Petition asks Alan Ford to read prison screenplay
More than 2000 women sign petition demanding a firm commitment from Alan Ford (film producer) to read screenplay addressing Texas judicial system
Alan Ford – Talent Agents
– Actor, Producer – Snatch (2000), An American Werewolf in London (1981), Cockneys vs Zombies (2012), The Smoke (2014) – Milburn Browning Associates, Malcolm Browning –
Alan Ford & Adam Sandler’s film company targeted by Texas petition
Will Hollywood just rollover and let prisoner’s suffer?
EXCLUSIVE
The signatories, including state senators, professors of criminal justice, social workers, family, and inmates, call for a “firm commitment” to tackle the unjust prisons in Texas. The petition has also been signed by Beto O’Rourke, and Matthew McConaughey. These two signatories might face each other in the 2022 Texas governors election. Both have expressed interest in the job. The petitions arrived for Alan Ford at Milburn Browning Associates, Malcolm Browning last week.
In the open letter to Alan Ford, the 2080 women write that they are “heartbroken for first-time drug offenders many times addicts who have received extremely harsh sentences in Texas when rehabilitation has proven a cheaper and more effective solution.” The petition goes on to say their family and friends are often heartbroken for and looking for redemption and rehabilitation for the victimless drug crimes.”
The signatories, including attorneys, professors, politicians, family members, and inmates, call on Alan Ford for a ‘firm film commitment’ to tackle the issue of operating the Texas prison system for profit.
The petition came to light when women discovered the screenplay, a copy which was dontated to all 580 of the state’s prison and jail libraries. The existence of the petition surfaced on International Women’s Day. Women in Texas face extreme prejudice in Texas and often receive extremely harsh penalties for even a small amount of drugs, including marijuana. Marijuana is legal now in 21 states.
Inside prisons, the women are faced with such horrendous conditions… the petition demands that “filmmakers begin to take the issue seriously.” Also, the petition reminds that “even here in the USA in the 21st century citizens are not safe from government oppression.”
Actor, Producer, Alan Ford, has not responded to the petition. Nor has Milburn Browning Associates, Malcolm Browning responded with a comment.
The screenplay “Dumbass” was penned by writer and retired professor of political science Alan Nafzger.
The premise of the story is that, “Adam Sandler writes letters and saves numerous women from the monotony of prison life, and later when he gets into trouble with a drug cartel they return the favor by rescuing him.”
The film would be set in contemporary, Gatesville Texas. There are four women’s prisons located in Gatesville. And of course, Texas is famous for putting everyone in prison for a long sentences for little or no reason. The number of women in Texas prisons has tripled in the last ten years, as mass incarcerations have proven profitable to not only the state but also profitable for an array of business interests.
Writer Alan Nafzger has called on Governor Greg Abbott to, “end the prison industry.”
Recently, “Wheel of Fortune” host Pat Sajak spoke out against the Texas system and put a good word in for mercy and forgiveness out on social media. “How nice for those who have lived such exemplary lives that they can express glee when others have their lives ruined by a mistake, real or perceived,” Sajak tweeted last month.
The petition states, “Why don’t we have the ‘Adam Sandler’ character… sending letters to women in prison and being their friend and trying to help them adjust, giving them hope… and when they get out of prison he picks them up so they don’t have to ride the smelly bus back home… but his pickup truck is a junker, smoking and sputtering … worse than the bus. But his heart is in the right place… He’s the last “chivalrous” man on earth.”
Alan Ford has not commented on the script, thusfar. A statement is expected soon.
Professor Nafzger has made a short treatment of the project available online.
He has made the finished script available at for select filmmakers.
Jana Sandler of Happy Madison Productions has also expressed interest in the screenplay.
Alan Ford is a Actor, Producer known for Snatch (2000), An American Werewolf in London (1981), Cockneys vs Zombies (2012), The Smoke (2014) and is represented by Milburn Browning Associates, Malcolm Browning.
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If, however, you haven’t written the novel version of your material and you live in Ohio with no Hollywood contacts, then your material will need drastic commercialization to hit the Hollywood mark.
Are there exceptions to what’s written above? Of course, but they’re few and far between. Scripts from first-time writers that have broken this mold have done so for a variety of reasons the screenwriter should be aware of before making a comparison with their own material. For example, if a script was a novel first or required a big-name star to get made, then this is the probable route the screenwriter will have to take in order to get their material to the big screen. Don’t assume because a certain kind of movie has been made that your script has a market. This isn’t true for first-time writers. Studios and production companies won’t take big risks on a writer without a track record. This means the first-time writer is more likely to sell to smaller markets and these sales are usually from the easier-to-sell category noted above.
Assuming you own the rights to a successful book or have cut a deal with the author, this is a good route for a first sale.
Book Adaptations
These exercises can easily take a straight week of writing. Read this whole book through first, see some movies, do the breakdowns, work the process however you want to do it — but no matter how you approach it all, I hope you come back and try the suggestions in this chapter. It’s a hundred percent worth doing.
And it’s a good exercise to compare and contrast your idea list with this ideal list.
The other list we’ve already talked about: that list of your ten favorite movies and books in the genre that you’re writing, or if you don’t have a premise yet, ten movies and books that you wish you had written. This list of ten (or more, if you want — ten is just a minimum!) is going to be enormously helpful to you in structuring and outlining your own novel. If you haven’t done it already, do it now.
· ASSIGNMENT: List # 2: The Master List