the work of art at the center only makes sense because that makes marketing easier. Personally, as a screenwriter, WILD FILMMAKER has taken me places I never thought were assessable to me. I’m a retired mechanical engineer who sought advice from three great writing teachers to turn his hobby into calling waiting to happen. I have the utmost appreciation for Michele Dioma and the editorial staff of WILD FILMMAKER. Thank you all. It’s been an awesome journey that I hope never has a destination. May the Peace your higher power gives you be as sweet as the Peace that The Holy Trinity provides me.
-When you plan the realization of a film project, what are your objectives?
There are two reasons for me to start with a film project. The first one is an idea I like to put into moving pictures. The second one is when I feel like doing an experiment or exploring new ways of expression.
-With Artificial Intelligence, cinema is undergoing a phase of transformation even more radical than the one that occurred in the 1920s with the transition from silent films to sound. What is your opinion on this?
Personally I would say that it’s not quite helpful for humanity to be replaced by machines. On the other hand, filmmakers have always taken advantage of the latest technology. So it’s better to be optimistic.
-To which production or distribution company would you like to propose your new project? Give us a profile, including some examples.
Until today I haven’t put much effort in looking for a production company.
-WILD FILMMAKER can now “sit at the table with the big players” alongside The Hollywood Reporter and Variety during the Cannes Film Festival, but we have chosen to continue being a Global Cultural Movement with an ethical mission: to bring democracy into cinema, placing the Work of Art at the center of our project rather than Marketing. Do you think we are doing a good job?
I’ve liked the idea of WILD FILMMAKER since the very beginning. Of course, it has been quite helpful for me to be part of it. If you ask me,there is no need for wild filmmaking to compete with mainstream cinema. It has never been my personal goal to to reach the same audience as big production companies do.
-When you plan the realization of a film project, what are your objectives?
When I plain the realization of a film project , my objectives are to truly touch the heart of a producer-director but also of the viewer by various means. Since my screenplays are already published by my publisher (Edilivre Editions) , I ‘m referring to the booksellers who distribute them on their sites. I give interviews with you: Wild Filmmaker. I ‘m presenting the teaser formy screenplays on your tube channel. Like my scenarios are also historical, various articles written by journalists are published such as in L’Indépendent or on the Rennes- Le- Château Web Gazette ( I have written also ten historical books on the mystery of this treasure of Rennes the Castle ). I received 283 Awards Winner with my feature film screenplay about the treasure of Abbe Sauniere of Rennes the Castle and the holy Grail of the Templars , competing in numerous international film festivals.
-With Artificial Intelligence, cinema is undergoing a phase of transformation even more radical than the one that occurred in the 1920s with the transition from silent films to sound. What is your opinion on this?
In artificial intelligence , there is the adjective artificial. Consequently, not the very essence of a reflection that aims for transcendence and transforms into creativity.
At the heart of the imagination, thousands of ideas take root , like birds thirsting for ideals , surfing on our emotions to transform them into beautiful tableaux.
As I am medium , my screenplays are also written thanks to mediumistic visions , which adds mystery to the plot and also amplifies the power of images. I’ have already played the role of my heroine in my screenplay about Camille Claudel . I identified with this great sculptor. She literally inhabited me during the filming of a pilot sequence in Marseille by Benjamin Burghartz with my friend the great painter Raymond Mustacchi , as I am also a highly regarded painter myself.
The same applies to my fictional screenplay about the treasure of Rennes –le- Chateau . I would like to propose to the producer who wants to make the film the role of Florence , this protagonist and medium essential to the plot of the story , because there ‘s nothing better than playing myself as a medium.
-WILD FILMMAKER can now “sit at the table with the big players” alongside The Hollywood Reporter and Variety during the Cannes Film Festival, but we have chosen to continue being a Global Cultural Movement with an ethical mission: to bring democracy into cinema, placing the Work of Art at the center of our project rather than Marketing. Do you think we are doing a good job?
Yes , you are doing a good job!
Because marketing is not art and therefore neither creativity , nor talent can find its a place in this bargaining . Great creators have never followed fashion , nor have they submitted to the dictates of money and profitability as industrialists do in the pursuit of productivity. Beauty of a work lies in the genius of the artist who stands out from the norm through their innovative originality , often misunderstood by everything that falls under the normative category.
The artist’s freedom cannot be bought. And at Wild Filmmaker , we respect each creator in their way of working.
And now with Wild Filmmaker, I hope to capture the attention of a producer at the Cannes Film Festival’ s film market , knowing the film rights are one hundred percent with me and not with my publisher .
-When you plan the realization of a film project, what are your objectives?
To engage an audience whether streaming or cinema, and make them laugh, cryand think. I aspire to making films that last whether independent or studio.
-With Artificial Intelligence, cinema is undergoing a phase of transformation even more radical than the one that occurred in the 1920s with the transition from silent films to sound. What is your opinion on this?
AI is already disrupting everything, not just film. Anthropic helped themselves to 12 ofmy 18 published novels digitally to train their AI without a request or compensation. They were sued partly by the Author’s Guild, which thank goodness I recently joined, and they put up a link to the page that has a ‘works list’ and I found 12 of my books. They didn’t upload my other five Berkley books either because they’re too old and long, a different style, or because they didn’t want to fight Simon and Schuster. I filed a formal complaint which they acknowledged. Authors everywhere are being bilked of their intellectual property, not just filmmakers. Musicians, all the creatives will face these challenges until and unless we get legal guardrails.
That said, like any other dangerous tool that can be used for good or bad, AI has its uses and creatives have to learn to use it like a tool while protecting their contributions. Michelangelo and Me would benefit if the Sistine Chapel images are AI generated but I know Pope Leo hates AI so who knows? If there’s another cheap way to human reproduce them for this script I’m all ears but I know I wouldn’t want to be the artist redrawing Michelangelo’s ceiling…wearing my business hat, I know this would already be an expensive budget just with VFX for the statues and live action. But what they did with Val Kilmer’s image after it sounds like just asking permission, is inexcusable if the estate wasn’t compensated for the full hour which is what I’m hearing. Just like copyright, whoever owns the rights should be paid before any images, print, film, novel, article, whatever, are used. And it will take the Feds to do it so we all know what’s needed come November….I hope Europe is more protective as they tend to be. The European Union is certainly more creative friendly. It will take a worldwide movement to stem this tide like a dam we can control for good uses and avoid training machines to take our jobs. But stop it we can’t. We can certainly tag it though. The Author’s Guild is working on a logo for its members to incorporate into projects that state human produced with a registration number that can be vetted and used. I think they’re also going to allow non guild members to use it for a fee. Contact them for more info.
-To which production or distribution company would you like to propose your new project? Give us a profile, including some examples.
A studio and/or an alliance of production companies. Ideally I’d like to see one or two Italian companies ally with Hollywood partners to film and distribute whether streaming or theater. But someone from the beginning needs to consider demographics, which are different here and other places. An international team could best do this. I genuinely believe, and I’m not saying this about any of my other stories with the possible exception of Monster Mash which isn’t even begun yet, that this story has worldwide allure for all ages, most nationalities, and both genders. But the film has to be great and the marketing prescient to lessen the risk. And one of my ideas? I’d love to ask Pope Leo to appear in cameo….I can’t imagine anything in this story centered on the power of dreams and believing in miracles again to be objective to him. The world needs this story right now. And it subliminally promotes great values: redemption, honor, family, even a sprinkling of spiritualism but though the Vatican plays a big role this is not a Christian story. It’s a story of humanity, who we were, who we are, and who we aspire to be. Universal. I believe that comes through, but if not, I’ll just do more revisions. But I own 100% of the copyright to both the source material, Heaven’s Rogue and the script and my very deep expertise in fiction of all types needs to be reflected.
-WILD FILMMAKER can now “sit at the table with the big players” alongside The Hollywood Reporter and Variety during the Cannes Film Festival, but we have chosen to continue being a Global Cultural Movement with an ethical mission: to bring democracy into cinema, placing the Work of Art at the center of our project rather than Marketing. Do you think we are doing a good job?
Yes, I’d like to have your air miles, Michele lol. No , really I think ya’ll are doing a great deal for independent cinema but it’s still scattered. I’ve entered a lot of festivals and won lots of awards, but I never get any feedback or see a mention of my name in prestigious publications. Some type of digital copy would be very helpful and would, frankly, keep me writing screenplays. Right now I’m concentrating on the reissue of my third Berkley book and it’s called The Hawk’s Lady, new cover in progress below. Too long and sweeping and flowery for a script but the allegories between what we fought for in 1799 and what we’re fighting for now are scary. I researched it for months at Duke University and at one time, not sure now don’t know how to check, it was listed in the online catalogue at the Library of Congress which is surely unusual for a paperback romance. I plan some considerable promotion including a self reading at you tube of a few scenes. My goal is to get all the logistics done prior to July 4th so I have to hustle. I just want people to know I write all the time, which is one reason I don’t do social media much. I switch easily between scripts and novels and vice versa. The cover image is for you and other festivals, not intended for this article, I just want y’all to know.
