Just watched. Great movie. Congratulations to your wife! Thank you for posting here.
nai06 said:PooDoo said:
Watching with the family... couldn't you do something about the Hook Em Horns sign at Harpys?
So listen, I actually campaigned really hard to have it changed and was shut down by everyone. Something about reshoots and it being too expensive
nai06 said:
This thread is to detail the process and experience of how my wife's book became a movie. If you would like to critique it, please do so on a different thread. Also please don't harass my wife or I, that is not cool.
I debated even bringing this up because people on the internet are awful (even on texags). Anyways some of you might know my wife is an author. She's a NYT #1 Best Seller among other accolades so suffice to say she has done pretty well for herself. Anyways, back in 2015 she wrote a book called Dumplin'. It's a about a fat girl in a small Texas town. She knows she is fat and isn't really bothered by the term. She falls for a guy at her job and is surprised when he has feelings back for her. She loses some of her self-confidence and tries to gain it back by joining the local beauty pageant run by her mother, former beauty queen. It debuted at #1 on the NYT Best Seller list and has been published something like 20 different countries.
Soon after we got a call that Disney wanted to buy the film rights which they ended up doing. That was a bit of wild experience just seeing all the things that Disney does. Around this time, Disney began ramping up production on it's live action remakes. About a year later they decided to let the rights expire and not to make the film. It was a pretty big gut punch but there was a silver lining.
At this point, they already had a screenwriter, script, and some producers signed on. The screenwriter, Kristen Hahn (Time Traveler's wife, The Departed), had a good friend that she felt was perfect for the main character's mother. Her friend just happened to be Jennifer Aniston. Everyone involved at this point was determined to get the movie made so they secured some independent financing and went forward with production.
We were very lucky in that they consulted my wife a lot on the script which is not very common in the book to movie experience. The biggest hurdle would be the music. The main character in the book is obsessed with Dolly Parton and it's a central theme in the book. So needless to say, we were blown away when we found out not only had Dolly read the book, she wanted to let us use her entire catalog, and wanted to write some new music for the film. The album features lots of collaborations with current artists and is produced by Linda Perry
We had a chance to visit the set about a year ago and that was also eye opening. The cast and crew were amazing and it was so cool to see how a movie is made. Spoiler Alert: I made the final cut of the film as an extra. Back in February we went to LA to film some promo stuff and meet Dolly Parton. I don't know how to put into words the experience of meeting someone who is a cultural icon and a childhood hero. Basically, it was incredible and I now have the most kick ass Christmas card photo for this year.
Fast forward to today. The movie was eventually bought by Netflix and is scheduled for release on December 7th of this year. The soundtrack which features 6 original songs by Dolly Parton is out on November 30th. She just released a second song from the album which is an original for the film.
I really wanted to start this thread because I know a few people were interested but mainly because I am so dang proud of my wife. I'd be happy to answer any questions about the whole process. Like I said if you want to critique the film and book, please start another thread. Also, please don't seek out and harass my wife or I on social media she gets enough hate mail as it is. TIA
TL;DR
My wife wrote a book which was made into a movie starring Jennifer Aniston, Dolly Parton and Linda Perry did the soundtrack, Dolly wrote some original songs for the film, it comes out in a month, and I don't know what real life is anymore.
LINKS:
IMDB page for cast
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4878482/fullcredits
https://www.countryliving.com/life/entertainment/a24403853/dumplin-movie-netflix/
Dolly Parton has two songs out from the soundtrack. Here I am (a rerecording featuring Sia) and her newest original song Girl in the Movies (she has already been promoting it for an oscar nom)
https://dollyparton.com/featured/here-i-am-first-single-from-dumplin/15492
You can find both songs anywhere you buy or stream music.
And here is the track listing
Edited to add the trailer:
Clover City is just a fictional town based on a lot of different places we've been to. As far as the movie goes, it was filmed in and around Atlanta, GA. The "Hideaway" is technically a real place but its not a drag bar. Its actually a biker/dive bar in the Atlanta area that goes by a different name. It was a fairly authentic dive bar though. I do often wonder what the regular patrons think about their favorite place being transformed into a drag bar for the movie.Duncan Idaho said:
cute movie. But does this drag Queen bar really exist? I mean I know a lot of crazy **** happens in rural Texas but it is usually on the DL.
I had heard of this book previously in Aggies Only but always forgot to request it via the library. After this thread, I made it a point to not only read Dumplin', but also her other books. She's a great author!!2012Ag said:
Told my wife about this thread.
She told me to tell you (and to please relay to your wife) she absolutely loved the movie and plans to purchase and read the book.
oh no said:
my dad told me the other day that he and my mom met and befriended a producer of this movie recently and said they feel like "insiders"!
My response: "yeah, well, the husband of the writer of the book posts on a website that I also post on, so I'm an insider too".