![]() ![]() How did the idea for the project evolve into an animated short film instead of live action? In frustration, the questioner asks, “WTF, WTF, WTF”? After a revealing reply that includes a traumatic story from her own past, Sugar ends her retort with the simple and bold statement, The Fuck is your Life. Also, “The Baby Bird” contains what is still one of my favorite responses to a question. But more importantly, after reading all the “Dear Sugar” columns, all of which are powerful and special in their own way, I really felt like “Baby Bird” completely captured the core essence of Sugar’s voice and outlook on life – which to me is that at any given moment life is both beautiful and tragic, but if one wants to live in a fully human way, one has to embrace it all, taking both the positive and negative experiences in one’s life and using them to fuel one’s drive to achieve, to love, and to live life to its fullest potential. “The Baby Bird” is one of the shorter columns so it seemed like a good choice for that reason. Animation is expensive, especially the specific kind of stylized animation I wanted to do. The first consideration was just a practical one. ![]() Once I made the decision to turn one into a short film, “ The Baby Bird” column stood out to me as a strong choice for a couple of reasons. Very early on I really felt like any one of the columns would make a great short film because each of them tells a complete and contained story unto itself. Was there one in particular that made you think: “This has to be a short film”? I know you felt connected to Dear Sugar’s direct-but-kindly responses, as so many readers did, before conceiving of this project. I recently spoke with Bellomo about her own Strayed moment as well as her campaign to animate “Dear Sugar.” Bellomo’s taken to Kickstarter this week to help fund the project. ![]() Olsen ( Big Love), Will Scheffer ( Big Love), and, as the voice of Dear Sugar, Alex Borstein ( MADtv, Family Guy). Bellomo’s team includes David Polonsky ( Waltz With Bashir), Mark V. #DEAR SUGAR RUMPUS HOW TO#Wild will be making its big-screen debut in December with Reese Witherspoon in the lead, and producer Lisa Bellomo ( How to Kill Your Neighbor’s Dog, Love in the Time of Money) has plans to render “Dear Sugar’s” anecdotes and wisdoms, chronicled as well in Strayed’s collection Tiny Beautiful Things, in animated short film. And Strayed’s circle of influence is rapidly widening as a result. It’s a quote I’d passed along to my creative nonfiction students one semester with my demure modification, “write like a mother fudgsicle.” But that’s what poises Strayed’s work for maximum impact. Do you think miners stand around all day talking about how hard it is to mine for coal? They do not. “Writing is hard for every last one of us-straight white men included. For me, it would have to be this “Dear Sugar” response: This segment aired on December 15, 2014.It seems everyone I encounter in literary circles has had a Cheryl Strayed moment, a moment in which something Strayed has written, as the author of Wild or as The Rumpus’ dispenser of hard truths – “Dear Sugar,” has deeply resonated. New episodes will be released weekly starting in January 2015. “ We’re all a mess,” Denis Johnson, “Beverly Home,” 1992. “ The Ghost Ship That Didn’t Carry Us,” Dear Sugar, The Rumpus, 2011. “ Alien Boy: The Life and Death of James Chasse,” Brian Lindstrom, 2013. “ All was tumult in the Oblonskys’ house,” Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy, 1878. “ The Baby Bird,” Dear Sugar, The Rumpus, 2010 ![]() Steve Almond as Dear Sugar, The Rumpus, 2009. In this pilot episode, they field questions on a father's infidelity, how many children is too many, and whether a relationship can survive when one partner is smarter than the other. In true Sugar fashion, the questions they answer aren't always the ones you asked, but their responses come straight from the heart. And this time they're speaking right into your ears. And so was born the cult-favorite column Dear Sugar, a haven for the lost, lonely, and heartsick. Then he read Cheryl Strayed's writing, and became convinced she was the real-life Sugar. He envisioned Sugar as a wise woman with a troubled past and a slightly reckless tongue. Back in 2008, Steve Almond started writing an advice column called Dear Sugar. ![]()
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