Events
Writer and director Brian Padian.
IN THE FALL of 2004, Brian Padian began working on the screenplay for what he decided would be his first feature length film. He hoped to write something straightforward—a narrative he would be able to shoot in a short timeframe, in one location, with a small cast and crew. He finished a draft he was satisfied with, and then was diagnosed with a rare kind of brain tumor, had two brain surgeries, received radiation treatments, and waited a number of years before making The Black Sea.
This is not a standard way to move through pre-production of a film project.
It is such an unusual way to develop a film, in fact, that I will certainly have to ask Brian to address it, if even cursorily, when I interview him Wednesday evening at Boys Fort in Portland. He is currently developing his second feature length film, a project titled Sister/Brother. Will radiation also be a part of his writing process on the new film? If so, how committed is he to that aspect of his process? Could he be talked out of it? Join us and find out:
THAT WAS FILM SCHOOL, THIS IS NOW
Brian Padian and Dan DeWeese in conversation
7pm, Wednesday, May 23rd
Boys Fort
1001 SW Morrison Street
Portland, Oregon
BRIAN PADIAN is a screenwriter, photographer, and the director of the feature length independent film The Black Sea (2015) and the short films The Big Black Dark (2011) and I'm Your Man (2010). He is currently in development on his next feature film, Sister/Brother. A graduate of the American Film Institute, he has lived in Portland since 2004.
DAN DEWEESE is the author of the novels Gielgud (2018) and You Don't Love This Man (2011), and the story collection Disorder (2012). Editor-in-chief of the web magazine Propeller, he is also the publisher of Propeller Books. A graduate of the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts, he has lived in Portland since 2000.
DeWeese, a lapsed screenwriter and filmmaker, will ask Padian about the role Padian's film education has played in his approach to writing, his goals for a career in film, and in the development of Padian's visual aesthetic. Particular attention will be paid to stills from The Black Sea, as well as images from Padian's photography. Both men are parents, and at some point in the conversation DeWeese will surprise Padian by asking about children, parenting, and how family life has affected Padian's growth as an artist. The conversation will take place in Boys Fort, which Willamette Week named Best Men's Specialty Store in 2017.