Meet the 2012 CineStory Fellow: Lukas Hassel

LUKAS HASSELBorn and raised in Denmark, Lukas Hassel left family and friends behind at the tender age of 19 to study acting at Trinity College’s Samuel Beckett Theatre School in Dublin, Ireland. Some seven years later, ambitions, opportunity, and a desire to experience New York drove him across the Atlantic Ocean in 1996. He still happily resides in Manhattan.

There’s tennis, the love of the outdoors, step-aerobics, cooking and hosting dinner/game nights for close friends, traveling, and family fun.

And then there’s writing and acting...

As a screenwriter, Lukas’s action script Fury was a semifinalist in the PAGE awards; his light comedy script Girls on the Run won “Best Screenplay” in the Carolina Film Festival and became a finalist at CineStory 2009; and his post-apocalyptic script Galápagos won “Best Screenplay” at WilliFest New York 2011. He directed his own short film script Dinner with Peter, which screened at festivals like Smogdance, Williamstown Film Festival, and Boston International Film Festival. He also just wrapped filming his new sci-fi short film, Into the Dark, which he hopes to have ready for festivals later this year.

As an actor, Lukas has worked in theater: A Midsummer Night’s Dream directed by Joe Dowling, Dracula, Othello, Private Lives, Woman of No Importance, Orfeo ed Euridice, The Ritz on Broadway under Joe Montello’s direction, and many more. In film, Lukas has been in Borstal Boy, the Sundance winning short Man About Town, and recently the feature film In Montauk, directed by Kim Cummings, for which his performance garnered a nomination for “Best Male Lead” in the 2012 Washington DC Film Festival. He just wrapped On the Day God Slept under the direction of Jeremiah Kipp, as well as The 9^th Floor directed by Shaun Rana. TV work includes the reality show Soapstar, a lead role in Denmark’s top rated show Anna Pihl, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, The Beautiful Life (TBL), and The Onion News. He has also breathed life into the beloved character of Mr. Milk, the spokesperson for milk in Scandinavia (“Mr. Melk,” check it out on YouTube…seriously, it’s fun).

Lukas’s latest feature script and first drama, Le Mécano, is the culmination of his writing journey thus far.

And the winners are...

After another lively discussion at the finals judging dinner, we are delighted to announce the winners of this year's CineStory Screenwriting Awards. 

Grand Prize Winner and the 2012 CineStory Fellow  

LE MECANO, Lukas Hassel, New York, NY

Second Place Winner

THE YARROW KING, Brad Kane, Mill Valley, CA   

Third Place Winner

THE LONG SHORT DROP, Georgia Lin Sundling, Los Angeles, CA  

Congratulations to these three writers and to all the finalists for their outstanding scripts! And many thanks to our wonderful group of finals judges for all their hard work.

Meet the 2012 CSA Finalists...

Once again our judges had some tough decisions to make in selecting this year's finalists. Each writer below is invited to the 2012 Writers Retreat in Idyllwild, as well as being in the running for the 2012 CineStory Fellowship, valued at over $17k!

2012 CineStory Screenwriting awards finalists

• BANK ROBBING FOR DUMMIES, Robert Keith Watson, Sherman Oaks, CA
• FIT FOR LIFE, Jennie Allen, Brooklyn, NY
• I, OF THE HURRICANE, Ken Pearson, Tempe, AZ
• LE MECANO, Lukas Hassel, New York, NY
• THE BEAUTIFUL THINGS, Michael Trozzo, Los Angeles, CA
• THE LONG SHORT DROP, Georgia Lin Sundling, Los Angeles, CA
• THE YARROW KING, Brad Kane, Mill Valley, CA
• VERONA, Michael Werwie, Los Angeles, CA

Congratulations to the 2012 CSA Semifinalists!

Once again our judges had some tough decisions to make in selecting this year's semifinalists. So to all the writers who made it to the quarterfinals, thank you for sharing your wonderful scripts. And of course our congratulations to all those whose work is advancing to the next round.  

Each writer below is invited to the 2012 Writers Retreat in Idyllwild, as well as being in the running for the 2012 CineStory Fellowship, valued at over $17k!

2012 CineStory Screenwriting awards semifinalists

• ADAM & EVE, John Vasicek, Lafayette, CA
• BANK ROBBING FOR DUMMIES, Robert Keith Watson, Sherman Oaks, CA
• BENEATH THE SURFACE, Deirdre Brenner, South Pasadena, CA
• BUTTERFLY CHILDREN, Melanie Schiele, New York, NY
• CLOUDKILL, Brent Hartinger, Seattle, WA
• ETOPIA, Tommy Butler, San Francisco, CA
• FIG HUNT: THE QUEST FOR BATTLE ARMOR STAR CAPTAIN, Aaron Marshall, Los Angeles, CA
• FIT FOR LIFE, Jennie Allen, Brooklyn, NY
• HELL & HIGH WATER, Adam Sugerman, Woodland Hills, CA
• HERE WITH ME, Mikki Daughtry, Los Angeles, CA
• I, OF THE HURRICANE, Ken Pearson, Tempe, AZ
• LE MECANO, Lukas Hassel, New York, NY
• LET THE GAMES BEGIN, Stephan Bugaj, San Pablo, CA
• MY GREATEST MISTAKE, Rebecca Rocheford Davies, Woollahra, Australia
• OXMOSIS, Stephen Wolf, Los Angeles, CA
• SMALL TOWN ODDS, Jason Headley, San Francisco, CA
• THE BEAUTIFUL THINGS, Michael Trozzo, Los Angeles, CA
• THE LAST DOMINO, Adam Meyer, Washington, D.C.
• THE LONG SHORT DROP, Georgia Lin Sundling, Los Angeles, CA
• THE MADNESS OF POE, Robert Hayhurst, El Cajon, CA
• THE PAPER ROUTE, Danny Howell, McLean, VA
• THE RETURN OF BROADWAY JOE, John Covarrubias, Pasadena, CA
• THE STARKS, Bill Hanson, New York, NY
• THE VIRGIN MARTHA, Matt Mallon, Los Angeles, CA
• THE YARROW KING, Brad Kane, Mill Valley, CA
• VERONA, Michael Werwie, Los Angeles, CA

2010 FELLOW APRIL ROUVEYROL Takes you inside the Retreat

When I first came to the Cinestory retreat in September 2010, I remember riding  up the winding road to Idyllwild filled with apprehension and nausea, due to an emotional Molotov cocktail of writer’s insecurity, career doubt and maternal guilt; this was the first separation from my 3-year-old daughter for more than a night. Even though I was of course thrilled to be a fellow, having won for my screenplay, AMERICAN CHILD, I was also wondering if the jig was up, and I would realize, along with everyone else that I wasn’t a writer at all, and get thrown out on my “tuchus.”  I’m happy to say that didn’t happen!

As soon as I arrived,  my nausea dissipated, my fears were washed away, and a warm buzz of anticipation took over. When I started meeting other writers, I realized what a cool group of people were there, all making the trip for the same reason as I was: to become a better writer and make some great connections.

It was like a smorgasbord  of mind blowing creative exercises, challenging ideas, informative panels and Barri Evans has these amazing pitching exercises! The mentors were a cool group: a really great bunch of managers, screenwriters, producers all totally different, giving a broad range of insight, who really love working with writers and discovering material.

I felt very challenged and inspired by my mentoring sessions with Leah Estrin, Joe Forte, Phil Eisner, Michelle Sy and Brandy Rivers. They really went deep into the material - a thriller treatment - and questioned me in a way which made me really sink my teeth into the story and develop the characters far beyond my original concept of them. I just finished the screenplay for that treatment and constantly referred to their notes while writing the script.

From the get-go, starting with Lisanne, Clea and all the mentors, everyone was incredibly helpful and nurturing, offering extraordinary insight and advice on all aspects of the writing process, as well as the business end of it. The other really cool thing about the retreat were the relationships I formed with other writers who were there.

I’ve stayed close with a few, and we do script notes for each other and encourage each other. I’ve also stayed in contact with some of the mentors, which has been incredibly helpful as I make my way through this obstacle course known as forging a screenwriting career.