“I’m just glad I don’t live in a trailer…”
Jimmy Buffett
Son of a Son of Sailor
Jimmy Buffett
Son of a Son of Sailor
Just about everything about writer/director Courtney Hunt’s debut feature film, Frozen River, goes against the grain. You don’t hear much about women writers & directors over forty launching a career by shooting a movie in sub-zero temperatures and telling a story about the working poor. (Actually, you don’t hear about anyone trying that — any age, male or female.) Maybe this is a new niche market.
Hunt tells the story of woman in upstate New York who is trying to better her life. Her goal is a simple — a new double wide trailer for her family by Christmas. Well, it would have been been simple if her wayward husband didn’t have a gambling problem. When he takes off with the deposit installment payment for the trailer it leads her into another world. A world of illegal immigrants. And she takes us along for the ride.
In one sense it is a world far from Los Angeles. Along the Canadian boarder where the St. Lawrence River divides Massena, New York and the Mowhawk nation of Akwesasne. Yet in another sense, it is a world related to California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas and Florida. Places that have a long tradition in dealing with illegal immigrants.
When raising funds to make this film no one considered this a high concept film. Which is one of the reasons it took years to make. She actually made a short film of the subject first and that helped open some doors. The lesson here from a screenwriting perspective is Hunt was persistent. And she not only got her film made, it got distributed and she was honored with an Oscar nomination (as did Melissa Leo for her fine performance as the main character).
“Frozen River does what too many independent American movies only pretend to do: Takes you to an unnoticed corner of our country and shows what it’s like to actually live there.”
Ty Burr
Globe Staff
Ty Burr
Globe Staff
That really captures the essence of what Screenwriting from Iowa…or wherever you live outside L.A. is all about.
Updated 4/12/09: Just learned that Courtney Hunt will be a part of Roger Ebert’s Eberfest April 22-26,2009 in Champaign, Illinois. Read more about it on Ebert’s blog.
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Hello Scott,
Nice article on Frozen River! Do you know if it is possible to get a hold of the screenplay or the dvd of the original short film Courtney Hunt made which lead to Frozen River?
Thanks!
Chris.
If I find anything on the original script or DVD I’ll let you know. But for those of you in the Champaign, Illinois area, Courtney Hunt will be a part of Eberfest April 22-26, 2009.