OFFICIAL SELECTION

“THE OUTGRAGEOUS LIFE OF HENRY FAULKNER” Written by JIM HALL (US - NL)

BIO:

Like his titular character, Jim Hall grew up in Kentucky with an eye for far horizons. He began his career in the film industry before spending years as an airline pilot, exploring the world and gathering experiences that now inspire his writing. A skilled carpenter, Jim has restored historic homes around the globe, including multiple 17th-century canal houses in Amsterdam, blending craftsmanship with creativity.

Jim’s passions for classical music, film, and the arts shape his unique perspective and attention to detail. Alongside his talents as a gourmet cook and harpsichord builder, his journey into screenwriting was reignited by a chance encounter with the story of artist Henry Faulkner, sparking a unique virtual friendship and a renewed enthusiasm for storytelling.

After eight years in Barcelona, Jim recently returned to Amsterdam with his partner, where he continues to channel his eclectic talents into film and writing projects.

“THE OUTGRAGEOUS LIFE OF HENRY FAULKNER” Written by JIM HALL

LOGLINE: (Genre: Biographical drama)

The colourful and adventurous life of one of America’s most talented unknown gay artists and his quest for self-expression and respect.

SHORT SYNOPSIS:

Henry Faulkner (57) wakes suddenly from a nightmare in which his best friend Tennessee Williams is killed in a car crash. This will be a remarkable day in a remarkable life for Henry. It is his last.

STORY OUTLINE:

After a fantasized meeting with his muse and best friend, Alice The Goat, Henry is driven to examine his life. He happens on an old Esquire magazine which has a feature story about Tennessee, written by Ben Silvester. This discovery sends Henry back into the past and to his own interview with Ben, one that was never published. In the interview, Henry leads Ben through his past experiences, taking us along all the way back to his birth in southern Kentucky, 1924.

We follow his story through the decades, witnessing the murder of his mother at the hand of his drunken father, his brutal existence at an orphanage at the hands of bullies and years later his horrific internment at a mental hospital in Washington D.C. for the crime of being gay.

Though many people would not survive such a traumatic youth, Henry, in contrast to his fragile, small build, has a character of much sturdier stuff. He not only survives the brutality of these experiences, but develops an indefatigable approach to life and to being a gay man.

When finally released from the institution, Henry ventures to Los Angeles to live with his sister, Lois. It is here that he meets the great love of his life, David, and is accepted at the famous Otis School of Art. But the happiness is short-lived. David dies suddenly of pneumonia.

Through pure perseverance and talent, Henry finally attracts the interest of a gallery in New York City. From these small successes he ventures on to Palm Beach Florida where he makes acquaintance with Alice Delamar, the woman who would become his great benefactress and friend.

It is via Alice that he becomes acquainted with the renowned literary celebrity Tennessee Williams. The two become inseparable, each complementing the other and developing a complex and sometimes combative friendship.

We follow the development of these two iconic gay figures, through the 60’s and 70’s with Henry’s career burgeoning, while Tennessee’s is in decline, each dealing with the creative and emotional challenges in his own way, mirroring two different attitudes of emergent gay society in the mid 20th century.

Tennessee maintains his traditional southern gentleman image, while camouflaging a more tortured and depressive personality, thereby reflecting a traditional gay aesthetic, living in the shadows of society. Henry, in contrast, is the embodiment of a new kind of homosexual: in your face, with the attitude that he is who he is and if you don’t like it, that’s your problem.

Conflicts and jealousies between the two highly creative and talented men finally result in a dramatic and painful blowout scene when they travel to Taormina, Sicily. Though it is apparent that neither of the two is capable of an equitable relationship, they hope to salvage their friendship against the odds. Fate, however, has other plans for Henry.