DOLLARS AND SENSE—AN OFFICIAL BAFF SELECTION A Bit Behind Its Development
Tied together by the idea of departure--of journeys begun and destinations arrived at or missed, my play OF LIVES AND LEAVES moved forward through a century of life in an undisclosed, but recognizable small town.
I now find myself offering you two of my characters’ reincarnations in our short film, Dollars and Sense. Some things just refuse to fade. And for good reason. Time and again there are some lessons that we almost willfully refuse to learn…Remaining proud in the face of possible reconciliation is one of them. I’ve paid the price of being too willful, and lost the prize of reuniting a few times in my life. Fortunately for me, needful knocks have awakened other opportunities for coming together and luckily, I’ve seen ribbons on several packages that I had thought impossible to wrap.
When I wrote Of Lives And Leaves, I was in a particularly resentful and often angry frame of mind. I was casting ignorant aspersions on my parents for what I had felt to be an unwanted weight of responsibility in the wake of their divorce. I was, in fact, guilty of a self-imposed, adolescent silence that only magnified my distance from a man who was attempting to be understood. My relationship with my dad suffered from my resistance to forgive. There was a sea of ambiguities to be fathomed between us. There were also, fortunately, quiet and loving ways that healed our riff in time. But, still—at the time I sensed that he was saddened by my selfish silences. We were born of the same cloth.
In fact, the original title of our short film was Men Of Cloth.
But, I digress…
Anyway, due to the predominantly visual nature of the film, it became apparent that the screenplay would need to veer away from some of the stage play’s content and be met with some serious editing. Sadly, two pivotal scenes I’d written for the play were cut during post production. There just wasn’t need for dialogue when a character’s eyes communicated all that was necessary. A sad cutting room choice in my letting go—but an important one. Without my giving anything away, I believe that our end result has evened the playing field. Love is often ambiguously there between us. At times, it’s most apparent within a prolonged silence—and our inability to find the means of sharing within it.
Let’s attempt to break the silences and tensions between us. Let’s begin the dialogue—argumentative though it may be at the outset—and hope for the ablution that so often comes with empathy and shared experience.
We hope that you might find the time to join us this weekend at BAFF (The Big Apple Film Festival). Dollars and Sense will be screened throughout it’s run from Friday, November 13th at 12am through Sunday, November 15th at 12pm. Click here for tickets.
Dollars and Sense at Big Apple Film Festival
A prodigal son returns home and attempts to share his success with an uncomprehending father—a man who measures success and happiness on very different terms. The soup is served, the bread is broken.
Freely adapted from a story by Anton Chekhov, “Dollars and Sense” is a meditation on parents and children.
Join us virtually at Big Apple Film Festival November 13-15. $12 gets you access to Dollars and Sense and fourteen other powerful short films. https://www.goelevent.com/BAFF/e/DramaShortsBlock1
Written and starring John Alban Coughlan-Actor and directed by Nick Bradshaw.
