Photos and Footage above copyright, 1967, Thomas S. Nelligan. Used with permission.
Our Project: To shoot a short film called, “To Place in all Races”.
The main character: Katie Novak, a young girl of 13 who loves running.
The year: 1967, five years before the enactment of Title IX.
The setting: Detroit, an American city filled with racial tension and social unrest.
The story: A coming-of-age drama about a young girl who finds the courage to defy her father and go beyond the boundaries of gender and racial differences in order to run competitively.
Who We Are: Louise Bylicki (screenwriter/director), Stephanie Whallon (producer).
Louise and Stephanie met while attending Columbia University’s Graduate Film Program. Louise graduated with a concentration in directing; Stephanie, with a concentration in screenwriting. Since graduating, they’ve continued to cheer each other on in their creative endeavors. The making of this short is their first collaboration since film school and is the culmination of thousands of script pages, long distance phone calls, and very wordy emails.
Louise is a writer, director currently living in New York. In addition to film she has directed and written for theatre in Chicago and New York. Like most creative types, she has a day job as a researcher and copy editor.
Stephanie spent time in New York, LA, and other exotic locales working in the trenches as a production accountant. She currently lives in Austin, TX where she teaches screenwriting and also has a day job, but dreams of making movies full time.
The Low Down: This is a lean, low-budget indie short film. While a lot of our equipment will be donated, and salaries deferred. We need money for room and board for the cast and crew, location rental, equipment, and of course food, in order to get the footage in the can.
When finished, the film will be less than 15 minutes and we plan to enter it in film festivals and competitions.
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Where: Filming and casting in and around Austin, TX and Smithville TX. Yes, Texas for Detroit. Be amazed, be very amazed. We’re so glad to have such amazing locations at our disposal.
Location: Smithville, TX is where “The Tree of Life” and “Hope Floats” were filmed. Smithville is a special little town with parts that have the look and feel of a period setting.
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When: Shooting the weekend of March 23, 2013, over 2-3 days.
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A Message from Louise Bylicki, Director
In 1967, running was not yet cool or trendy for boys, let alone girls. People didn’t go for a run before or after work or train for marathons and other races. However, in 1967, my two sisters, one a teenager and one still in the single-digits, ran track on a community track team.
Not much focus and money were given to women’s sports; at the time they weren’t taken seriously. Title IX, “…the federal civil rights law that prohibits sex discrimination in education… best known for breaking down barriers in sports for women and girls,” (from http://www.titleix.info/), was not enacted until 1972.
Even more extraordinary was that the track team my sisters ran on was racially mixed, and every member respected and considered all of the other girls teammates. A team such as this during the height of social unrest in the 60s, indeed, was a special phenomenon; ahead of its time, offering hope and setting a precedent as to what was possible for all girls.
This film is about hope and possibility. All women and girls today who have the freedom and opportunity to run track, swim, play soccer, basketball, tennis, and break world records, should honor the girls who had the courage to run before them.
This film is how I want to recognize the trailblazers who came before me, especially my two older sisters.
Let’s make this movie! Please spread the word on your Facebook pages and by sharing our link or help us by making a contribution. Lace up your sneakers, tennies, and trainers and let's hit the ground running (pun very much intended). Thank you!!
