As the short film “Dear George” begins, the main character is dressed in a chicken costume trying to get through the security gate at the Reno-Tahoe International Airport. George is going to to Florida to win back his girlfriend, Katie.
Emily Skyle is the director and screenwriter of "Dear George," which is on the way to the Cannes Film Festival’s “Short Film Corner.”
On how the film got to the Cannes Film Festival:
It's been a really long journey. We started the film festival circuit. Nationally we've been getting a lot of awards and nominations. And Cannes was the next opportunity and we are so excited to be there.
On where the idea for the film came from:
I used to work for a travel show and I would be on airplanes all the time. A lot of my stories are inspired by people I met and I did meet a college kid that was not dressed in a mascot but was dressed in full college colors because he was coming home to surprise his girlfriend that was going to switch to her college and then purpose to her. That was the inspiration of the story.
On making her own films:
I ended up doing travel shows and I was a home shopping host for awhile and those really lend you to some colorful stories. I would write the scripts and sell them to other people but my funny, weird, quirky characters would never be honored. If I had a 40-year-old woman going through self-discovery, she would be recast as a hot 16-year-old for no reason.
What that does is it forces you to say, 'you know what, I've been on set. I know people with gifts and talents. I've interviewed directors on red carpets for years. Why don't I start culling a team, creating a squad and make my own films? So, if I want a 300-pound romantic lead, I can. And I did and he's charming and amazing and that's Neal Fannin.
On raising money to turn the short film into a feature-length:
We really needed to show the scope of the film in the short version with the budget that we had. We have a full-length feature script that has been given some pretty impressive acknowledgments and awards. And it is 93 pages and it's ready to be made, we just have to continue to raise the funds. And we're specifically raising funds for what's known as a producer's package and that is where you get attorneys involved and a lot of technical terms to make sure you do everything legally and protect yourself, the script and anyone involved.
Emily Skyle, Reno-based filmmaker
