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It’s often said that your first produced feature film will define the genre you’re associated with, but what if you know what that should be, and it isn’t what people expect? Do you keep going, or pepper the passion of your genre with other spec projects you think might be more in keeping with current understandings?

I’m asking, but truthfully I think I know the answer, or at least the answer that works for me. The last two years have been somewhat fruitful for me. I say somewhat because I’ve written some short projects and some pilot specs, though I haven’t made a film since the pandemic started. The crux of it is, as a director you need to direct to move forward. As a director who has made only short content, finding the means to make that first feature becomes the only thing that matters.

But, what does this say about genre? I love the script I want to make as my feature film debut. I’ve nurtured Birthday Blues off and on for years. I keep coming back to it after a couple of years, and I tinker, then later on I tinker again. It’s a murder/mystery thriller set at a house party. It has the kind of ensemble I love, and a twist included, just as a murder/mystery should.

The absence of filming though, has taught me that what I thought was my genre, really is my genre. Believe it or not, I desperately want to make at least another Western short film, and then a Western feature film.

I know what you’re thinking, a WESTERN?!?!?! “Wasn’t one enough?!?!” No, I’m sorry to say, it was not, by a dusty desolate country mile, not. If I had a dream, it would be to film a Western in Spain, in the same sand as Leone; that’s the Maestro, Sergio Leone, for you Western heathens. I would settle for the beautiful, varied, sun kissed land of the interior of British Columbia (I apologized to my adoptive province, truly but Spain is like a Western filmmaker pilgrimage.)

I don’t know what it is, but I feel like the genre has so much space to play with, and I mean that figuratively. It’s also traditionally loaded with toxic masculinity, which is also furtive ground to explore female representation, because let’s face it, the Western has very little to say about women other than within the context of the Madonna/Whore trope.

It feels like I have a plan now, but like many things in film, it comes down to financing, and timing.

In Independent Film, it seems like we have a lot of the latter, and never enough of the former.

(Art by Sally Woods based on a photo by WendyD Photography)

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Last Stand to Nowhere is now screening as a part of the Lift-Off Film Festival December Filmmaker Sessions. The top films this month have an opportunity to screen at Pinewood Studios. You can find us in Programme 1.

I don’t know about you, but Pinewood is a Studio I’ve always wanted to step onto. It’s legendary and conjures thoughts of so many incredible productions.

I appreciate the opportunity to screen with such a respected organization. It’s a single charge for a month of great short films, and you can vote on your favourites, which I hope includes a certain kick butt female driven Western.

(Poster designed by Felice House)

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My thanks go out to Murray Wasylnuk of Murmur Pictures for this much appreciated letter I received regarding the Introduction to Screenwriting Workshop I’ve been teaching for roughly six years now. I’m always grateful to hear how the workshop has benefitted people.

As an independent writer and filmmaker that has produced various short films, an interview based live music series, to writing and directing a professionally shot pilot for pitch, most of what I do falls on the documentary style of the medium. Planning to write more fictional based content, I decided to look into a refresher workshop, which brought me to Michelle Muldoon’s Introduction to Screenwriting. A full day course that provided exactly what I was after, with some genuinely appreciated personal input.

Michelle’s inclusive instructional style and take on screenwriting comes from years of experience and brought up a key point that, for whatever reason, had never been brought to my attention before when working within the medium. Upon completing the workshop, I went back to previous works of mine with an updated focus on specific areas of my writing and a fresh perspective to improve these areas in the future, exactly what I was after.

For such a short workshop, Michelle managed to pack in a lot of invaluable information and thought-provoking writing exercises that made the time well worth the investment. I highly recommend seeking out Michelle Muldoon’s Introduction to Screenwriting no matter what your level of writing may be.

Sincerely,
Murray Wasylnuk
Murmur Pictures

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Great news for the pilot script for the limited series based on the concept film, Last Stand to Nowhere. After an acceptance into the City of Angels Women’s Film Festival, the script went on to be named Best Teleplay at the Festival. I love City of Angels. It’s a Festival that truly commits to supporting women in independent film. My thanks to everyone at the Festival!

On top of this great news, A hearty thank you to the team at the Las Vegas International Film and Screenwriting Festival for also naming Last Stand to Nowhere, the pilot script, as an official selection. Here’s hoping the results will follow City of Angels.

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Thank you to the City of Angels Women’s Film Festival for accepting the Last Stand to Nowhere Pilot Screenplay into competition. What started with the short concept film has now grown into a limited series that takes liberties with the mythology around the Gunfight at the OK Corral, to craft a tale that speaks to every woman who grew up watching Westerns with their father. That’s who I am, and who so many women I know also are.

The Western has often been a boys’ club, and Last Stand to Nowhere pushes the envelope as far as we can to show that it doesn’t have to be. Great storytelling includes all of us within the myth building of iconic characters.

The limited series concept comprises of six episodes, each lasting one hour. A Pitch Deck is available for producers interested in seeing more of the Last Stand Universe.

Photo of Majo Aro as Morgan Earp, by Michelle Lamberson

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A Woman’s place is in the Western
Art work featuring Chelah Horsdal and Johannah Newmarch by Felice House

LAST STAND TO NOWHERE has had an incredible journey across six countries through twenty-two festivals and four distribution platforms, but now, we’re going for wide and easy access through YouTube.

I’m incredibly proud of how the film has done, and even more proud of how many people have seen that Westerns can be turned upside down and recreated for a twenty-first century audience. I’ve met some incredible people on this journey, and been honoured by the efforts of so many to make this film happen.

My thanks go out to cast and crew and long-standing supporters and collaborators. I could say the amount of people who believed in this idea was humbling, but the truth is it wasn’t the amount, but the quality of people.

There are people out there who want to support and be a part of a daring endeavour, and I think we were just that. So many individuals, from sponsors to producers to the audience, saw the value in making something that drew attention to the toxicity of Western film representation of gender while still making something fun and engaging.

I hope you’ll continue to share our production by watching and sharing our link. It would mean a lot to me if you supported everyone’s efforts, plus I’m always hoping that the audience will be noticed and heard, and we can make something bigger one day.

Thank you!
Michelle

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I’ve been asked a number of times if I would take my one day workshop to Zoom for an online version and today I’m happy to share the details of my first online Introduction to Screenwriting Workshop.

I like to refer to the screenwriter’s toolbox a lot. There are basics that need to inform how you approach a screenplay. These are the things that other workshops assume you already understand. If you want to start writing but are unsure how, or you have been frustrated with why the work you’ve created isn’t actually “working” then join me in a small group setting where you can learn, share, and find a group that you can feel comfortable with.

I want to be a part of the start of your journey. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out.

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Last year was a trying one for all of us so when I was able to finish the year with a major opportunity, it made the uncertainties and fears of 2020 shrink in the face of a 2021 inspired by the hope that new opportunity brings. I was accepted into the Women in the Director’s Chair (WIDC) Story and Leadership Program and the Whistler Film Festival WIDC Industry Immersion Program. WIDC is put on by the Creative Women’s Workshop Association.

The Program accepted eight female directors from across Canada and allowed us to not only advance our skill set through work with Actors and Directors of Photography, but also empowers us to understand story and the marketing of story in a more complete way.

I’m grateful to the instructors and to Carol Whiteman, President and CEO of Creative Women’s Workshops Association, who is also one of the co-founders of Women in the Director’s Chair. (WIDC). Carol works tirelessly to create advancement opportunities for women directors.

I’ve finished the last phase of the program and I can’t thank Carol and the organization enough for the opportunity and all the instruction that came with it.

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More great news for Last Stand to Nowhere. The film has found a cable home in the North American market at ShortsTV.

ShortsTV is the home of many of last year’s Oscar nominated films and can be found on DirectTV, A T & T U-verse, A T & T TV NOW, Google Fiber, Frontier Communications and Hotwire. The channel is the home for quality short film programming and we’re proud to be a part of the SHORTSTV family.

The film’s journey has been a special one and this is another step in that special journey!

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Staying home and hunkering down in safety from covid-19 has been the mantra of 2020 and that has brought major change to the plans of independent filmmakers everywhere. Like many of my filmmaking brethren, I watched a planned 2020 film festival year disappear in the wake of the virus’ global path. That’s okay because the safety and health of our communities is what truly matters. What it meant though, was a sharp pivot into a brave new world of distribution for Last Stand to Nowhere.

I’m proud and pleased to share that we have bounced back and found several online homes for the film.

For our Western fans please check out Great American Westerns, a streaming service that hosts only Western content and has become the landing page for all the indie short film Westerns made in the last few years. We have some great company, including several short films I saw last year on the film festival circuit. The monthly cost is a reasonable $5.99 a month.

If you’re looking for more women focused content and want to support female filmmakers, please check out the Reel Women’s Network. It’s a new site that has been adding content at a furious pace. There are several multi-award winning short films on the site as well as a Crystal Chappell fronted web series. The monthly cost is a reasonable $7.99 but they are currently running a deal for your first three months.

If you don’t want to make a big commitment to another streaming service then you can zip on over to Vimeo on Demand and find Last Stand to Nowhere for rental and sale. Available at a steal of a deal price of $0.99 USD as well as a $1.99 USD purchase, there’s no simpler way to saddle up to our unique and raucous re-imagining of The Gunfight at the OK Corral. If you purchase, then please head to the bottom of the page to check out the two mini-interviews with Luvia Petersen and Johannah Newmarch. They unlock automatically with your purchase.

We’ll be adding at least one more distribution portal this month, and who knows about the future. After twenty-one festivals to date, twenty-three nominations and four awards, there’s no time like yesterday to saddle up and hitch up with our wagon train.