THE TECHNICAL WRITER

SATURDAY 25 OCTOBER AT 1:10PM UGC SHAFTESBURY AVE SCREEN 1

Country USA Running Time 95 mins Format 35mm Dir Scott Saunders Prods Jim Calabrese, Michael Harris, Susan Leber, David Leitner, Scott Saunders S'play Michael Harris DoP David Leitner Cast Michael Harris, Tatum O'Neal, William Forsythe, Pamela Gordon, Natalia Novikova Print Source Damga Control Film E scopix@aol.com

The Technical Writer is the story of Merriman Jessup (Harris), a man who hasn't ventured beyond the front door of his midtown Manhattan apartment building in years. Jessup's reclusiveness comes under siege when a flashy married couple, Slim (Tatum O'Neal in a great comeback role) and Joe (Forsythe), move into the building's penthouse.

A whirlwind of energy who pursue a lifestyle of extravagant decadence, the cosmopolitan pair invite Jessup to join the party on the roof. Predictably he shuns their overtures. So when Joe, a movie actor, is suddenly called overseas on a two-month shoot, the couple decide that, while Joe is away, it would make an amusing project for Slim to see if she could seduce Jessup out of his seclusion. Jessup eventually succumbs to Slim's charm, which reawakens in him the desire for life, the open air, and, to his amazement, love. But his growing elation is abruptly crushed when Joe returns home earlier than expected. Jessup is left with the terrible choice of returning to his desperate isolation, or trying to maintain his tenuous grasp on the world with Slim. The Technical Writer is both an excellent character study and a film that's smart, irreverent and sexy. OH

Scott Saunders has directed, cowritten, and co-produced three feature films and over 20 shorts, and was named one of Variety's 10 Digital Directors to watch. He has been a Fellow at the Sundance Screenwriter's Lab and is a founding member of New York's Film Crash.