Petition asks Sarah Kendall to read prison screenplay
More than 2000 women sign petition demanding a firm commitment from Sarah Kendall (film producer) to read screenplay addressing Texas judicial system
Sarah Kendall – Talent Agents
– Writer, Actress, Producer – Frayed (2019), Beehive (2008), Motherland (2016), The Other One (2017) – PBJ Management, Caroline Chignell – Token, Kevin Whyte
Sarah Kendall & 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 Sarah Kendall 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 Sarah Kendall at PBJ Management, Caroline Chignell last week.
In the open letter to Sarah Kendall, 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 Sarah Kendall 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.”
Writer, Actress, Producer, Sarah Kendall, has not responded to the petition. Nor has PBJ Management, Caroline Chignell 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.”
Sarah Kendall 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.
Sarah Kendall is a Writer, Actress, Producer known for Frayed (2019), Beehive (2008), Motherland (2016), The Other One (2017) and is represented by PBJ Management, Caroline Chignell.
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-Slasher horrors tend to open by introducing the cast of characters who will soon become statistics. Monster flicks and supernatural horrors work best when they open with a teaser. A teaser involves seeing a ‘glimpse’ of the monster; a shadowy figure in the night or something can drag someone into a closet, like in the film Boogeyman.
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Also as already noted, the hero/ine’s plan will change, constantly — as s/he first takes the absolute minimal steps to achieve her or his goal, and that minimal effort inevitably fails. So then, often reluctantly, the hero/ine has to ESCALATE (or CHANGE) THE PLAN.
Another important storytelling and suspense technique is KEEPING THE HERO/INE AND ANTAGONIST IN CLOSE PROXIMITY. Think of it as a chess game: the players are in a very small, confined space and always passing within inches of each other, whether or not they’re aware of it. They should cross paths often, even if it’s not until the end until the hero/ine and the audience understand that the antagonist has been there in the shadows all along. In movies like The Fugitive, you can see Richard Kimble and U.S. Marshal Gerard passing each other by inches sometimes. In Romancing the Stone, a romantic comedy-adventure, you see protagonist Joan Wilder and villain Zolo and comic villains Ralph and Ira all passing within spitting distance of each other, constantly. It’s a great suspense technique in itself (and oh, does Hollywood love this mano a mano stuff…).
In an action story or a thriller or mystery — or a fantasy like Harry Potter or The Wizard of Oz — there will be continual ATTACKS ON THE HERO/INE by the antagonist and/or forces of opposition. These will often start subtly, and then increase in severity and danger.
And in a love story, there is always a specific scene that you might call THE DANCE, where we see, for the first time, that the two lovers are perfect for each other. (This is often some witty exchange of dialogue when the two seem to be finishing each other’s sentences, or maybe they end up forced to sing karaoke together and bring down the house….) You see this Dance scene in buddy comedies and buddy action movies as well (there’s a great example of it between Sheriff Brody and Matt Hooper in Jaws), but any love subplot in any genre can benefit from the scene.