Advertisement
Lorene Scafaria Makes A Date With Nick & Norah
There have been countless comparisons made between Lorene Scafaria, the talented screenwriter behind Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist, and Juno writer Diablo Cody since both of them penned indie-minded comedies that attracted understated charmer Michael Cera to star. But the similarities between the two promising writers end there.
Unlike Cody, Scafaria has been in the business for quite some time, writing screenplays (Nick and Norah is merely her first to be produced) and appearing in independent films. Scafaria’s adolescence and love of music inspired her to adapt Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist into a screenplay from the book of the same name.
The movie, directed by award-winning moviemaker Peter Sollett (Raising Victor Vargas), centers on Nick (Michael Cera), a geeky heartbroken musician, and Norah (Kat Dennings), a college-bound girl questioning her assumptions about the world. On their quest to find their favorite band’s gig and track down Norah’s drunk friend, the two teens share a night of unforgettable experiences.
Scafaria’s witty script, along with the Manhattan backdrop, a soundtrack bursting with indie-rock talent and the writer’s brief cameo as a drunk, is the perfect ingredient for this romantic adventure-comedy. Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist debuted third at the weekend U.S. box office and will be released internationally in early 2009. But before the movie made a splash with audiences, MovieMaker spoke with Lorene Scafaria about the movie, her inspiration and projects on the horizon.
Kristin Forte (MM): First off, how do you feel about having your first screenplay turned into such a high-profile movie—with up-and-coming young talent and an award-winning director?
Lorene Scafaria (LS): Unfortunately, it was my ninth screenplay but certainly the first one to be produced. I had no idea when writing the first draft four years ago that it would turn into a high-profile film. The fact that an actor like Michael Cera got on board certainly propelled that. It’s amazing, though still weird, to see lines of dialogue splashed up on the billboards. Pete Sollett became attached after the second draft and I knew he was perfect for it. His first film, Raising Victor Vargas, captured such an authentic voice of a specific neighborhood of youth culture and I knew he’d be able to do it again. I feel incredibly lucky to have been the only screenwriter on the film, with a cast that made bad lines good, good lines so much better and came up with lines that were funnier than what was written. Hats off.
MM: What about the book Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist made you want to adapt it for the big screen?
LS: I grew up in suburban New Jersey, so I immediately identified with the characters, especially Norah. Everything from feeling uncomfortable in my own skin to having a father who’s larger than life (even if only in your mind), her plight really spoke to me and seemed like it would speak to a lot of young girls. It wasn’t hard to get inside the characters’ heads—the authors’ voices are so strong. David Levithan wrote Nick’s chapters and Rachel Cohn answered with Norah’s and I was lucky enough to have great source material. But it certainly helped that I knew the streets they were talking about and also had frequented Veselka in the middle of the night for borscht and sweet potato pierogies. I, too, have fallen in love with a musician, or 10, so I fell hard for Nick, and rightfully so. Nothing like a wounded bass player to heal. So I spent four years with Norah (and the voice of Rachel) trying to help Nick get over Tris [the girl who recently dumped him]. It was great.
MM: Have you ever experienced a crazy night like the one Nick and Norah have in the movie?
LS: I’m happy to say yes, a thousand times yes. Growing up an hour train ride from the city that never sleeps was good for getting into trouble. I wasn’t nearly as cool as Nick or Norah. I wasn’t into some underground scene. I shook a few glow sticks at The Limelight in my day, but hey, it was the 1990s. I just knew there was always good music and great friends and new love and revelations and a drunk girl puking in a Port Authority bathroom. Part of what I started to really love about the book, and ultimately about developing the script, was that it became a goal to make a road movie in Manhattan—the most ridiculous city to be stuck in a Yugo for the bulk of the night—and yet that’s where all the fun of the night really happened, in those moments between locations. I’ve also spent enough sleepless nights there to know it’s not that hard to get a parking spot at three in the morning on the Lower East Side.
1 of 2 |
Digg
StumbleUpon
Facebook
Del.icio.us
Reddit
YahooAdvertisement
COMMENTS | POST A COMMENT 
Latest from the blog:
Cadillac Records Premiere to Benefit Phoenix House
Every now and then the glitz and glamour of the red carpet gets to be something more than just a flashy excuse for a new outfit or a ride in a limo, allowing the superficial side of moviemaking (pose for the camera!) to become something of substance, something more akin to the reason why a movie is made. With the New York and Los Angeles premieres of Cadillac Records, a period piece centered upon Leonard Chess (played by Adrien Brody) and the lives of the blues and soul artists who were part of his Chess Records label, the red carpet gets to do just that.
Posted 11.21.08 | News/Commentary | No comments yet...
Other recent posts:
In Theaters Now: Twilight, Bolt, Special
Notes from Movieland: Do It Yourself Distribution - Part II
Gotham Independent Film Awards Series Comes to NYC
Posts people are talking about:
SITE DELIVERY OPTIONS
