We were at the NYC screening of Adam Saunder’s new film, Dotty & Soul. A film Saunders wrote, produced, directed, and starred in alongside the legendary Tony and Emmy award-winning actress Leslie Uggams. Comedian and actor Gary Owen was also in attendance.
Owen, Saunders, Uggams & Hendrickson
Following the viewing of the film was a Q & A with cast members led by producer Mac Hendrickson. Here we learn Owen was given the green light to improv along the way, leading to some of the most hilarious moments in the film. Owen shared how great it was in Saunders trusting him to do so, considering they had never met before.
Hendrickson shares how Owen, who plays the role of Diggy, electrified the set when stepping in. Owen’s agent tells him to call the writer, producer, director, and star to discuss the film, and he says, “Jeez, all four of ’em?” It turns out it was all the same person! He shares he took a bit to read the script as he was busy with press for other work and contemplated lying and saying the script was great but thought Saunders would ask him his thoughts on page 92 and come face to face with the embarrassment of there only being 90 pages to the script. Owens hangs up the call, immediately takes to the script, and later texts Saunders, “Just got done with page one. I’m in!”
Naderi, Saunders, Uggams and Owen on red carpet
Saunders knew the film would come to fruition once Leslie Uggams agreed to come on board. Uggams plays the role of Dotty, a sassy and wise 71-year-old. She is hired by Saunder’s character, Ethan Cox, to pose as his company’s CEO in the aftermath of poor choices made on his behalf. They learn from each other in both the film and real life. Filled with equal parts belly-aching laughter and just the right amount of seriousness to get the message across, they hope viewers enjoy it as much as they did putting it together.
They began filming before the start of the pandemic and the social issues that ensued in early 2020. They wanted to share a powerful message about being there for each other. Uggams tells us while filming the movie, “We were ahead of its time, and it seems as though time has caught up to what we were projecting.” They felt they needed to add a scene that would address the severe issues in the world head-on. Dotty and Ethan learn from one another and take incredible advantage of becoming partners, and the same should be applied to us all today. “Not meant to be preachy, but just telling it like it is,” shares Uggams. Hendrickson adds it was powerfully delivered.
Saunders and Uggams sharing a hug at NYC screening of Dotty & Soul
Having Uggams as part of the production was a dream for the cast and crew. The script and character of Dotty spoke to her, and she and Saunders clicked immediately. When she joined, it was a game changer having her bring her brilliance, emotion, and hilarity to the role. What she loved about what he had written was that there was hope and a dream for Dotty. She shares, “People think hopes and dreams are only for young people to think about, and that’s not so. People over 65 have hopes and dreams too. It is never too late. It may take a while to get to your journey, but it is never too late.”
Uggams shares what she loved most about the film. It is how Dotty and Ethan are in constant communication, not on the phone but face to face, something many don’t do anymore. She says, “People have forgotten how to verbalize.” She goes on to say these two characters verbalizing and learning from each other and taking tremendous advantage of the knowledge they have was a great experience. She shares, “Young people forget they need to listen to older generations because we have wisdom” and applause ensues. Never having watched the movie until tonight because she likes to see it the way the audience will see it, she tells us she was laughing her ass off. Us too, Leslie, us too.
Saunders at NYC screening for his latest film Dotty & Soul
When Saunders tells us the origin story of the jump to directorial and writing debut, he tells us the film is a fictionalized version of his feelings. Saunders had moved to California to act and wanted to write and found himself not doing those things. Not to say he wasn’t happy with what he was already doing, but feeling something was missing. Working as a producer for over eight years, he felt like something inside him was dying and wanted to tell his own stories. There were all these different reasons why he wasn’t doing it, and he said to himself, “I gotta just do what I wanna do. I have to just do what I want to do.” So he wrote this movie as an opportunity for him to act.
The role of Dotty was inspired by his childhood caretaker, Jesse Griffin, who was present in the audience. Griffin had always been like a second mother to him. They would discuss the hard times she would go through in her life, and he got into the idea of creating a fictionalized story about it all, so Dotty & Soul was born. Saunder’s friendly aura makes you feel as though you’ve known him longer than five minutes, and you can’t help but feel ecstatic for him in pursuing his dream.
The point of the script, for both he and Ethan, is that everything happens when it is time. This is the time that he was supposed to make this movie. He shares more about the making of Dotty & Soul, a film showing “that [it] wasn’t too late for me, wasn’t too late for her, wasn’t too late for any of us to be the people that we want and know we should be.”
On being asked about the experience of wearing all four hats of writer, producer, director, and star and every single one of those roles having a thousand decisions to make and how his brain was able to navigate through that all he tells us, “It felt as though it would be a daunting task to, but it was just peaceful.” He didn’t have to worry about what the director would think or if the producer needed to change directions. It just all flowed easily for him. He knew everything was going okay if Uggams asked him how he managed to handle all four hats. When everything was happening all at once, it was almost like jazz.
‘Dotty & Soul’ will be available digitally and on-demand on May 19.
