English professor’s film debuts at New York’s Tribeca Film Festival

Greetings from Earth, a short film adapted from a story written by English professor Scott Bradfield and starring Mariel Hemingway, will have its premiere screening at the Tribeca Film Festival April 25 through May 6 in New York.

Bradfield, who has authored many novels, short stories, and feature films based on his own work, co-wrote the screenplay for the 20-minute film with Kim Jacobs, a commercial director.

It is based on the title story from Bradfield’s second book, Greetings from Earth: New and Collected Stories (1993).

The film, which also has been accepted at the prestigious LA Film Festival June 21 through July 1, tells the story of Helen, a disenchanted housewife who cultivates out-of-body experiences to escape from her otherwise mundane existence.

“It’s a very difficult story to film because it all takes place in the lead character’s head,” Bradfield said.

“That particular voice was inspired by my mother, her friends, and that whole generation of housewives who often talked about being tired of their husbands and their suburban lives and who dared to want something more for themselves than material belongings.”

Jacobs said she was attracted to the story by “the tragedy in the mundane and trivial … I got the sensibility, the darkness, the comedy, and the absurdity. I think there is this depth and humanity and sadness to Helen.”