Ahead of a wide summer release, the inspiring drama TRI screens in Luray, Virginia on Saturday May 14. The film, which recently walked away with the top prize at the Northern Virginia International Film and Music Festival, is an inspiring, emotionally-charged drama about a medical technician with a history of not finishing things who is inspired by a cancer patient to sign up for her first Triathlon. The film’s potent garland of performers includes Jensen Jacobs and legendary TV star Tim Reid.
How are you? What have you been doing recently?
“I’m great! The last few weeks have been a whirlwind of finishing the film, traveling to festivals, and doing the media circuit. I’ve loved being able to talk about this film and get a sense of how people have been reacting to it. It’s been overwhelmingly positive, far exceeding even our wildest expectations.”
Please tell me about your new film, Tri. How did you end up working with producer Ted Adams?
“TRI is an inspirational drama about a young woman, Natalie, who’s inspired by one of her patients to sign up for a triathlon. The thing about Natalie is that she never finishes anything. So the film follows her journey as she joins a Tri-team and becomes acquainted with the community around the world of triathlon. I was brought on board the project by Russell Williams, one of my mentors from American University where I received my MFA. He told me there was a group of folks in Northern Virginia looking for a director for their film. I sent my films to Russell who forwarded them to Ted. Ted saw my thesis film Speak Now, and it spoke to him. Next thing I knew I was gearing up to direct the film.”
I understand you co-wrote the screenplay? How long did the whole process take?
“I was hired at the end of June. I knew right away there were some structural overhauls I wanted to do to the script. In my meetings with Ted, he told me a lot of amazing stories and characters that weren’t in the draft of the script that existed. The issue was, we had a firm start date because we were filming at an actual Triathlon scheduled for the middle of August. So I cranked out a page one rewrite in two weeks so we could hire key crew, cast the film and have an understanding of where we were going. I kept rewriting the script through production, often revising the next day’s work after a day of shooting. I lost count of how many times I fell asleep at the keyboard.”
It’s already won the Indie Spirit Best Story Line Award from the Boston International Film Festival? Will you be entering it into other film festivals?
“Since then, we’ve also screened at the Northern Virginia International Film and Music Festival, where we won five awards, including Film of the Year and Best Actress for Jensen Jacobs. Our plan from here is to take the summer to screen the film in cities that are hosting triathlons or other races. We’re going to follow that with a comprehensive broadcast and digital release this fall.”
What are your proudest achievements to date, professionally speaking?
“I’m proud to be a Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Fellow in film-making. But directing my first feature is definitely the highlight. And having that feature be so well received that it wins multiple awards is beyond what I could have hoped for.”
What are your plans for the rest of 2016 and beyond?
“I want to keep the momentum going! Ted and I are in the process of putting together a slate of films. I’m also looking at directing some short form projects, music videos and commercials this year. There are so many stories to tell, and so many different ways of telling them.”
