THE LIFE OF A SUGAR BABY
STUDENT SEX COLUMNIST TAKES A RISK IN EDGY CANADIAN ROM-COM
In the film The New Romantic the main character Blake is a sex columnist for her university newspaper.
But there’s a problem — Blake doesn’t really have sex.
So what’s a young woman with a stagnant sex life and a deadline to do?
Well, in this case she turns to one of her writing heroes Hunter S. Thompson (she also loves Nora Ephron) for inspiration and decides to go gonzo and make herself part of the story — the story here being the life of a sugar baby.
For the unaware, sugar babes are mostly young women who get involved with wealthy men and trade companionship, and yes sex, for cash and gifts.
Isn’t that prostitution you may be asking? The sugar babiessayno.
They say it’s about a mutual relationship — insert older rich man or woman here — with someone who can help them improve their lifestyle one Louis Vuitton bag or Gucci belt at a time.
According to websites geared toward the promotion of these arrangements about a third of all sugar babies are post-secondary students.
In The New Romantic, Blake — played by the talented English actor Jessica Barden (The End of the F***ing World) — is exposed to the sugar baby lifestyle after a minor mix-up.
A few steps later and she has gone from curious observer to full-blown arm candy with a diamond bracelet riding a brand new scooter.
Written and directed by Toronto’s Carly Stone, the film, a sort of self-exploring rom-com, is part of the very strong True North Canadian films program at this year’s Vancouver International Film Festival on until Oct. 12.
The film had its second VIFF showing Oct. 6.
While this topic could understandably turn creepy faster than you could say “I’m telling your wife,” Stone, 28, has delivered a thoughtful, charming and at times quite funny look at a young woman whose ambition has led her to totally uncharted territory where the heart and the head do not make great bedfellows.
“I wanted her to be filled with contradictions because that’s kind of how I always feel, but especially so when I was in university,” said Stone, who attended the American Film Institute’s film program in Los Angeles.
“You’re confident but insecure. You know what you want but you actually have no idea and you know you have no idea and you’re naive but you have some experience. I found when I started to think about that, she became an entertaining character to write because I didn’t have to stick to a set of rules for her.”
Barden delivers a snappy, quick-witted performance while still managing to keep the wide-eyed quality of Blake.
On paper, a movie about a young woman falling into an “arrangement” of this sort could easily end up coated in the kind of cynicism that keeps any real understanding about a character trapped inside a hard shell, but Stone has managed to soften the edges and blur the lines a bit.
Even the sugar daddy, a thirtysomething professor and writer (Timm Sharp), is kind of likable (have you seen some of the drunken louts that actually go to university) until eventually he isn’t.
But in the meantime he could have easily been drawn in a far more cartoonish, creepy, old enough to be Blake’s grandfather fashion.
By not doing that Stone has opened the door just slightly to romantic thoughts of the happy ending variety.
The New Romantic is Stone’s first feature and it came about four years ago when she overheard a producer talking about an idea he had for a movie.
“I overheard him (Kyle Mann) talking about another project he wanted to develop about a female driven comedy about a sugar baby.
“So I sent him a script I had written at school that was a college set dark comedy and I asked him if I could write the one he was talking about and he gave me a shot,” said Stone, who was living in Los Angeles
She became an entertaining character ... because I didn’t have to stick to a set of rules.” Carly Stone
at the time. And the rest was history.
From there Mann financed a short film for Stone to direct and to present to investors as proof she could helm film.
“It was daunting, very daunting that I was going to direct this film but also it didn’t seem real until I was on set because I know the nature of these things; they just fall apart all the time,” said Stone, referring to the low completion rate in Hollywood filmmaking.
“I was like ‘oh cool’ but I never said I’m making a movie in a couple of months because that didn’t feel honest because it could just fall apart at any second.
“Then it became nothing means anything until we have all the footage on the hard drive and the editor gets it. It just kept going in stages,” added Stone.
For the script, Stone, a staff writer on the hit Canadian sitcom Kim’s Convenience, dove head first into the very open online world of sugar babies.
“These women are very outspoken about their experiences and they speak without shame and they speak very confidently and that was kind of what I was drawn to,” said Stone.
The New Romantic came out of the box strong.
At the SXSW festival it earned Stone the Special Jury Recognition for First Feature award.
Out in theatres on Oct. 12, the $1.2-million film was shot in Sudbury over 18 days in 2017.
Stone said the SXSW experience was fantastic not just because her first film scored her some hardware but because it resonated with the audience.
“A ton of young girls came up to me after each screening and that was really cool,” said Stone.
“I think it was exciting for them to see a young woman up on the stage presenting a movie about a young woman who was in a relatable situation being in university. It felt that there was an awesome response from those girls.”
It is also a film that fits firmly into today’s #Metoo world and actually was filming just as talk about Harvey Weinstein’s alleged behaviour was beginning to boil over.
“(That) was crazy because we were creating content that dealt with similar themes,” said Stone about the sexual assault allegations against the powerful Hollywood producer.
“So I think it became fortuitous in that my hope for the film is that we can contribute to the conversation.”
Content matter aside, by writing and directing a film that is about to get a theatrical release Stone has already contributed to the conversation.