Sly

I started, and finished the first draft of ‘Sly’ way back in 2010, when I was living in Austin, Texas.

During the 8 years that I lived in Austin, I had developed a genuine appreciation for both -- the exciting rise of indie filmmaking, and the diverse local music scene that had -- and still have — strongly contributed to the city’s distinct identity.

Although my views of Austin are much different now than they were back then, ’Sly,’ in 2010, had sort-of served as a love letter to ATX; an excuse for me to show off what I loved about the city at the time. Much like Paul Thomas Anderson’s depiction of Los Angeles, Woody Allen’s depiction of NYC, and yes, even Richard Linklater’s depiction of Austin, TX — but of course, with my own spin.

I should probably also mention that ‘Sly’ was originally written to be a feature film. But the problem was — it was far too long to be a feature film; a comedy that was 218 pages. To put it mildly, it would’ve been a tough sell, independently financing production on a 3 1/2 hour - 4 hour theatrical feature film/comedy. And the story I was trying to tell, didn’t warrant a 2nd draft in which I would basically cut the length in half. And so, the draft laid dormant and untouched for a little over a decade.

Deciding to give ‘Sly’ another look in 2023, it immediately made sense what could, and should be done with it. Although it wouldn’t work as a theatrical feature film, it would obviously work now as a TV series. And not just as a pilot episode, but as an entire first season, ideal for a premium format such as Apple TV+, Hulu, Netflix, Prime, or HBO.

‘Sly’ is, and always has been, a comedy with dramatic elements; and an ensemble with diverse, and infectious characters. The possibilities of what can be done with most of these characters almost seem infinite. Unfortunately, what I believe are the true scene-stealing characters of the series — said characters do not show up until Episode 2 of ‘Sly.’ So, for the pilot, the establishing of the main character, his privately-owned cult video store, and his immediate circle of peers — are the primary focus.

Lastly, while assuming at first, that everything about ‘Sly’ would have to be updated for 2023, I was not enthusiastic about redrafting this story. That was until I realized that — the setting itself, DID NOT have to be updated. The story could serve as a time capsule, of what it was like to live in Austin, in the year 2010.

Tapping into a new era of nostalgia, America was different. Barack Obama was president. Most people didn’t have a smart phone. Compared to now, life was almost simple back then. Only in such a time, could adults in their 20s, 30s, and 40s passionately argue about movies, and behave like children while doing so — and back then, the call for mainstream social justice really didn’t need the support of adults like them; or, at least not like it would need them now.

It was a time when the political climate wasn’t so openly aggressive, nor was it as polarizing; and people’s political affiliation almost didn’t matter. In Sly’s world, the movies were the politics, and these characters’ lack of self-awareness in their own self-seriousness, is where I think many of the jokes shine the brightest… or, at least as long as you remember — what world they lived in.

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PAu 4-188-455