To Write Love on Her Arms (film)

To Write Love on Her Arms
To Write Love on Her Arms
	DVD cover
Directed by	Nathan Frankowski
Screenplay by	Kate King Lynch
Story by	Nathan Frankowski
Produced by	David Nixon; David Blair McKenna; Kim Dawson;
Starring	Kat Dennings; Chad Michael Murray; Rupert Friend; Mark Saul; Juliana Harkavy; Corbin Bleu;
Cinematography	Stephen Campbell
Edited by	Nathan Frankowski; Gordon Grinberg;
Music by	Robbie Bronnimann; Andy Hunter;
Production; companies	Two Streets Entertainment; Birchwood Pictures; Noble Pictures; Valencia Motion Pictures;
Distributed by	Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Release dates	March 11, 2012 (Omaha Film Festival); March 3, 2015 (United States);
Running time	102 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$3.4 million (est.)

To Write Love on Her Arms (also known as Day One; formerly Renee) is a 2012 American biographical drama film written and directed by Nathan Frankowski and starring Kat Dennings, Chad Michael Murray, Rupert Friend, Mark Saul, Juliana Harkavy, and Corbin Bleu. The film is based on the life of troubled teenager Renee Yohe and the founding of To Write Love on Her Arms by Jamie Tworkowski, after he and others helped Yohe to overcome her challenges enough to be able to enter rehab. The film premiered at the Omaha Film Festival on March 11, 2012, and was eventually released on DVD on March 3, 2015.^[1]

Plot

It is 2006, and 19-year-old Renee Yohe has always loved fairy tales: the idea of a princess, a hero and a happily ever after. However, her life is that of a darker tale. As she battles with drug addiction, bipolar disorder, self-harm and other life issues, she receives love and support from numerous friends and new acquaintances, including Jamie Tworkowski and David McKenna. When Yohe is turned away from drug rehabilitation, with open wounds from self-cutting making her too great a treatment risk, McKenna takes her into his home for five days of detox, while Tworkowski posts an article on Myspace, titled "To Write Love on Her Arms" (in contrast to Yohe having written "Fuck Up" on her arm, with a razor blade), to fundraise the cost of rehab.^[2] Their efforts for Yohe are successful, and leads to Tworkowski founding the charity group To Write Love on Her Arms, offering similar support to other people who have depression, suicidal thoughts, addictions, or struggles with self-harm.^[3]

Cast

Kat Dennings as Renee Yohe
- Lindsey Riesen as young Renee
- Isabella Iannuzzi as little Renee
Chad Michael Murray as Jamie Tworkowski
Rupert Friend as David McKenna
Juliana Harkavy as Jessie, Renee's best friend
- Samantha Castro as young Jessie
Corbin Bleu as Mackey
Mark Saul as Dylan
- Drayton Ball as young Dylan
Rus Blackwell as Conrad Willard
Sri Charan as Robert
Brian Patrick Clarke as Tom Yohe
West DeLarosa as Michael
Kristi Engelmann as Amanda
Whitney Goin as Dena Yohe
Katherine Shepler as April Yohe
Ryan Kirkland as Kirkland
Michelle LaBret as Nikki
J. LaRose as Echo
Steve Robertson as label rep Stevo
Brianna McCoy as Lacey
William Peltz as Sean
Juan Santos as Michael's father
Michael Sapp as Trappy
Chelsea Talmadge as Sarah

Production

Pre-production

Josh Lujan Loveless, Bob Massey, Jamie Tworkowski, and Renee Yohe all served as story consultants for the film, collaborating with Frankowski for the script. The film is produced by David Blair McKenna, a long time friend of Yohe's who provided her his home as a place to get sober, as depicted in the film, so she could enter rehab.^[4]

Filming

Principal photography started on February 23, 2011, exactly five years after Yohe and Tworkowski first met.^[5] Filming went until March 29, 2011, and was shot entirely in Yohe's home town of Orlando, Florida. Various scenes were shot at Valencia Community College, The DAVE School, Full Sail University and Wall Street Plaza.^[4]

Soundtrack

The film features songs from Travis McCoy, Paper Route, Rachael Yamagata, Dead Man's Bones, Corbin Bleu, Between the Trees, Kye Kye, Flint Eastwood, Flagship, Gatlin Elms, Duologue, Danny Leggett, Civilian, Savannah, Alex Bennett, and Bearcat.^[6]

Release

The film opened the 21st Florida Film Festival on April 13, 2012, playing at the Regal Winter Park Village.^[7] The film was released directly to DVD three years later, on March 3, 2015.^[1]

Piracy

On November 27, 2014, the film was leaked onto several peer-to-peer file sharing websites four months ahead of its intended public release. The film was one of five Sony Pictures films leaked, though fewer than 20,000 people downloaded To Write Love on Her Arms, compared to the 1.6 million combined downloads of Fury, Annie, Still Alice, and Mr. Turner.^[8]

Awards and accolades

Year	Result	Award	Category	Recipients
2012	Won	Omaha Film Festival	Encore Award	Nathan Frankowski, Kim Dawson, David McKenna, Two Streets Entertainment
	Nominated	Visual Effects Society Awards	Outstanding Visual Effects in a Student Project	Syrena Edmonds, Zack Heimbegner, Brian Mullen, Nathaniel Skinner
	Won	Crystal Reel Awards	Best Actress	Kat Dennings
	Won		Best Casting	Amy Severson
	Won		Cinematography	Stephen Campbell
	Won		Best Sound / Sound Mixing – Feature Film	Michael Orlowski, Dave Chmela
	Won		Best Special Effects (CGI)	Lee Stringer
	Nominated		Best Director	Nathan Frankowski
	Nominated		Best Picture	Kim Dawson

References

^ ^a ^b Unreleased Sony movies leak after hack; Sony may suspect North Korea. Network World. Retrieved December 4, 2014.
^ Jamie Tworkowsk (2006). "To Write Love on Her Arms". TWLOHA. Retrieved September 5, 2015.
^ Goldberg, Matt (February 12, 2012). "First Image and Set Photo from RENEE Starring Kat Dennings". Collider. Retrieved September 24, 2012.
^ ^a ^b Chitwood, Adam (February 24, 2011). "Filming Begins on RENEE Starring Chad Michael Murray, Kat Dennings and Rupert Friend". Collider. Retrieved September 24, 2012.
^ "TWLOHA's "Renee" (Movie) Press Release". TWLOHA. February 25, 2011. Retrieved September 24, 2012.
^ "Renee The Movie – Soundtrack". Renee The Movie. Retrieved September 24, 2012.
^ Mathur, Samir. "Florida Film Festival 2012: RENEE". The Daily City. Archived from the original on August 29, 2016. Retrieved September 24, 2012.
^ "Sony's New Movies Leak Online Following Hack Attack". Variety. November 30, 2014. Retrieved December 2, 2014.

External links

To Write Love on Her Arms official website
To Write Love on Her Arms at IMDb
‹The template AllMovie title is being considered for deletion.› To Write Love on Her Arms at AllMovie
To Write Love on Her Arms at Rotten Tomatoes

[sony-1] Unreleased Sony movies leak after hack; Sony may suspect North Korea. Network World. Retrieved December 4, 2014.

[2] Jamie Tworkowsk (2006). "To Write Love on Her Arms". TWLOHA. Retrieved September 5, 2015.

[Collider1-3] Goldberg, Matt (February 12, 2012). "First Image and Set Photo from RENEE Starring Kat Dennings". Collider. Retrieved September 24, 2012.

[Collider2-4] Chitwood, Adam (February 24, 2011). "Filming Begins on RENEE Starring Chad Michael Murray, Kat Dennings and Rupert Friend". Collider. Retrieved September 24, 2012.

[5] "TWLOHA's "Renee" (Movie) Press Release". TWLOHA. February 25, 2011. Retrieved September 24, 2012.

[6] "Renee The Movie – Soundtrack". Renee The Movie. Retrieved September 24, 2012.

[7] Mathur, Samir. "Florida Film Festival 2012: RENEE". The Daily City. Archived from the original on August 29, 2016. Retrieved September 24, 2012.

[hack-8] "Sony's New Movies Leak Online Following Hack Attack". Variety. November 30, 2014. Retrieved December 2, 2014.

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