Today we’d like to introduce you to Carrie Freedle.
Carrie, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I grew up in the South where my grandfather and the other overall-clad farmers would swap “tall tales” between puffs of their Lucky Strikes.
Thankfully, I did not pick up smoking, but I did pick up that storytelling tradition. The turning point came in fifth grade. I would write and sell short stories to my classmates and as I collected their quarters (which, to be honest, was way overpriced for my Judy Blume knockoffs).
I realized that there might be a future in this writing thing. Throw in a love of movies and books, a stint in film school, and a lot of time in front of my computer, I now find myself still doing a version of that fifth-grade hustle. My most recent “tall tale,” The Holiday Calendar, can currently be seen on Netflix.
Has it been a smooth road?
No way. As most creatives know, the road has been one of those never-ending-pot-holed-filled-journeys with that scenic view way up ahead. Besides the obvious practical obstacles, the biggest struggles come from the fact that writing is a solitary craft.
No matter how many people make up your support team, at the end of the day, it’s up to you to know your voice, own your voice, and forge ahead even during the rough times. You are your own boss. It takes a lot of discipline, a lot of work, and very thick skin.
We’d love to hear more about what you do.
I’m a comedy screenwriter. I work in both television and film. I like to fuse my sketch comedy background with more grounded moments. I’m also very influenced by the fast-talking banter and wit of the screwball comedies of the 1930s.
I first realized comedy can be more than just laughs was when I watched Charlie Chaplin’s, The Great Dictator. I found myself laughing and crying at the same time. I strive to give my audience that unexpected emotional experience.
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
I think we’re currently seeing the groundwork for where the industry is going. There are so many more platforms to tell a vast array of stories in very interesting and experimental ways.
There is, finally, an awareness that storytelling isn’t relegated to one gender, race, sexual orientation… I don’t think of this as a “trend,” I want it to be the norm. I think we all lose when the industry stays stagnant.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @carriefreedle
Image Credit:
Geoff Ashley photographer
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