MovieBytes Interview:
Screenwriter Jon Seamans

An interview with screenwriter Jon Seamans regarding the Woods Hole Writing Competition.

A: My script is called Plainville, Vermont, about a small-time New Haven con man named Tyler Quinn who is forced to leave town after two beatings and an eviction in the same day. Tracking down his only remaining family member, his maternal grandmother, he finds himself in the hamlet of Plainville which he discovers is run by a mayor far more corrupt than he could ever be. He runs for the office on a whim, wins the election with the help of his pal Renny and a stolen traffic light, and suddenly finds himself mayor of a town filled with citizens who spur him into doing good for the first time in his life in spite of himself. All goes well until deposed mayor Harlan Thibodeau starts dredging up the details of Quinn’s past and it’s a race for time as the pair head to a showdown at a tumultuous town meeting that will decide Tyler’s - and perhaps Plainville’s - fate.

A: I was familiar with the Woods Hole area - I have been going there since high school and I do a lot of spring and fall fishing in the area, plus I have friends who live right up the street so I figure if I won something I'd have a place to stay! It was actually the last in a series of contests I'd entered along with Scriptapalooza where it made the semifinals. An earlier draft was a quarterfinalist in Screen Expo 3 and apparently just missed the top 400 or so of the Nicholl Fellowships.

A: Woods Hole is very much a funky indie filmmaker's festival so I had to kind of poke around and ask about things like a festival pass so I could attend screenings, etc. But once that was squared away I was treated very well and got to attend some memorable screenings and gatherings with the filmmakers. My script was chosen as Best Screenplay overall and given a staged reading mid-week. It was pretty amazing to see actors reading my lines for the first time. The organizers also presented me with the same award that the filmmakers receive, apparently the first year they did so.

A: The formal Q & A that was supposed to end the reading was derailed by a horde of invading folk dancers who raided the community hall like the mob of villagers in Frankenstein. I did get a bit of informal feedback after we reconvened at a bar across the street. But mostly I was pleased with amount of positive feedback I got on the screenplay, not only from those at the reading but others who read it during the week.

A: It certainly has helped in that now I can introduce it as the winner at the Woods Hole Film Festival. The fest itself seemed to be mostly geared toward the filmmakers, I didn't really meet anyone in the business end but made contact with a talented group of people whose movie was a big hit at the festival and I hope to connect with them on a future project.

A: After spending 20+ years in the Boston rock scene as a guitarist/songwriter and supporting myself with writing gigs at newspapers and in city government, I learned screenwriting in 2002/3 from Scott Thompson and Stuart Kelban at Emerson College's evening continuing ed. program. Plainville, Vermont was my first script, written for the course.

A: I presently live in Boston. No plans to move to LA but life moves in funny ways so if the opportunity arose I would certainly consider it.

A: I am presently working on a pair of scripts set in England, now out of sequence because I realized one I had been holding off on was perfectly suited to a talented young British actor/director I met at Woods Hole. One is a dark comedy set in small village at the opening of World War II, the other covers an era in rock music along the lines of The Commitments and 24-Hour Party People.

Posted Tuesday, August 23, 2005