Scorsese, Spielberg and Coppola all had to start somewhere. Augustana's own alumni Andrew Kightlinger, class of 2008, is on his own way now as well.
The Newport International Film Festival (NiFF) recently awarded Kightlinger with the Best Original Screenplay for his project “You Don’t Know Bertha Constantine.”
The NiFF is a prominent film festival held in Wales showcasing talent from the United Kingdom as well as the international community. As a way for aspiring filmmakers to begin making a name for themselves, the NiFF wishes to promote young talent and showcase their films in an industry based on heavy competition.
The film revolves around Constantine’s promise to her late husband to distribute his remains in South Dakota’s Badlands.
“Bertha drags her husband’s body through the Badlands and she is chased by cops, one of which happens to be madly in love with her,” Kightlinger says. “Love triangles, violence, sex...everything an audience could ever want in a movie.”
Kightlinger cites his inspiration for the movie as a way of coping with the loss of his mother. Noting that it may not be the most usual way of dealing with death, he devised a strong-willed and independent character modeled after his mother, with Augustana theater professor Julia Bennett in mind to act as Bertha.
“Andrew was a very talented student,” Bennett said. “I’d enjoy participating in it on any level.”
Wanting to integrate South Dakota’s Badlands as a critical part of the story, the film relies on Native American culture and the idea of community.
“The story stems from a combination of my personal healing process, the cultural flavor of South Dakota and my adoration for the savage beauty of the landscape,” Kightlinger says. “This is a South Dakota story, pure and simple.”
“As I expected, there’s a great deal of surprise in the script,” Bennett said. “It’s a role that offers great challenges for an actor.”
Since graduating from Augustana, Kightlinger says his education helped him view the world in universal terms. The theme of people connecting to one another has been prevalent in his recent stories, especially dealing with religion.
“The majority of my work since graduating from Augie has been thematically based on religion,” Kightlinger says. “‘Who or What is God’ is a vital question for our times, and it’s something that I find endlessly fascinating in my exploration of human connection.”
While currently trying to raise $55,000 to film “Constantine” in June 2010, Kightlinger plans to intern in Los Angeles in the fall of 2010, and he continues to work on other screenplays.
His other projects include a drama about a South Dakotan family dealing with incest, a comedic story about an octogenarian getting into the night club life in the city and a “what-if” tale on the second coming of Christ.
Bennett believes that the film will certainly get recognition and is a great early career opening. “I can only foresee it will lead him to new opportunities,” Bennett says.
“It has been my dream since I was seven years old,” Kightlinger says.
“Now I’m waiting to wake up from that dream to realize that I’m actually directing movies in Hollywood.”
For more information and to donate to the film, visit www.youdontknowbertha.com.
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