Where does one begin with a new idea? It just comes from some little thought, some little spark from something completely unrelated, and next thing you know you have a scene. From that scene you have another... and then another... and then another. The more you write the more you find a story, the more you find your characters, the more you find a little taste of reality in what you’re doing. One day while working at the movie theatre I work at in Portland I was checking various auditoriums and walked in to check on the film “Wild” as I had done several times before in weeks previous. I knew the general plot line of the film but hadn’t actually sat down and watched it. But in this one particular check I suddenly got a wild hair about possibly writing something that revolved around someone going on a personal journey - much as Reese Witherspooon’s character did in that film. I didn’t know if I wanted it to be a script, a short story, a poem or what. I was already in the midst of writing another script about a woman who was abused as a child and facing the prospects of becoming a mother herself (a project I still hope to do some time down the road) and didn’t really think I was in a place to start working and getting distracted by another script. But nevertheless the though hung in there and soon a general thought began to develop into something more.
I decided rather quickly that if I was going to do anything with this idea it was going to be in screenplay form. It only took a few decisions to immediately grab my attention away. Firstly, I decided that I wanted this lone journey to also be done by a female character (I just write and like female character’s better) and I wanted her to be taking a personal road trip by herself. The obvious question to interject at this point was ‘why’? Why was this woman on the road by herself. And while in the midst of trying to figure that out the idea of the opening scene, the catalyst for the whole film, came to me. What sparked this road trip was a mix of the lead character, Belle’s impulsive behavior as well as a response in regards to the contempt she has for her family. I came up with an idea of a woman (Belle) stealing her sisters ashes from a funeral home on the eve of her memorial. That seemed such an interesting and quirky way to open a film, but it also calls on Belle’s morality in a time where she is fighting a lot of feelings over the recent loss of her sister. With this opening I had the spark and reasoning behind her road trip (to take her sister’s ashes to a specific place that had special meaning for both of them so as to have her own personal memorial).
I had also developed, without immediately knowing, the background for both Belle and her deceased sister, Breanna. Both characters came from a very uptight and status focused family wherein their objectives were to keep Breanna, who suffered from bipolar disorder, under wraps and heavily medicated so she would not do something to “embarrass the family”. Because of this, Belle took it upon herself to be Breanna’s primary caregiver and best friend being sisters and due to the fact that no one else in the family seemed willing to step up. Thus not only did Belle practically dedicate her whole life to trying to make Breanna’s life worthwhile and joyous as possible, but it developed a strong deviation and estrangement from their family. Thus, unlike their uptight family, Belle and Breanna grew up outspoken, direct and impulsive.
This aspect of their characters, and in particular for Belle who is the films main character, was a very important development for me and served as very significant in my desire to ultimately place the other film I was screenwriting on aside for the time being. While scripting the film about the abused woman becoming a mother I found myself just becoming exhausted with the whole project. In my three previous primary film projects one had dealt with the loss of a loved one, another dealt with harassment in the workplace as well as domestic violence, and my most recent dealt with a young woman struggling through withdrawals as a prescription drug addict. Writing these very dramatic pieces and then shooting them were very draining because of the subject matter and the fact that they dealt with social issues and required lots of research and introspection. This new piece was very much following that same pattern and once this new idea for “Runaway Highway” came into my mind I knew I had to follow it, primarily for two reasons. One, after working on these other draining, focused projects I needed, and I remember saying this directly to myself, I needed to work on a new script and a new film where I could become a little more uninhibited. Instead of writing something focused on a very specific issue I could just write a good story. Also, after producing these hard hitting dramas I needed something with a sense of humor to it. I am very happy with where that has taken me in terms of blending drama and comedy. I have often struggles writing comedy because I am a very spontaneously comedic person. I am my most funny on the spur of the moment so in sitting down and trying to focus and write comedy has always been difficult for me. But once the characters came out and I connected with them and really identified with how they would speak and behave the comedy just poured out of me in all the right places. These aspects of this new film were the most significant in leading me to turning things around and dedicating my time towards this new film.
I figured the script would have some length to it, it would probably be the longest film I had produced to date, but I had no idea it would become a legitimate through and through feature film as it has become. I came up with and wrote the bulk of the whole thing in less than a month. Once I started going there was just no stopping. I really got into the various characters in the piece, even the ones that are only in the piece briefly. And most importantly I feel this script represents very much who I am as a writer and the emotions and feelings I have about people and the things of this world. I feel the comedy is very much me but the film is still a drama at its core. As the piece came together and I got more and more of the writing done I discovered that this film was about so much more than just Belle’s personal journey. The film is really about sisterly love and that, no matter how different we are from one another, one thing we all have in common is that we are all, regardless how happy we may be or how together we may think we are, we are all running away from something. The film is not only about a young woman having to accept her sisters death and finding the courage to say goodbye, but it’s about going on living after tragedy. And it’s not simply finding a way to continue going on happily after losing someone so significant to one’s own life, but it’s also about accepting that the one you’ve dedicated your life to is gone and thus you need to finally put things in motion for yourself and making things happen with your life. There are so many dimensions to the piece.
As it stands now I am only weeks away from beginning shooting on the piece and I could not be more ecstatic. I wish we were shooting right now. I have a great cast of people on hand for the film, some of which I’ve worked with before and some I’m working with for the first time. This is just a little introduction to the film and primarily where the idea for it came from and the genesis in all things is an interesting story in and of itself. Look out for more entries here as I will continue writing and posting about the project between now and when this awesome picture is finally complete! Stick around, it’s going to be a great ride!
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