Interview with Winning Screenwriter Lisa Defazio (MISSION BROWN)

Matthew Toffolo: What is your screenplay about?

Lisa Defazio: It is about a couple caught in a clash of desire and control set in a picture-perfect setting of domesticity and a woman’s desperate attempts to appease her husband, who she loves. Relatable tensions and resentments build. The power pivots with the use of a most unexpected device.

2. What genres does your screenplay fall under?

Dark comedy

3. Why should this screenplay be made into a movie?

The pristine reality and the farcical aspirations we all try to portray are scrutinized and revealed within this plot. The bumbling adoring sexy wife with a healthy

4. How would you describe this script in two words?

Gritty glamour

5. What movie have you seen the most times in your life?

Moonstuck

6. How long have you been working on this screenplay?

Eighteen months

7. How many stories have you written?

I have always written and continue to do so, I have completed another short film called BLOSSOM that did well winning numerous laurels. Currently, I have two concepts that I have recently finished for on-demand viewing both are in m a mini-series format.

The first is based on a female anti-hero who struggles with her desires and competing longings called ‘Appetite’. The lead is gritty and flawed, her experience of the world is absurd, full of denial contrasted with brutal honesty. Her life is a pendulum, exalting mental states of fantasy clash with everyday banality. She is going to get this thing called life right despite the comical absurdity of her reality. The series is sexy and has a very current female take on being.

The second mini-series ‘ADC Limited’ is the reversal of hard-earned mediocrity the female lead has sacrificed to achieve. Her poor judgment of men and bad timing create her ultimate undoing. Standing to lose it all she puts everything she has into one absurd idea and her new business is borne. Cutting insights into humanity are explored with warmth honesty and humor.

8. What is your favorite song? (Or, what song have you listened to the most times in your life?)

Naive Melody – Talking heads

9. What obstacles did you face to finish this screenplay?

One of the obstacles I had was to ensure I had articulated the motivation of each character and to not assume people knew them as I do. The involvement of a professional screenwriter was key to this.

10. Apart from writing, what else are you passionate about?

Art, expression and freedom. I actively support the arts and frequently attend live theatre, comedy, live music and film. As a vintage collector, I have a sizable collection of vintage clothing and furniture that I started as a teenager.

11. You entered your screenplay via FilmFreeway. What has been your experiences working with the submission platform site?

I found FilmFreeway to be an excellent platform, very user friendly, and a great hub of what’s on.

12. What influenced you to enter the festival?

What were your feelings on the initial feedback you received? As a screenplay, I felt the festival was the right fit for my project. The feedback was invaluable, even when collaborating you have a fixed perception and have assumptions you are confident any reader will make. The feedback for Mission Brown was revelatory – straight forward and precise. I found it greatly rewarding.

A typical couple and their cat named Neville – In a neighbourhood near you.

CAST LIST:

Narrator: Allison Kampf
Woman: Victoria Urquart