Lights. Camera. Seed?
At first, the screenwriters were taken aback by the theme, as it seemed difficult to represent meaningfully on screen. But as we workshopped together, we soon found more subtle and interesting ways to convey the values of seed.
Screenwriting relies heavily on visual images, as a way of showing (not telling) the film to the audience. Our final cut has produced compelling screenplays from Domenic, Elizabeth, and myself. Working in a small team dynamic has assisted each of us in producing a unique and vastly imaginative visual interpretation for the theme ‘seed’.
Domenic Cuda’s satirical comedy, ‘Becoming a Tree’, grasped the seed of manipulation and the underlying impact it has on vulnerable people. Cunning pick-up-artist, Novax, takes advantage of a group of socially awkward guys by scamming them into a ‘how-to’ course for men who want to be successful with women.
Elizabeth Hobart’s mystery drama ‘Whitewash’ challenges the seed of ideas and how its gravity weighs on people’s minds. A group of youths become suspicious of each other when Jessie disappears from the indoor swimming pool. The situation proliferates when one of them discovers a water pistol covered in blood.
I challenged myself to take on a sci-fi thriller, ‘Z Ambiguity’, that divulges into the seed of genetics, and the power of human cloning to control identity. When Dr Steeple discovers that her partner Guinevere is aware of the ‘chromosome Z’ experiment, Dr Steeple must do everything in her power to ensure the test subject doesn’t escape.
The power of screenwriting is the way that writers can envisage a world that extends beyond the scripted pages. How would you interpret seed in a film? Maybe you would embrace metaphor, reflecting on something like manipulation. Or would you stay more conceptual? Perhaps a combination of both – like the seed of genetics. Nevertheless, the screenwriting team could not have flourished without the creative Quarry theme.