DAVID HALLOCK SANDERS
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​How did you go about marketing yourself and The New Moon in the Old Moon's Arms? Have you had an agent or manager repping you...or have you been working solely as your own advocate?
I’m not an especially good self-marketer, and I don’t have an agent or manager, so I serve as my own advocate as best as possible. My marketing efforts to this point are pretty much limited to my very humble website (https://davidhsanders.com/news-and-notes/), which I imagine only about a dozen people have ever seen, along with support from my great writers’ group. But once the film is done I know I will need to up my marketing game as I work to get the film into festivals and screenings.
 
With production slated to commence in May, it sounds like your project is truly on a "fast track." What has influenced that kind of schedule?
The schedule is being determined by the film-maker, who is shooting another project now that wraps in the spring and who is able to fit my film in right after that. Working in my favor is that my script has only three characters and two locations, which makes the production relatively simple.
 
Will you be involved in any other capacity other than as the writer on the film?
I am somewhat connected within the Philadelphia theater community, so I will be helping a bit with the casting process. I am also involved with identifying locations for the shoot. But otherwise, I plan to stay out of the director’s way as much as possible.
 
Will there be additional work on the script as you approach your production date?
There has already been additional work! The director asked me to cut several minutes from the script to make the movie length more suitable for festivals. I had thought the script was already as tight as could be, but I made the cuts and now feel even better about it. We’ll see what else lies ahead…
 
Anything else you'd like to share with the world?
I should note that I sent my script out to some 60 competitions and individuals, over a span of about two-and-a-half years, before it finally found its filmmaker. I now have about a half-dozen other scripts in various stages of completion, and I know they will face a similar, if not even greater, challenge in finding a home, if they ever do. Writing a screenplay is a tough and lonely endeavor filled with rejection, but I believe it is also a noble and creative quest in itself. So to all writers out there, keep the faith!

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