Petition asks Jonathan Scarfe to read prison screenplay

More than 2000 women sign petition demanding a firm commitment from  Jonathan Scarfe (film producer) to read screenplay addressing Texas judicial system

Jonathan Scarfe – Talent Agents
– Actor, Producer, Director – The Equalizer 2 (2018), Van Helsing (2016), Hell on Wheels (2011), Into the West (2005) – Greene & Associates Talent Agency, Kiernan McCaffrey –

Dumbass, Jelly

Jonathan Scarfe & Adam Sandler’s film company targeted by Texas petition

Will Hollywood just rollover and let prisoner’s suffer?

EXCLUSIVE

More than 2000 women have signed an open letter to Adam Sandler calling on Jonathan Scarfe and Hollywood to take “movie action” to tackle injustice against men and women in the wake of revelations that Texas has more prisoners incarcerated than the Soviet Union’s gulag system had. Texas currently has over 290,000 inmates housed at 580 facilities.

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 Jonathan Scarfe at Greene & Associates Talent Agency, Kiernan McCaffrey last week.

In the open letter to Jonathan Scarfe, 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 Jonathan Scarfe 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, Director, Jonathan Scarfe, has not responded to the petition. Nor has Greene & Associates Talent Agency, Kiernan McCaffrey responded with a comment.

Alan Nafzger/caption]

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.

During the winter’s deep freeze, the The Marshall Project, exposed the horrible prison conditions, “Inside Frigid Texas Prisons: Broken Toilets, Disgusting Food, Few Blankets.”

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.”

Jonathan Scarfe has not commented on the script, thus far. 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.

Adam Sandler of Happy Madison Productions has expressed interest in the screenplay.

Jonathan Scarfe is a Actor, Producer, Director known for The Equalizer 2 (2018), Van Helsing (2016), Hell on Wheels (2011), Into the West (2005) and is represented by Greene & Associates Talent Agency, Kiernan McCaffrey.

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The story’s main conflict must prevent them from being together and be related to love. In the film While You Were Sleeping, the female lead can’t be with the man she’s fallen for because she’s supposed to be engaged to his brother. Create circumstances related to love that prevent the two from being together.

CIRCUMSTANCES

When the couple meets is also important. A huge mistake screenwriters make is not having the couple meet until pg. 20 or after, often at Plot Point I! The couple should meet ASAP, preferably within the first ten pages!

How does the couple first meet? It better be memorable! In The Wedding Planner the lead female’s high heel gets stuck at the same time a run-away dumpster’s headed her way. She’s saved by the male lead! This is the fun part of writing a RomCom! The cute meet can involve breaking the physical barrier. Perhaps the male lead has to literally catch the female lead to prevent her from harm and she ends up in his arms. Or the cute meet can be over-the-top, like the runaway dumpster scene in “The Wedding Planner”. Coming up with a unique and fun way to have the couple meet.

Remember that the antagonist hasn’t gotten what s/he wants yet either, and will be escalating his or her actions as well. The attacks are more brutal and often more lethal. Very often the most intense action sequences happen during this third quarter. This is another place that the hero/ine’s ally or allies may be killed.

ESCALATING ATTACKS BY ANTAGONIST

On the other hand, new help sometimes surfaces for the hero/ine in a scene that Joseph Campbell called “The Visit to the Goddess.” Vogler left this step of the Mythic Journey out of his The Writer’s Journey (typical sexist Hollywood!), but this can be an extremely powerful scene: think of Neo’s visit to the Oracle in The Matrix and Galadriel’s gifts to the Fellowship in the first Lord of the Rings; and on a lighter note, Margaret’s bonding with Grammy in The Proposal. External action has failed the hero/ine, and a consultation with a feminine, more intuitive power often yields the glimpse of a solution.

VISIT TO THE GODDESS