If I said I was once told, "Write what you know," it would be a lie. I have not been once told that. I have been told that many times- by workshop instructors, slam poetry professionals, creative writing experts. Most recently, I was told that by my AICE Media instructor. I consider myself to be a fairly average person, but I am also aware that multiple events in my life could and do qualify as fairly abnormal. I reveal the following information about my life not to evoke pity, but because they inform what will become my script, my storyboard, and my portfolio project.
Between late March 2020 and late summer 2022, I was technically homeless as the result of a domestic disagreement, and bounced between short-term living situations, some with my guardian and some without. I have experienced physical, emotional, and psychological abuse from multiple parental figures in my life. I do not consider myself a victim; I consider myself an artist. That being said, here is the plot of the film I would like to use my story as somewhat of a basis for.
The main character (more to come- for now let's call them MC) is a queer teenager who has been kicked out of their house, and must accept the "charity" of a friend's parents in order to have a place to sleep. The opening of my film will establish MC, as well as their friend and their friend's family, and the conflict between MC and their host family's religious beliefs.
Unfortunately, this tale is not a unique one- LGBTQ+ youth make up a disproportionate sector of the homeless population in the US. As in the Trevor Project's research study "Homelessness and Housing Instability among LGBTQ Youth", 28% of LGBTQ+ youth report experiencing housing instability or homelessness; 16% report sleeping away from parents or caregivers after running away from home; 55% report having run away due to mistreatment or fear of mistreatment caused by their LGBTQ+ identity; and the rates are also higher for transgender youth compared to cisgender youth, with between 35-39% of transgender youth experiencing this compared to 23% of cisgender youth. (The Trevor Project, 2022). The cultural significance of LGBTQ+ youth experiencing a higher rate of homelessness cannot be underestimated when taking into account the overall story of LGBTQ+ youth in film.
Based on the previous film research that I've done (review of Lady Bird (2017, dir. Greta Gerwig) to come soon), issues that the teen drama and slice-of-life drama genres often cover are both highly individualized and universal. In an interview with Vanity Fair, Gerwig reflected, "[...] I started from a place of knowing that the more specific I made it, the more universal it would feel". Therefore, I feel comfortable representing a highly specific individual's story, because it's within the genre conventions of drama- in fact, it goes all the way back to Greek tragedy- for my protagonist to be both an everyman and highly individual. As I move forward and enter the writing and planning phase of production a bit more, I plan to feel out the individual character traits of my MC a bit more- in essence, flesh out why they are the main character. But, again- big things are coming on that front.
Yours always,
Clover Fields
Sources:
The Trevor Project. (2022, February 3). Homelessness and Housing Instability Among LGBTQ Youth. The Trevor Project. https://www.thetrevorproject.org/research-briefs/homelessness-and-housing-instability-among-lgbtq-youth-feb-2022/
Nast, C. (n.d.). Greta Gerwig Explains Why Creativity is Mysterious. Vanity Fair. https://www.vanityfair.com/video/watch/toronto-international-film-festival-greta-gerwig-explains-why-creativity-is-mysterious#intcid=_cne-watch-pages_0c321820-7a8f-492b-b226-0e6a1d07396f_similar2-3
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