Acclaimed Director and Producer visit The Story Hatchery

Yesterday Story Hatchery students had the opportunity to have River Run director Josh Hyde and producer Claire Connelly sit in on class. Mr. Hyde's film, Postales, has been screened a number of times during the festival to sold out audiences. It was also an official selection for the Edinburgh International Film Festival.

Students asked Mr. Hyde and Ms. Connelly a number of questions about how to translate a story into a film; what is the process from writing a screenplay to directing the actors to editing the final cut; what was Mr. Hyde's creative inspiration for his new film; and many more.

Students then shared their work with Mr. Hyde and Ms. Connelly, who were both enthralled by our students' use of dialogue, character development, and imagery. (They even pulled me aside later in the day to gush about our students--I'm allowed to gush, too!)

Mr. Hyde left our students some wonderful advice to practice in writing and our other projects:

"Transfer the emotions of your characters into actions, which then demonstrate the emotions."

"I'll tell the actors I'm working with to hide it, don't show me your emotions so much. Hide them from me."

"I think the best tool is observation. To watch people is the best education in learning about how we are."

Postales is about a chance encounter between a postcard-selling street kid and an American tourist girl that ignites a chain of events in the streets of Cuzco, Peru, culminating in robbery, young love, and new-found cultural understanding. Find more information at www.postales-themovie.com or www.postalesmovie.wordpress.com.

Thank you, Josh Hyde and Claire Connelly, for giving our students an unforgettable experience, Story Hatchery-style!