 Alexz Johnson is an insanely talented musician. We are blessed beyond belief to have her music in this film. Bonus - she’s also an award-winning actress. And again, we are blessed beyond belief that she’ll be acting in The Wasting as well. When I met Alexz, right away, I saw a kindred spirit, who pours every fibre of who she is into everything she does. We see that most publicly in her songs. Her songwriting and her voice reach down inside you, grab hold of your soul, and give it a wake-up call. (A pleasant “sun-coming-up, smell of coffee”, wake-up call. Not a “some bonehead just pulled the fire alarm and it’s 3 am and I may vomit” wake-up call). She wants her music to speak to people in a way that will make them look at the world, and themselves, differently. I want to do that with films. And neither of us will be stopped by the politics and bureaucracy and naysayers and fearful doubters of the world. Kindred spirits, indeed.  About a year after I met Alexz, I was in the midst of writing The Wasting. My head was full of Sophie and the demons that walk with her. And then I heard Alexz’s song, Walking. I was mesmerized, blown away, (insert superlative here). It was as if she wrote that song for The Wasting. For Sophie. I had to have it for my film. I called Alexz, and she didn’t hesitate. She read the script, she loved it, she saw what I’m trying to say, and Walking became the official song of The Wasting.
But it didn’t stop there. Alexz and her music became ever more intricately woven into the fabric of this film. Last New Year’s I was in Vancouver, working on a TV series, far from home, woefully alone. Recipe for festive season sadness! Alexz, who is from nearby Port Moody, was home for the holidays. I ended up ringing in 2014 with her friends and family. There was music, cool people, a board game about apples. And wine. I had a sleepover. It seemed best. (See: “And wine”) In the morning, when the other wine-addled visitors had gone looking for coffee or eggs or whatever it was, we talked about The Wasting and anorexia and Sophie’s confused, terrifying journey. We talked about music and how artists have to keep telling stories, and keep helping each other to tell them, whether through music or design or film or art. We talked for hours, and that dialogue has continued since. Alexz’s support and ideas have been invaluable. Her commitment to the film is one of the things that pushes me forward when things have looked as dark as Sophie’s future. I’m so glad she’s in my corner, and that we’re telling this story together.
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2014 is starting with a melodious bang for Endzone Films. We are thrilled, honoured and stupefied to be able to say that our upcoming feature film, The Wasting, will feature the music of the impossibly gifted Alexz Johnson. There are really no words to describe Alexz's talent but it behooves me to try, as I am a writer, and as such, I know lots of words (like "behooves"). Alexz is a singer-songwriter out of Los Angeles who is taking the world by storm with songs that cut straight through the crap and stab people in the heart, and a voice makes you believe in God. She's the real deal, as her legion of fans can tell you, and a most welcome, vital piece in the puzzle that will become our film. Lest you be unsure of just how important music is in a film, watch this youtube clip of Alexz Johnson'sWalking and think about something ghostly. See what I mean?
But don't take my word for it. Check out what MTV's Buzzworthy has to say about Alexz Johnson in this article, with bonus video: Video Premiere: Alexz Johnson, Nothin' on Me Again...see what I mean? The Wasting. Alexz Johnson. Puzzle progressed. Full speed ahead. I tell stories. I have since I was a little kid. Sometimes I make them up, sometimes they really happened. Either way, I always tell them as if they are the most real, most important story in the world. I don't know why I do this, because, frankly, I am too cheap and too lazy to have spent the years in analysis it would take to figure it all out. Possibly I am a pathological liar and storytelling is a safe outlet for my whoppers. Or maybe I just like being the centre of attention. But I hope that it's because I want to make a difference in the world. Because I believe with all the earnest sincerity of an idealistic 12-year-old, that if one of my stories can change the way one person looks at the world, the ripple effect will take over and the world will be a better place.
And then I can pat myself on the back and look smug. This is my first blog post. As I blog away in the coming months, I'm going to tell you lots of stories about lots of things having to do with writing and filmmaking, and specifically, the films I am making. As I am also wildly opinionated and relatively filter-free, I will probably, at some point, say shit that will get me into trouble if this falls into the wrong hands. But it will, at least, entertain. And maybe it will even change the world. Let the games begin.. |
carolyn saundersWriter, director, storyteller, animal lover, defender of the downtrodden, night swimmer, cookie baker, hopeless wanderer Archives
August 2017
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