CHICAGO, September 22, 2004—Chicago ScriptWorks (CSW), a bimonthly screenplay reading series, will present the script Brother’s Keeper, written by V. J. Brooks, about sibling rivalry that heightens between four young brothers when the tragic death of their father leaves them struggling in a single-parent household. Searching for answers, love and resolve leaves the grown African-American brothers self-absorbed until an act of violence changes their lives forever.

The poem, We Real Cool written by the late poet laureate Gwendolyn Brooks is featured in Brother’s Keeper. Act 1 of Brother's Keeper (entitled Four Young Trees) will have its World Premiere screening prior to the reading. This blending of film and theater will be a unique and first-time experience for CSW audience.

Brooks is the founder and producer of Chicago ScriptWorks and Roatan Film Production. She produced the first CSW staged reading in March 2003, and since has developed it into a bimonthly reading series. Brooks received an Honorable Mention in the Chris Wetzel Independent Comedy Award competition for her short film, It Takes One to Know One.

“It’s been wonderful producing some great screenplays and working with screenwriters from around the country since last year, but I must admit, I’m pretty excited to experience the audience response to my work, my vision,” said Brooks.

CSW will present a staged reading of Brother’s Keeper, October 13, 2004, 7:00 – 8:30 p.m., at the Chicago Cultural Center Studio theater, 77 W. Randolph, Chicago, Illinois.

Chicago ScriptWorks Stages Notable Screenwriter’s Script

CHICAGO, July 21, 2004—Chicago ScriptWorks (CSW), a bimonthly screenplay reading series, will present the script Cause and Affection, a romantic dramedy by James Drummond about a successful attorney who asks her ex-boyfriend to get her pregnant, no strings attached. As they reflect on their breakup and the pros and cons of the arrangement they realize the important things in life.

Drummond, an English writing graduate from DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana, began his writing career at the school newspaper, The DePauw. Drummond later reported high school sports for the Daily Herald and was part of the team that Associated Press ranked the Top 10 in the country for Best Sports Reporting in 1997.

Never having taken a screenwriting course, Drummond received writing credit for Down Into Happiness, a feature length film that placed second in the Gene Siskel Film Center 72-hour Film Project in October 2003. Drummond was also a second quarter-finalist in the 2004 Project Greenlight contest for the script Bank Shot and a quarter-finalist in the 2003 Zoetrope Screenwriting Competition for Cause and Affection, which placed in the top 100 screenplays.

CSW will present a staged reading of Cause and Affection, August 4, 2004, 7:00 – 8:30 p.m., The Hideout, 1354 W. Wabansia, Chicago, Illinois. A reception will be provided at 6:30 p.m.

Chicago ScriptWorks Stages Own Associate Producer’s Screenplay

Screenwriter, Accomplished Actor, Director, Producer, and Casting Director

CHICAGO, May 24, 2004—Chicago ScriptWorks (CSW), a bimonthly screenplay reading series, will present CSW associate producer and casting director Andrea Klunder’s screenplay, And To Friends, a drama about two young women on a European backpacking excursion that tests the limits of friendship and love.

A film and video communication graduate from Western Michigan University, Klunder directed CSW's first two staged readings Antigone Bound and comes Love, a reading in which she also performed. Her directorial film debut was made with Roatan Film Production for the short film Four Young Trees, currently in post-production. Klunder has filled various film crew positions including second assistant director on last summer's IFP shoot for The King of The Tango.

Klunder recently originated the lead role in a workshop of the new musical Camp Nimrod For Girls at Live Bait Theater and is currently performing in nomenil's production of Love Pollution: a tekno-popera, which was accepted to the 2004 New York Fringe Festival. Klunder has appeared on many Chicago stages including Circle Theatre in the Jeff-nominated production of Nine and the Midwest Premiere of Michael John LaChuisa's The Wild Party.

“I’ve been living with my characters for nearly four years and I’m ready to let them go and see if they can stand up on their own. Watching your story come to life from the work of a skilled director and a team of dynamic actors is a rare and exciting opportunity for screenwriters anywhere. It’s why I’m proud to be a part of Chicago ScriptWorks,” Klunder said.

CSW will present a staged reading of And To Friends, June 9, 2004, 7:00 – 8:30 p.m., The Hideout, 1354 W. Wabansia, Chicago, Illinois. A reception will be provided at 6:30 p.m.

Chicago ScriptWorks Stages Black Harvest Film Festival Co-Founder’s Screenplay

CHICAGO, April 9, 2004—Chicago ScriptWorks (CSW), a bimonthly screenplay reading series, will present Black Harvest Film Festival co-founder Sergio Mims screenplay, Blood Creek, a western screenplay about a reformed outlaw who agrees to transport his son’s murderer to a town across dangerous territory.

More than a decade-long career in film, Mims is a film critic for NewCity and a faculty member at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where he teaches film history. He also hosts a weekly radio show about film called Bad Mutha’ Film Show on 88.5 FM, a University of Chicago station every Monday at 3:00 p.m., where he discusses filmmaking, film reviews and conducts interviews with filmmakers. Previously, he taught screenwriting at Columbia College and film classes at Facets Multimedia.

Mims’ film career was launched when he began working on films such as The Color of Money and House Party as an assistant director and on commercials for Coca Cola and Chevrolet. Mims co-founded the Black Harvest Film Festival at the Gene Siskel Film Center eight years ago and is the co-programmer of the two-week festival that runs every August.

“I am thrilled to have Chicago ScriptWorks produce my script. Every screenwriter knows the importance of a script reading, but to have your script read aloud with an audience is an amazing opportunity,” Mims said. Chicago ScriptWorks will present a staged reading of Mims’ script Blood Creek, April 14, 2004, 6:30 – 8:30 p.m., The Hideout, 1354 W. Wabansia, Chicago, Illinois.

Chicago ScriptWorks Stages Accomplished Screenwriter’s Screenplay

CHICAGO, January 29, 2004, Chicago Cultural Center—Chicago ScriptWorks will present a staged reading of the screenplay, Deerly Beloved, written by accomplished screenwriter Colin Costello, and his wife Sharla, February 10, 2004. Conceptualized by Sharla, Deerly Beloved is a romantic comedy about a deer that crashes a fairytale wedding, and before the bride can say “I do,” her groom is sent to the hospital. Deerly Beloved was recognized at the 2003 Austin Hearts of Film Festival as a distinguished second rounder.

Colin, who has spent more than a dozen years working in advertising writing commercials for Gatorade, Sunkist Orange Soda, Budweiser, and others, decided to try his hand at screenwriting when encouraged by Marcus Nispel, director of Texas Chainsaw Massacre. “He [Nispel] kept telling me, ‘You’re a writer. A storyteller. You’ve told thirty-second stories for years, now it’s time to evolve,’ so I finally did,” Colin said.

In 2000, Colin sat down to write his first screenplay, Teen Titans, which later placed in the top 50 scripts of the IL/Chicago Screenwriting Contest. Colin’s success continued with an optioned second screenplay for his horror flick, Bed Bugs, and with another screenplay, A Miami Tail, written after Deerly Beloved. A Miami Tail was among five finalists for the Gordon Parks Award and the only script made into a film; simultaneously, it was a semi-finalist in IFP’s Pipe Dream Award. A Miami Tail debuted at the American Black Film Festival in Miami in June 2003, and was distributed by Lion’s Gate in September 2003.

The Costello’s reside in Barrington, Illinois, with their two daughters, Chloe and Maxine. They are represented by Jennifer Lauren of Literary Management Group (LMG).

Chicago ScriptWorks will present a staged reading of the script Deerly Beloved, on February 10, 2004, 6:30 – 8:30 p.m., at the Chicago Cultural Center, Studio Theater, 77 E. Randolph., Chicago, Illinois.