Maybe it was Forever. Perhaps it was Are you there God, it’s Me, Margaret? It could have been Deenie or even Tiger Eyes. Chances are that if you went through puberty since the 1970s, you learned something from one of Judy Blume’s real, relatable and enduring books.
And now, for the first time ever, one of those works is being made into a feature film…and it wasn’t easy. Tiger Eyes will simultaneously hit big screens, iTunes and on-demand on June 7.
The film’s director, Judy’s son Lawrence Blume, described the difficulties of finding a distributor to back the film:
“What shocked me was that a big -segment of the business knew who Judy Blume was but they didn’t understand who she was…
While Hollywood was deep in the throes of its love affair with YA—thanks to Harry Potter and Twilight—Tiger Eyes didn’t fit its template. It was a movie about real teenagers dealing with real problems: no magic, no thrilling danger, no fangs. It didn’t have a big producer backing it, nor was there an A-list star attached.”
The Guardian UK published a great article about the impact of Judy Blume on generations of young people and the history of censorship of her works. They called us and asked about Judy and why she is so frequently banned:
“Bullying, menstruation and questioning whether God exists; for some segments of the American population that is too much,” said Joan Bertin, NCAC Executive Director. “They think that kids should just be given a nice story.”
Because Davey and the other characters drink and have sexual feelings, Tiger Eyes has been challenged in school libraries in Indiana and Wyoming and banned in Hanover, PA and across the state of Louisiana.
Watch the trailer, get your tickets and spread the word!
[vimeo http://www.vimeo.com/64609111 w=500&h=281]
Tiger Eyes – Trailer from Tashmoo Productions on Vimeo.