Petition asks Olivia Luccardi to read prison screenplay
More than 2000 women sign petition demanding a firm commitment from Olivia Luccardi (film producer) to read screenplay addressing Texas judicial system
Olivia Luccardi – Talent Agents
– Actress, Producer – It Follows (2014), Money Monster (2016), Person to Person (2017), Go/Don’t Go (2020) – ICM Partners, Sarah R. Kelly – One Entertainment, Anthony Aiello
Olivia Luccardi & 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 Olivia Luccardi 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 Olivia Luccardi at ICM Partners, Sarah R. Kelly last week.
In the open letter to Olivia Luccardi, 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 Olivia Luccardi 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.”
Actress, Producer, Olivia Luccardi, has not responded to the petition. Nor has ICM Partners, Sarah R. Kelly 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.”
Olivia Luccardi 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.
Olivia Luccardi is a Actress, Producer known for It Follows (2014), Money Monster (2016), Person to Person (2017), Go/Don’t Go (2020) and is represented by ICM Partners, Sarah R. Kelly.
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That’s it for plot/execution. It’s not as hard as you thought, huh? Once you learn the tricks to commercializing a script’s plot, you can sit back and let the creative juices flow because you have the knowledge to write a script that will finally land you exactly where you want to be; up on the big screen!
Think franchise potential. Today’s producers are looking to capitalize on material that has franchise potential, which means they can produce part I, part II and part III – maybe even a TV spin-off series. This means to end the story in a way that leaves it open for a potential sequel. A word of warning: this does NOT mean to leave the conflict unresolved! Watch franchise films to see how the first movie in the franchise ended and how it technically leaves open the possibility for the hero to return.
Check the page length. If Act III is less than 10 pages long, it’s too short. A short Act III means the hero wasn’t given a strong enough external conflict to resolve. By this point in the story, the hero’s reached his arc and has changed internally. Go back and work on Act I’s setup and Act II’s conflict. Beef it up, stay focused on resolving the hero’s internal conflict and leave Act III for the hero to resolve the external conflict.
Don’t kill the hero! This is one of the toughest sells on the spec market. I know movies have been made where the hero dies, but unless you know Leonardo DiCaprio (Blood Diamond) or Joaquin Phoenix (Gladiator and Ladder 49), then I’d refrain from this approach because it’ll take a big, A-list actor attached to get made and in today’s economy, audiences don’t want downer stories! Plus, it’s unlikely this type of script would sell from a writer without a track record.
The hero/ine’s plans should almost always be stated (although something might be held back, even from the reader/audience, as in The Maltese Falcon and Casablanca — that Bogey was a sly one). The antagonist’s plans might be clearly stated or kept hidden, but the effect of his/her/their plotting should be evident. It’s good storytelling if we, the reader or audience, are able to look back on the story at the end and understand how the hero/ine’s failures were a direct result of the antagonist’s scheming.
(I’m giving that its own, bold line to make sure it sinks in.)
This continual opposition of the protagonist’s and antagonist’s plans is the main underlying structure of the second act.
Also throughout the second act, the antagonist has his or her own goal and plan, which is in direct conflict or competition with the hero/ine’s goal. We may actually see the forces of evil plotting their plots (John Grisham does this brilliantly in The Firm), or we may only see the effect of the antagonist’s plot in the continual thwarting of the hero/ine’s plans. Both techniques are effective.