A Warm Place in the Sun a Film Written by Brad Perrott won 2nd Best Screenplay award at Cinefern Film Award and Competition's December 2020.
The Film is about Detective Jack Furst, a divorcee battling alcohol problems & failed attempts to reconcile with his daughter, is called to the scene of a body discovery in a marina. He arrives to discover his type-A , well-put together partner Lucy. She is extremely proper, yet charmingly nerdy. The body is identified as an extremely well-known billionaire real estate tycoon. At the scene, Jack speaks with a jogger, who claims to have keyed his car because he parked in a handicapped zone with no placard. He then speaks to homeless woman who provided finite witness details. These potential witnesses will add to the body count as they were observed from afar via binoculars. During the captain’s speech at the riveting press conference, Jack steps aside to try his daughter to apologize for missing her 21st, but the voicemail is cut short by him being needed at the podium. Elsewhere in the region, a home is being shown by a real estate agent that uncovers the primary crime scene. By the time this initial flooding of information can begin to be processed, the jogger & her mother are mowed down hit-and-run style by the original victim’s stolen Lexus. After the precinct briefing that wrapped a long day, the team grabs a drink to attempt to unwind. It is there that Jack downgrades from a scotch to a beer, and tells his surprised partner he is trying for his daughter. He then figures out the jogger was observed talking to him, and that the homeless woman is next. Jack & his partner rush to the last place they saw her, and find from another homeless person where she is permitted to sleep at night: a 24/7 chapel (in exchange for cleaning & keeping away other homeless). Jack & his partner split up, and Jack reaches the scene too late to save the homeless woman, but just in time to get knocked out by the killer by a Mother Mary statue. The killer then sees Jack’s face close up, and recognizes him from a previous endeavor. He tries to then kill him, but Jack’s partner causes him to scamper instead. Jack’s daughter calls while he is knocked out. His partner answers, and discloses what actually just happened to Jack, and she says she is on the next flight. Jack temporarily loses his badge, not from misconduct, but from modern-day concussion protocol. Lucy is assigned to monitor Jack by the captain in lieu of a hospital overnight. Jack’s semi-concussed dreams reveal a brief image of Lucy in lacey lingerie, followed by flashback dreams of his strained relationship with his daughter. In the morning, Jack finally speaks with his daughter, who informs him of her flight plans. After breakfast, Jack wonders if the jogger took photos of the keying, to record her adventures. He & Lucy then head to the evidence room, where Lucy worked before becoming a detective. Through a flirty ruse with her former co-worker who has beady eyes for her, she illegally obtains the jogger’s phone. After Jack’s “guy” obtains the photos from the broken phone, a crystal clear license plate photo is discovered, and the police finally discover the killer’s identity. Soon after, the killer slashes up his 5th victim, an associate of the original. He then calls Jack’s cell phone in the wee morning hours (obtained from Jack’s business card from the homeless woman after he killed her). The two have a tense conversation, featuring the killer assuming Jack doesn’t know his identity. Jack doesn’t reveal that he knows until the end of the conversation. The killer soon after takes his hot car and trades it for a beat up Mazda, staying 1 step ahead of the police department. The next day, the killer drives it to the police station, and begins stalking Jack with the binoculars as he did the witnesses. He tails Jack to his home. Jack’s daughter arrives via rental car from the airport. When Jack & his daughter head out, the killer enters to await their return. Jack & his daughter return and have a standard father/daughter catchup conversation. The killer listens a while before shooting Jack in the chest. As his daughter screams, the killer has sadistic taunting fun, kicking Jack around the room. During the standoff, Lucy stops over Jack’s because he asked her to earlier (to take pressure off with his daughter). She hears a scream and quietly calls in the cavalry from her police radio. During the intense standoff, the killer reveals that years ago, in a perceived dereliction of duty, Jack allowed his wife & daugheter to die. Lucy approaches drawn, the killer sees her silhouette in the door, and fires. Lucy is shot, but Jack takes the opportunity to spear tackle him to the ground. He gains the upper hand by beating his face with a fire log. After he verifies his daughter is OK, he tells her to direct the arriving personnel to aid Lucy. Once his daughter exits, he plunges a fireplace poker through the killer’s chest. The dying killer appeals to Jack’s religious side and pleads with him to help him pray for forgiveness in the hour of his death. Jack complies. As the killer is praying with one hand holding Jack’s, the other slowly draws a boot-holstered gun. The gun is slowly aimed at Jack’s ribs, and a shot rings out! Jack is shocked, looks down toward the gun. But it’s not Jack that is hit, it was Jack’s partner that shot the killer! Lucy is shown losing consciousness as Jack pleads with her to stay alert. 3 weeks later, Jack & his daughter are relaxing at the beach. Jack’s ex-wife, who left him in emotionally in tatters, is now on the phone wanting to reconcile. After thought, Jack decides to pass on the reconcilation after gazing into the scenery. When the phone call is ended, Lucy arrives with lunch! Comedic banter.......the end!
Interview With Brad Perrott
Q: What is the basic Idea Behind the film?
Brad Perrott: A cop drama is the oldest trick in the book....because it works! What sets this apart is the unique dialogue (a screenplay analyst said ‘it seems like the characters wrote their own lines, not the author). Plus the rapid pacing make the screenplay a fast read! Think of it as a rival to “se7en.”
Q: How do you handle the Pre-Production, and Post Production?
Brad Perrott: About 700 hours of good ole fashioned grinding. Plenty of sleep which is a good thing! But basically 4 months of my life doing nothing but sleeping and writing!
Q: What do you do to stay calm during Production of the film?
Brad Perrott: One scene, one line at a time!
Q: What sort of stories excites you?
Brad Perrott: I like projects that feature comedy, but comedy is not the primary purpose. I don’t like the pressure of ending every scene or featuring something funny in every dialogue line. I want the viewer to leave the theater remembering how great it was OTHER THAN comedy.
Q: Do you think all the good stories have already been made into a movie?
Brad Perrott: Absolutely not, there are infinite new story ideas. Problem is noone wants to produce a GOOD screenplay.
Q: While casting for your film you prefer to cast a well known face or any new face which fit the character?
Brad Perrott: Latter, without question. I don’t want to sell tickets because of what the talent has previously done.
Q: What is the most enjoyable thing about Production of the film?
Brad Perrott: Chalking up festival wins!
Q: What is the best possible way to promote your film when you are on a tight budget?
Brad Perrott: Social media is always a winner, but published interviews like this hit the spot!
Q: When your next film is coming and what is it about?
Brad Perrott: The Brad & Sonny Show! It’s a dog cuteness overload and flashy editing combo, it was just published today! (Just YouTube search for ‘The Brad & Sonny Show’)
Q: What advice do you want to give to the new and upcoming filmmakers?
Brad Perrott: Don’t worry about money or fame. Just do your thing quietly. If your product is right, no keyword or money to promote it is necessary, excellent content will find its way into the mainstream on its own.
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