Inner Dialog
Reflecting, projecting, and updates on creative work
To Keef and Matt H. I miss you guys.
My family suffered a tragic loss in January. Joe was a husband, father, son, brother, friend, and, for me, brother-in-law — the closest to a brother I’ve known. I felt like I could not return to this space without addressing him.
The photo on Joe’s prayer card is from my wedding. He watches me sit down to write. I open my compass — a gift from my wife that points toward inspiration. I don my ratty old head phones, and I talk to Joe. “Let’s f*&^ing get it, Joe. Let’s finish this s**t.” Joe pumps me up. He inspires me to bring my best every day.
Joe supported me, and he supports me still. He watched me act in my first play in Miami. He saw my work in Montréal. He cared to ask about me. Now he roots for me to keep going. Joe helped me carry my latest project to the finish line. He helped a great deal.
Wando, Slim & The Light Within is a screenplay for an animated film. Grant Harris and I broke ground over Corner Bistro lagers in 2021. I shared the idea with my wife on our first date, five years earlier. The question arrived in college. Does a caterpillar know it’s going to become a butterfly?
Wando, a lovestruck praying mantis, is thrust into raising Slim, an orphaned monarch caterpillar. Just as Slim enters his cocoon, a flood sweeps them far from home. Luci — a firefly whose light is out — joins Wando on a quest across the forest, meeting danger in spiders, bats, and humans. Meanwhile, inside his cocoon, Slim searches for his true identity.
Wando & Slim illustrates the conflict between following your heart and leaving the loved ones who shape you. It is equally exciting and visually stimulating for children as it is heartfelt and impactful for their parents. In the film’s fullest expression, Paul McCartney sings Mother Nature’s Son as a beetle.
When I finally set out to write the film, I set out to finish it. I believed that Grant and I would hold each other accountable. For that reason, and because his uniquely creative mind is well-suited to imagine a semi-psychedelic bug world, we set out to write it together. Our 2024 draft was a quarterfinalist in two animated screenplay competitions.
This new draft I took solo. The tangible reason for my Substack hiatus is I put all my writing time toward Wando & Slim. My goal was to further illustrate themes so you feel the story. I dedicate the work to Joe. He reminded me I don’t have time to lose.
Whatever happens with Wando, Slim & The Light Within, I wrote it to share. I have family members who don’t know this part of me — this central burning furnace — at all. With hopes they attend, I’m planning a public reading of Wando & Slim:
Tuesday September 30 at 8:00pm EST (5:00 PST, 6:00 MTN).
The reading will take place on Zoom.
It’s cast with great friends and great actors from the theatres of Montréal, New York, and Colorado. To further support the story, we’ll share original character mock-ups by friend and animator PJ Portera. It should be a lot of fun. I hope you’ll tune in.
Tickets will go on sale in September. Substack subscribers will receive a special discount code.
Thank you for your support.
ps. for you west coasters - I understand that may be an awkward time. I can send ya a recording.
in theatre:
I received an opportunity to direct the Colorado Springs premier of The Pool by Jennifer Caress. The play follows a woman who navigates grief caused by suicide and the ghost of an ex husband who won’t leave her. The Pool will be performed for consecutive weekends in the end of September at the Millibo Art Theatre.
It feels great to be back in a rehearsal room with a talented and hard-working team. Working with actors and exploring a script are some of my favorite ways to spend minutes on planet Earth. We have an opportunity to bring a lot out of Jennifer’s truly courageous script.
Come out to Colorado Springs and see The Pool.
improv
I have joined a cult since we last spoke.
WHIMSICULT plays the THIRD SATURDAY EVERY MONTH at PEAK IMPROV THEATER, Colorado Springs. Come out for laughs/indoctrination.
Next Show: Saturday August 16 @ 7:00pm
The gang brings down the house with a Harold. I’m out of town.
Next show I’m in: Saturday September 20 @ 7:00pm
9/19 The Pool opening, 9/20 Whimsicult?
Sounds like a weekend.
Thank you for catching up, folks. Mackenzie and I are doing well out here, and I hope the same for you. We’re off camping in Rocky Mountain National Park this weekend — our fourth national park visit in this here Colorado. You may expect photos.
Thanks again for reading. I appreciate you.
— Matt
Remember to mark that calendar for 9/30 and check out PJ’s work.
Photos: Monument Valley, 2024.
