Mary MacDonald Rival
Writer and Producer
Welcome to my website. As a writer, I'm most comfortable putting words in other people's mouths (usually characters I've created deep in the recesses of my mind), so the process of building a website about me and my projects is a bit mystifying. Bear with me as I give it a try!
Over the years, I've written/created and/or produced projects for film, television and the stage, so I've designated a page for each of these vastly different mediums. And wow, are they ever different. There were times I found myself working on all three at the same time -- then in either a moment of brilliance or insanity, I decided to turn one of my screenplays into a novel and had to get my head around yet another style of storytelling. To my fellow writers, this is an exercise I highly recommend because it has allowed me to get to know my characters on a much more intimate and eye-opening level.
Film, Television, Stage
Some Additional Ramblings...
I started out in corporate communications and found my interest in film piqued after writing for Playback, a Canadian trade publication for the film and television industry. My segue was also helped along by meeting one of my project partners, filmmaker Allan Wylie. Our friendship was cemented during a corporate gig when I was the writer/ PA on some rather tedious videos he was producing for an awards gala and I dropped his camera. That's right, I dropped it. Thud, right on the ugly low pile carpet of a downtown Toronto boardroom. If you've ever dropped a filmmaker's beloved camera and they still speak to you... let alone want to work with you on future projects... thank your lucky stars. Since that horrible day, we've had some pretty amazing accomplishments together and I like to think we're just getting started!
Another serendipitous encounter along the way was meeting Terry Draper from the 70s rock band Klaatu. I had a vague memory as a young girl hearing my older brother talk about a group rumoured to be The Beatles reunited. I knew Terry's wife from community theatre because she had played my husband's wife several times on stage, but I had no idea my life was about to change when we accepted a casual visit to their home and I found myself blurting out: "Let me write a screenplay about the band... and what really happened!" What transpired next was a whirlwind adventure into the music world, resulting in an education and creative opportunities I never thought imaginable. Long story short, in addition to the screenplay Sell Out: The Klaatu Story -- I'm now a member of SOCAN and working on my third musical with a man whose song Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft was just inducted into the Canadian Songwriter's Hall of Fame. Sometimes blurting things out after a glass or two of wine pays off!
I could go on, apparently writing about myself isn't as hard as I thought, but my mother says that's rude. If you're interested in knowing more, please check out the pages located in the menu bar.
Cheers,
Mary
mary@silverbuttonsproductions.com