Book Database TaleFlick Reveals Initial Titles Optioned From Platform
The Traveling Picture Show Company, Fortitude International and Passage Pictures are among the companies that have found literary intellectual property through the searchable service aimed at the entertainment industry before its official launch this month.
The online platform TaleFlick, a searchable database of book titles aimed at the entertainment industry, has revealed the latest titles that have been optioned from the platform.
The Traveling Picture Show Company (producers on A Walk Among the Tombstones, The Blackcoat's Daughter) has optioned Robert Gately's 2005 novel South of Main Street, while Passage Pictures (Marjorie Prime, Experimenter) has optioned Michael Bowker’s French Affair: A Paris Love Story, both for film adaptations.
Since the platform launched last August, it has also helped secure options for Carolyn Steele's Queenie's Teapot (at Passage Pictures) and Nicole Evelina's Madame Presidentess and Amie Ryan's Starfish on Thursday (at Fortitude International). The platform, Marketplace, will officially launch this month after initial discussions with industry producers while the platform was in "soft-trial" mode.
“We are proud that TaleFlick is now meeting its goal of being a new way for authors and industry executives to connect and help pave the way for creative, original stories to be made into movies and TV shows,” Uri Singer, CEO of TaleFlick and founder and CEO of Passage Pictures, said Thursday in a statement. “For too long, fantastic stories have not had the proper opportunities to shine and be seen by viewers around the world. With TaleFlick, the industry is experiencing a transformation, as these ‘undiscovered gems’ are now being recognized by studio executives.”
South of Main Street follows an erratic father who is well-known as a friendly figure in his town, but whose actions are increasingly questioned after he loses his wife and one daughter sues him for financial control of his estate. French Affair: A Paris Love Story, set in 1920s Paris, centers on the burgeoning romance between an American journalist and former World War I nurse who help each other heal old wounds while enjoying the city's moveable feast.
Launched by Singer and former Netflix exec George Berry, TaleFlick charges writers $88 to submit materials, which can include books, short stories or other written material and are available for one year on the site. Authors retain all rights to their works but allow TaleFlick to bid on their dramatic rights and submit stories to production companies and studios. According to its founders, the site was launched in order to fulfill a need for original intellectual property in Hollywood.
"By applying the right balance of technology and human experience, TaleFlick can find those stories that are the 'needles in the haystack,' both efficiently and at scale," Berry said when the platform was first launched.