Saturday, October 23, 2010

Judy Blume Makes a Movie

by Gina Piccalo, The Daily Beast

Iconic young adult author Judy Blume has sold more than 80 million books, but has never had a movie made of her work. Gina Piccalo talks to her about filming her novel Tiger Eyes.

Novelist Judy Blume, revered by millions for demystifying the thorniest bits of puberty, has authored some of America’s most cinematic young adult books and weathered years of controversy for her frank writing. As novelists go, few are more eligible for a Hollywood adaptation.

Yet, in the 41 years since she published her first book, Blume fans have never seen one of her stories make it to the big screen. Then last summer, the author started tweeting about scouting movie locations, working “15 hr days” on preproduction, tweaking a script and casting roles for a film adaption of her 1981 novel Tiger Eyes.

At 72, Blume was suddenly living the life of a scrappy indie filmmaker. And though, her movie’s chances of reaching theaters are still uncertain, the novelist is energized by the challenge of it all.

“It’s a fantasy come true for me,” Blume told me in a Sunday night phone call, just three days before the whirlwind shoot was set to begin in New Mexico. “I’m glad I’m still around to enjoy it.”

Tiger Eyes is about a striking 15-year-old girl named Davey (played by Gossip Girl stunner Willa Holland) coping with her father’s violent death during a robbery and her family’s new life in Los Alamos, New Mexico, when she meets a hunky Native American guy named Wolf (played by Tatanka Means).

The full report at The Daily Beast.

Gina Piccalo is a senior writer at The Daily Beast. She spent a decade at the Los Angeles Times covering Hollywood and is also a former contributing writer for Los Angeles Magazine. Her work has appeared in Elle, More and Emmy. She can be found at ginapiccalo.com.

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