Wattpad, an entertainment company for original stories, in partnership with The Coup Company, a content studio, are calling on all Canadian filmmakers to pitch how they would turn a tale from Josh Saltzman’s horror anthology Strange Yarns, into a short film. Canadian filmmakers will be given the choice to pitch their vision for one of 13 of Saltzman’s short stories with the chance to produce the subsequent film. This joint-venture will leverage The Coup Company’s fan-influenced creator platform with Wattpad’s community–55 million people around the world.
“I’m excited and horrified to the point of delirious madness to see what these demented minds from across the country knit from these Strange Yarns” said Wattpad star Josh Saltzman.
“It’s a privilege to be trusted with Josh’s stories and be able to surface new filmmakers via our platform to develop them for the screen.” said J Joly, CEO, The Coup Company. “Both Wattpad and Coup are committed to surfacing new storytellers for the screen and the page. Combining our efforts provides us a unprecedented opportunity to align our innovative platforms to create new content for the screen while supporting new creator voices.”
“We are excited to see Canadian filmmakers take on Strange Yarns, an incredible collection of stories that’s thrilled readers around the world. We can’t wait to see how filmmakers interpret Josh’s fantastical storytelling into a short film so it can be enjoyed by even more horror fans,” said head of Wattpad Studios Aron Levitz. “Our collaboration with The Coup is the latest way we’re giving Wattpad Stars, our creative storytellers, an opportunity to see their tales brought to life in other formats.”
Wattpad Presents Strange Yarns unfolds over two months, and filmmaker pitches are evaluated based on audience engagement, originality, quality and talent. Interested filmmakers should go to WattpadPresents.com to create a short profile and submit their 1-minute pitch video based on one of 13 Strange Yarn short stories. Fan participation begins late July with the top greenlit short films being produced in Fall 2017.
Alongside Wattpad and The Coup Company, key partner support includes: Telefilm Canada, the Independent Production Fund (IPF) and the Bell Fund.
