BIO
Honestly, my love of writing came late to me. First and foremost, I am a drummer by profession. I've been a NYC freelance musician since 1981, after graduating from University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill . My playing career, with a core passion for jazz, has taken me in many directions- over the years I've played in small and large ensembles, including forming my own, the East Down Septet. I've played extensively for Broadway shows, and performed often at City Center, Lincoln Center, and the Kennedy Center.
Sometime in the mid-90s-- it was during a brief dry spell between gigs-- I decided to try something I had been thinking about for some time. Inspired by the healthy Indy film scene, my brother Steve's burgeoning career as a Production Designer, and my life-long love of movies, I wrote my first screenplay. And as the rule book states, I wrote what I knew. Since I felt strongly that very few films came close to capturing the real world of musicians, Seven Steps To Heaven was my feature foray; a comic story of a drummer in search of a legendary, awe-inspiring, holy grail ride cymbal. The story had Broadway pit orchestra goofballs and country and western pickers. It was a road movie, a jazz paean, and mostly, it wasn't about an abusive-genius-drug addict musician who dies too young. After a few drafts I organized a reading with many of my great NY actor friends, and the audience was hooked. A writer/director couple I knew in Hollywood loved it, and suddenly I found myself flying to L.A., meeting with writers to develop my very first script. Screenwriting classes soon followed, as did writers groups, workshops, and readings. I am particularly and consistently motivated by the idea that not every story has already been told; when I see an original, inspired film- amid a parade of formulaic retreads- I know that it is thrilling an audience with a new take, a different slant, an untold story, that makes this pursuit so phenomenal.
Since the late 1990s, I have written 3 other feature screenplays- The Beast Of Baluchistan- a loony comedy taking place on a live "Wizard Of Oz" tour, Hell's Acres- a gritty 1853 drama, and Milton And Janis- a funny fable of an aging Jewish masseur and his client, Janis Joplin. In 2016 I also wrote, directed, and produced my own 11-minute promotional trailer for Hell's Acres, which is also linked here.
I hope your interest is piqued, and look forward to hearing back.
Honestly, my love of writing came late to me. First and foremost, I am a drummer by profession. I've been a NYC freelance musician since 1981, after graduating from University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill . My playing career, with a core passion for jazz, has taken me in many directions- over the years I've played in small and large ensembles, including forming my own, the East Down Septet. I've played extensively for Broadway shows, and performed often at City Center, Lincoln Center, and the Kennedy Center.
Sometime in the mid-90s-- it was during a brief dry spell between gigs-- I decided to try something I had been thinking about for some time. Inspired by the healthy Indy film scene, my brother Steve's burgeoning career as a Production Designer, and my life-long love of movies, I wrote my first screenplay. And as the rule book states, I wrote what I knew. Since I felt strongly that very few films came close to capturing the real world of musicians, Seven Steps To Heaven was my feature foray; a comic story of a drummer in search of a legendary, awe-inspiring, holy grail ride cymbal. The story had Broadway pit orchestra goofballs and country and western pickers. It was a road movie, a jazz paean, and mostly, it wasn't about an abusive-genius-drug addict musician who dies too young. After a few drafts I organized a reading with many of my great NY actor friends, and the audience was hooked. A writer/director couple I knew in Hollywood loved it, and suddenly I found myself flying to L.A., meeting with writers to develop my very first script. Screenwriting classes soon followed, as did writers groups, workshops, and readings. I am particularly and consistently motivated by the idea that not every story has already been told; when I see an original, inspired film- amid a parade of formulaic retreads- I know that it is thrilling an audience with a new take, a different slant, an untold story, that makes this pursuit so phenomenal.
Since the late 1990s, I have written 3 other feature screenplays- The Beast Of Baluchistan- a loony comedy taking place on a live "Wizard Of Oz" tour, Hell's Acres- a gritty 1853 drama, and Milton And Janis- a funny fable of an aging Jewish masseur and his client, Janis Joplin. In 2016 I also wrote, directed, and produced my own 11-minute promotional trailer for Hell's Acres, which is also linked here.
I hope your interest is piqued, and look forward to hearing back.
Copyright Rich Rosenzweig 2018 All Rights Reservedved