When freelance writer and publicist Melanie Bowden Simón wrote her memoir "La Americana", she never in her wildest dreams could have imagined that her story of love and grief, set against the rich cultural backdrop of Havana, Cuba, would one day become a film adaptation. She also never expected that it would be executive produced by Savannah film legend and Leopold's Ice Cream owner Stratton Leopold.
Simón’s launch party for the 2016 memoir was underway at Pacci’s Italian Kitchen when Leopold strolled in and made a beeline straight for the author. She hadn’t seen the film producer since their first meeting in 2013 when she’d randomly met and interviewed him in a coffee shop, but Leopold had read a recent Savannah Morning News article about the book and was hooked. The first thing he said to Simón upon seeing her again? “This is a film.”
Credit: Courtesy of Melanie Bowden Simón
Credit: Courtesy of Melanie Bowden Simón
“I always say it literally was like a movie in of itself,” Simón said of the moment.
It was a moment that Leopold said unfolded spontaneously, leading to long conversations with Melanie and her husband Luis Simón and years of planning, researching and marketing, with the story and culture a big draw for Leopold.
“The audience wants a story. And a story is there. The audience wants music. Music is there. So, it's not a special effects picture. It's a movie that has a story,” Leopold said. “It’s phenomenal the intersection that can be engendered with this. Culturally, I respond to it personally because I spoke Greek at home because my parents came from Greece. So, it resonates on that level with me, as well."
Credit: Courtesy Melanie Bowden Simón
Credit: Courtesy Melanie Bowden Simón
Memoir unfolds
The memoir follows Simón at the age of 25 as she arrives in Cuba with her friend Cynthia Sweet, a vacation that came on the cusp of her leaving her dream job at Tina Brown’s Talk magazine in New York City. 2001 was a tumultuous time for not only Simón — she was grappling with the recent death of her mother to cancer — but also for U.S. and Cuba relations.
However, a story of grief soon became one of unexpected love when she met her now husband Luis Simón, a taxi driver who showed her around Cuba at the time. It was a love that overcame barriers such as language and immigration and a union that carried across countries and culture.
Credit: Courtesy of Melanie Bowden Simón
Credit: Courtesy of Melanie Bowden Simón
“He didn't speak a word of English, and so our connection was really so much deeper. I mean, it was really instinctual,” Melanie Simón said. “And the story is, I think, a story of — there's obviously love and there's loss — but there's a lot of hope. And that to me is kind of the core sentiment that I look forward to sharing because I think that that's something everybody can grab onto and feel good about.”
Logistics
The film is in the pre-production stage as the team, including producer Lori Berlanga, who has worked with Leopold for decades, plan the development of the movie in terms of film cast, film crew and budget. Fundraising was halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but since restrictions have eased in the last three months, they have been able to continue raising the money needed to capture the film.
“Technically, depending on when we finalize all of the budget and start [filming] … we could have it [the film] ready late 2022,” Leopold said.
Credit: Courtesy of Melanie Bowden Simón
Credit: Courtesy of Melanie Bowden Simón
Georgia has been hailed “The Hollywood of the South” as it takes the film industry by storm. Almost 800 films have been shot in Savannah, and “La Americana” will soon be added to that list as part of the film will take place in Melanie Simón’s birthplace. Leopold also hopes to use local crew as much as they can for filming.
While a big part of her experience was embracing the rich culture of Cuba, the ability to shoot in the vibrant city of Havana might prove to be a challenge, so the team is looking at using San Juan, Puerto Rico, as the backdrop due to their film incentives and available crew.
One thing that won’t change is the energetic and soul-stirring aspect of Cuban music.
Team confidence
“Off the bat, he [Leopold] recognized that he saw there's an international global component to it and the success, he foresaw, globally, not only for the film but also for the soundtrack because Latino music is just dominating the world,” Melanie Simón said.
The team is in talks with a well-known Latin composer, who they can’t yet disclose, and are looking to cast a Latin pop star as Luis Simón which will act as a natural segue way between the film and the soundtrack.
Generally speaking, the involvement of authors in screen adaptations can vary, but Simón said she has been very involved in the process.
Credit: Courtesy of Melanie Bowden Simón
Credit: Courtesy of Melanie Bowden Simón
“I'm going to completely give Stratton so much wonderful credit ever because I've heard that's not the case,” Melanie Simón said. “I completely trust our team … I've definitely heard stories that that's not the case, or people just kind of sign over and then it's in someone else's hands, or it gets maybe lost and in the process and doesn't even happen. So, it's been really exciting to be very hands on with this. And I'm really grateful for that.”
Seeing your life played out on screen could be weird, but while she said it will be bizarre, the excitement outweighs it all.
“It doesn’t seem like a dream anymore,” she said. “ It doesn't seem like this thing in the stars anymore to me, and it's really exciting.”
Laura Nwogu is the quality of life reporter for Savannah Morning News. Contact her at lnwogu@gannett.com. Twitter: @lauranwogu_
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Melanie Bowden Simón, Stratton Leopold to bring a story of love, loss and culture to film
