I'm a Praxis fellow again (screenplay competiton)
 

I'm a fellow again!

To explain: A screenplay I wrote was selected for the fall Praxis Screenplay Competition (http://www.praxisfilm.com/en/competi.../default.aspx).

The Praxis competition is open to Canadian screenwriters who want to see one of their feature-length screenplays workshopped by industry mentors. It's held every fall and spring. Out of all the entries, 4-6 screenplays are selected to be workshopped. Praxis takes first drafts and tries to make them into polished industry-standard screenplays. In the summer session, winners from the year can submit their second drafts to be workshopped again by a larger group and read by working actors.

(Excuse the rough logline)

My screenplay "The Lakehead" (working title) is a gangster drama set in the 1920s in the 'smuggling lane' between Winnipeg and Minneapolis-St. Paul which was a center for gangland activity during Prohibition. Frank Marsh, an ageing enforcer with a Minneapolis mob is asked to take his old mentor, the retired patriarch Joe Gran into Canada to hide in exile while a gang war rages in America. Choosing to hide out in a farm run by the wife of an imprisoned rum runner and her son, Frank is shown a different way of life and a way out of his gangster past. However, trouble follows them across the border.

I wrote "The Lakehead" right down to the wire, finishing it in the early morning of the deadline and submitting it later that day. No offense to those others who meticulously crafted their screenplays but I was just surprised that it got in.

I am a second-time fellow of Praxis. In 2004 I was selected for "Exclusion Zone", a war movie about a squad of Canadian soldiers in Bosnia.

Well then, congrats again Keith. Good luck.

Good work Keith, I'll let you buy me sushi to celebrate! :)

As legend goes, I had heard that Al Capone was around Moosejaw and Winnipeg during Prohibition. Sounds like a cool story Keith, good luck.

I didn't read about Al Capone but for sure there were a lot of gangsters who did the bootlegging themselves or had to travel to make sure the deals got done.

Congrats Keith.

Validation is always good motivation for keeping the butt in the chair!

Thanks all.

I'll report back on my experiences if anyone is interested.