UPDATE: Tales from Fat City Film
Back in July 2018, Strutter reported about Tales From Fat City, an independent film written by Karla Guy and Kathy Byron. TFFC is described as "a tale of fat shaming, bullying and social consciousness squeezed into one fat funny film."
To raise funds for the film Guy and Byron launched an Indiegogo campaign—and there's still time to donate!
Recently, Strutter reached out to Guy to touch base about all things TFFC.
Strutter: How's the drive for the movie going so far?
Guy; We took a little break to regroup over the holidays but now were more motivated and focused on getting this funded and in the can. We really want to submit to festivals and get distribution.
Any updates to the funding rewards program?
Who wants my Paypal? [Laughs]
Have there been changes to the script or cast since we last spoke?
It's been five years since we started writing. We periodically go back and re-read the script and make changes. Like we had a look-a-like President Obama in the final competition scene watching my performance so now Trump is president. We also had a scene with Tillikum the killer whale escaping. But now, R.I.P. Tillikum is dead now. Things like that. As for cast, I always thought Dee Wallace would be perfect to play my mother. I think Nick Swardson would be so funny and spot on as one of the bullies who taunts me throughout the movie. I definetely think Judy Tenuta would play a hilarious therapist the role is perfect for her. I wrote a scene for Perez Hilton as a judge and he said he would do it. But you have to have the money to offer these roles. We are doing this independently so it just depends who will be available and who will work with our budget.
How have shows like "Dietland" and "Puddin" helped your project?
Well, it's been easier to explain how current our film and message is in regards to fat shaming, bullying and telling the story of my life. I just wish we would have found producers to see our vision then and come onboard. It's a great film I'm excited to share the message in a funny, lighthearted way.
How are you promoting your campaign?
We plan on doing another launch. We mostly did a social media launch to test the waters. I researched the the sites Kickstarter, Indiegogo, Gofundme, and SeedandSpark. I feel safe using #Indiegogo again cause I know how hard it is to get funded and I don't want to lose the money if we don't meet our goal. I wish they promoted more of the smaller campaigns like ours, who need it the most instead of the corporations trying to launch a new product.
What do you hope to accomplish by this time next year?
I'm hoping for some divine intervention (Dear God, remember me? It's Karla Guy. I wrote Tales from Fat City...) We need to get this baby made. It's time. We spent five years of blood, sweat and tears writing, re-rewriting, having table reads, and listening to feedback. It really showcases how funny we are and the material is still current. We even have a characters that want to work for N.A.S.A. so when the Space Force became news we were excited to have it already written it in our film. We have so many great characters in this funny film can't wait to see it on the big screen!
Want to see Tales from Fat City on the big screen? Donate here.