About Saving The Farm

Synopsis

Four relationship challenged couples are invited to a marriage counseling workshop to launch a new book by author and motivational speaker, John Robert Stuart, entitled “Saving The Farm”. The Author’s nephew, Ashley Adams, is hired to make the documentary DVD to accompany the book. Ash invites his long-time girlfriend, Melanie, to be his assistant. The workshop is held at a bed and breakfast retreat center owned by a retired farmer, Walter Clark, and his wife, Hilde. Throughout the workshop marriages are transformed more through the practical council of the Walter and Hilde than the impractical, imperfected theories imparted by the facilitator, Bob Stuart. In the end, Ash and Mel have to make a tough decision about the future of their own relationship.

“Saving the Farm” is a screenplay for a theatrical motion picture. It is registered with the Writer’s Guild of America, WGA #1295303. It is available for option.

The music I have chosen for this web page is from Grammy Nominated Pianist, Peter Kater, from his 2003 album “Piano”. The selection is “Ascent”. Peter has written the music for over 100 television and film programs and 11 On and Off-Broadway Dramatic plays. His website is www.peterkater.com. Click the icon below to hear the selection.

Ascent from the CD “Piano” by Peter Kater
Ascent

Watch My Video Pitch

I want to express my gratitude to those who have given me suggestions for improving my pitch content and delivery.

Here is the text for my pitch for “Saving The Farm”.

“Saving The Farm” is a story about a reality TV show where the most interesting and illuminating conflicts happen behind the scenes. “Betting the Farm” is a best selling book by author and motivational speaker, John Robert Stuart. It deals with finding and marrying your soul mate. Bob’s newest book “Saving the Farm” outlines his principals for saving relationships at risk of failure. Promoting his book on a talk show we find that the host and his publisher have conspired to find 4 couples from the studio audience with relationship problems, even to the point where they are considering divorce. Bob is challenged on the spot to take these four couples on a week-long retreat where he can apply the principles outlined in his new book to their relationships and hopefully turn them around. An eccentric, yet successful TV show producer is hired to record the entire event for a reality TV show pilot to air on a major network.

Meet Ash our protagonist. Ashley’s a recent film school graduate and Bob Stuart’s nephew. He’s hired by his uncle on the cheap to create the “making of” documentary film of the event. Ashley hires his college girlfriend of three years, Melanie, as his assistant for the shoot, knowing that at the end of the production he’ll be moving to LA to pursue a dream career in film and she’ll be moving to New York to follow her own dream of working in costume design off Broadway. They travel with the cast and crew to “The Happy Life” bed and breakfast, a farm that has recently been converted to a B&B by an old retired couple. Ash’s documentary shows what’s really going on behind the scenes of the workshop and the reality TV show to the point where he runs the risk of making his egotistical uncle look bad. As Ash and Mel document relationships imploding and rebuilding themselves right before their very eyes, they discover the true meaning of unconditional love and wrestle with their own preconceived ideas about marriage and ultimately their future commitment to each other.

This script not only parodies reality TV, but also the cult-of-personality motivational industry, and comments on how we too often pay attention to the glitz and flash in society when real wisdom is usually available for free, right there under our noses, if we would just take time to notice.

The DVD version of the film will have 2 bonus features, the Reality TV show pilot and Ashley’s documentary, which tell the story of the workshop from completely different points of view. Spin offs include the novelization of movie, a prequel movie in “Betting The Farm”, and who knows, “Saving The Farm” could just be the next hit reality TV show coming to a network near you. Saving The Farm is more than a movie, it’s a franchise. To request a copy of the treatment and screenplay you can contact me by using my contact page on this website.

You may also call me at 512-576-5432.

Watch My Original Video Pitch

Here is the text for my original pitch for “Saving The Farm”

If you’ve been sleeping under a rock then you may not have read the best selling book “Betting the Farm”, by author and motivational speaker, John Robert Stuart, who we’ll just call Bob. “Betting the Farm” is a book about how to find and marry your soul mate. Saving the Farm is a film about his newest book “Saving the Farm” which outlines Bob’s principals for saving relationships at risk of failure. On the Julie Richards’ Talk Show Bob is surprised to find out that his publisher has arranged for him and 4 couples from the audience with relationship problems to attend a week-long retreat showcasing the principles outlined in his new book. Devon Seymour, a renowned TV show producer has been hired to record the entire event for a reality TV show pilot to air on a major network.

Meet Ashley Adams our protagonist. He’s a recent University of Texas film school graduate and Bob Stuart’s nephew, and he’s hired by his Uncle Bob to create the “making of” documentary of the event. Ashley then hires his college girlfriend, Melanie, as his assistant for the shoot, knowing that at the end of the production he’ll be moving to LA to pursue a dream career in film and she’ll be moving to New York to follow her own dream of working in costume design off Broadway. They travel with the cast and crew to “The Happy Life” bed and breakfast, a farm in the Ozarks of Missouri that has recently been converted to a B&B by a retired couple by the name of Walter and Hilde Clark. Married for almost 50 years, Walter and Hilde are doing all they can to hang onto the farm that has been in Walter’s family for generations. As Ash and Mel document relationships imploding and rebuilding themselves right before their very eyes, they discover the true meaning of unconditional love and wrestle with their own preconceived ideas about marriage and ultimately their future commitment to each other.

You may also call me at 512-576-5432.

Thanks for your time.

Sincerely,

Richard Dean Johnson

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