Has anyone out there written a script for Dandelion Wine? Has Mr. Bradbury? If anyone has a thought, please pass it on. Registered copies only! I'd love to give it a read. One of my favorites. I shot a feature in NH and would like to tackle that story down the road (unless it's already in the works.)
I'm only hoping an independent gets a stab at it. The bigger studies could potentially shape the story into typical McDonald's Happy Meal fodder. I'm not saying it wouldn't require a big budget and a few great actors, but it just might need someone at the helm who has an interest in Bradbury's vision and not the vision of the merchandising department. Francis Ford Coppola comes to mind, but he might be too busy with his own wine! Anyway, if anyone out there has news of this great book heading towards production, let me know. I'm looking forward to it. Check out my website and get back to me. Thanks! http://www.onthefringemovie.com/
- Jeff Palmer
Dover NH

Don't know if this is still a current topic for
discussion, but here is my take.Unless Hollywood
is willing to shoot most of the chapters from the book, it would not be worth the effort. I
always thought the book deserved to be presented
in half hour segments presented over the course
of an entire summer prior to the main movie.Sort
of like the old travelogues the were shown with a cartoon prior to the first feature.The entire
film could then be assemmbled for release as a six hour dvd for home viewing.

Twelthnite, great idea, I believe the 1996 Russian film was a miniseries.
Byzantium, here is a link to what seems to be the script, which may not do you much good as it's in Russian:

Rej Bredberi. Vino iz oduvanchikov
moshkow.surgut.ru/library/lat/ INOFANT/BRADBURY/wine.txt

I was wondering who to contact in order to produce a chapter of Dandelion Wine for my student film. I've tried to find a contact through the publishers, but I hardly think that they seem concerned with a student filmmaker... or at least I haven't gotten in touch with the right person, yet. If anyone could offer any suggestions, I'd be delighted.

Cinema Show Films has put out a flim version of Dandelion Wine, containing the parts involving the Lonely One and the Ladies. However I can't find out where to see it or how to get more info. If anyone has any ideas on how to see it let me know.

A film version of DW would require a major movie production and at least two hrs. of running time to come close to capturing the essence of this book's classic story line. Otherwise, a two or three night mini-series on the little screen would be needed.

However, the movie theater would be the ultimate setting for such an experience.

Think of it! You are sitting with great anticipation, overhead the lights dim from the high ceiling. In the dark of the movie house, surround-sound music envelopes you. Settled into your seat, you now zoom down from an aerial view of Greentown, IL, as a new day sun is about to break from the distant horizon. From a small cot, a young boy awakens and creeps over to an open window. Wide-eyed, he begins to consider the panorama of his hometown from this very special cupola vantage point. The summer of 1928 is about to capture (enthrall, mesmerize, mystify, enlighten, etc.) everyone in the theater.....

Big screen would be my vote, for sure!!

If the book has been able to play its magic for so many years, it is only logical that an epic project be set in motion to get the screen version just right.

F O R E S T E R:::::::::::::

Here's what you want to know about the Dandelion film from Cinema Films. Briefly, it was done by a fellow named Jeff Clark, last October in Frederickburg, VA. It's a portion only...but..heck, you can just go to his web site and see it all yourself, photos, etc. That web site is::::
www.gl.umbc.edu/~jclark6

Hope you got all that. And I hoperI got it all down right.

That's w w w dot g l dot u m b c dot e d u slash squiggle (whatever they call those)
j c l a r k 6

�����������
N O T E
�����������
This is September 28, 2003

The above link no longer is valid, because it doesn't have the Bradbury film info, and has a bunch of other strrange sounding things that I'd think should be explained with this note. NO! This stuff currently wasn't on the original link...... NK


[This message has been edited by Nard Kordell (edited 09-28-2003).]

Yes, the link works, thanks so much for posting it! The site does not seem to say one word about who (if anyone) was asked permission for use of the story or if they sent Ray Bradbury a copy of the film or so much as one of the posters. I'd like to find contact info for this guy to learn this and at least obtain a poster!

(P. S.) Of course, one could try to compile their own version of "Dandelion Wine" by sticking together different episodes of "Ray Bradbury Theater," but you'd hardly end up with a "movie" that way. The only immediately apparent change in the story was the addition of Douglas's dog. Dogs appear in other Bradbury stories, but not DW. Probably a favorite pet someone in the cast wanted to show off.

Thanks Guys,
I had seen that website, but couldn't find any contact info to get a copy of the film or a poster. If any one finds out, let me know.

Here is more on that. Ray Bradbury says he has never heard of Jeff Clark or the film, and, that while it is perfectly legal to own something done without permission, "it's illegal to do anything with it." When someone wants to publish a story of his in an anthology, they contact his agent--not him--but anything other than a reprint, such as a film, seems to be more complicated. I guess you could try contacting Ray's agent.

Here is the "Dandelion Wine" film and adaptation information that is being discussed again.

Ditto above.

I am not a professional screenplay writer, just an English student who recently read and loved this book.

I believe Dandelion Wine could make a great film, if done right. However, with some scenes, it is a difficult task accurately portraying some of Douglas' realizations, especially the ones that lack dialogue.

What are your thoughts on a narrator? If you feel that an unattached narrator could be added to the film without destroying its beauty, please say so. If you have an idea on how to get Mr. Bradbury's messages across without the use of an audible narrator, share it. This is an interesting project for me.

If I were to film DW (I am a little bit of a film maker, mainly documentary; and I teach Video Production for a living), I would avoid voice-over because it tends to make the writer lazily avoid the challenge of visualising the events.

So, how to get Doug's inner thoughts on screen? Use "the look". Show events, and show the guy's face. Show his body language, show his bearing, his demeanour. There are lots of moments where, for example, Doug has a contrasting reaction to Tom's reaction. Show an event, show Tom, show Doug.

I would also encourage any would-be screenwriter to read what Hitchcock has to say about the Kuleshov effect. This is a basic principle of film editing that says that a blank look on an actor's face doesn't look like a blank look when it is intercut with other images. (This led Hitchcock to prefer actors who could just "look" without emoting, and to despair of method actors who found themselves incapable of doing this.) Look in Truffaut's book on Hitchcock for some insight into this.

The other recommendation for anyone adapting Bradbury is to follow Peckinpah: he recommended tearing the pages out Bradbury's books and stuffing them into the camera. In other words, the images are already there on the page if you just have the courage to film them. Too many adaptors have kept Bradbury's plots and ignored his imagery. (And too many more have even ignored his plots!)

Phil
www.bradburymedia.co.uk

[This message has been edited by philnic (edited 01-04-2005).]