Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Charlie T. Savage. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Charlie, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?
URIEL a drama series is the flagship project for Nikky Production, a company founded by my business partner Norma Diana Stanton and I in 2022. The project centers around a young mortician with a rare skin condition that sends people into anaphylactic shock. She searches for ways to deal with her loneliness throughout the series and I know a lot of women will be able to relate. It’s a dope project that we had some talented actors and actresses bring to life during a proof of concept filming last year. I can’t wait for the world to see it!
The second is GRANDMA, formerly known as MY GRANDMOTHER IS A SERIAL KILLER. This is a very very personal project for me. The thrilling dramedy is about our ties to toxic relationships; blooded related, platonic and romantic alike. Generational curses are real, friends can be our enemies and lord our partners! A lot of what is seen in the script and hopefully on a screen soon are true stories from my childhood and my now-hood. And don’t worry no one in my family is a serial killer… well don’t hold me to that.
Most recently, I kicked off “A Seat At The Table” Reads to support the creative journeys of BIPOC females in the Los Angeles area. I produce intimate table reads, or my spin on a read, for women of color to have the opportunity to hear their pieces out loud and gain another level of motivation. It also offered a safe place for writers and actors to network and enjoy a creative space. Our first event kicked off in February 2023 and was an amazing success. The reading was amazing but the kickback after was the bonus. I’m now partnering with the writer to move that project forward after the positive feedback she received and I’m so happy for her! I can’t wait to see who is up next!
Charlie, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
Charlie Savage is the name most of the world knows me by and am a screenwriter and producer. I pride myself on creating visual literature in the form of thrilling drama for film and streaming. I am a 9-year Navy Vet and New Orleans native who focuses my gifts on creating conversations around topics closest to my purpose; the Creole heritage, Women of Color, and the LGBTQIA+ community.
My number one goal is always to educate. I want to put stories in to the world that give insight into the black female experience; stories that are filled with graphic emotions, a history lesson, and a good jump scare.
In recent years, I have been a Top 10 Finalist for Ms. Veteran America and was previously notated as a Washington D.C. Dunkin Donut Community Hero. I was a former fellow of the Writer’s Guild Foundation Veterans Project, a Semi-Finalist in the Creative Screenwriting Unique Voices Competition, and Finalist of the Prince William Little Theatre’s Original Works Festival.
I have a graduate degree in Management and an undergrad in Journalism and Mass Communications. If I am not producing and writing, I am paying the bills as a public relations account exec here in California for esports and entertainment. I currently live in Los Angeles, have two devilishly handsome sons Ja’Mauri (9) and Jazir (2), an cutie pie Goddaughter Elon (2) and a 3-pound Yorkie Mushu.
What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?
Growing up in a city that was once known as the murder capital of America, writing was not a priority. When your focus is survival, avoiding homelessness and figuring out where your next meal is coming from, reading, writing, and that classical literature stuff are way down on the list. Books were coasters in my house. When I tell you nobody read anything outside of the Bible. The New Orleans public school system just kept passing me. I really didn’t understand words until well after I enter the fourth grade. An old friend of mine would help me cheat on my 5th grade spelling test by secretly writing the words on her desk and I would lean just right to see them. Thank you Jaleesa.
I decided I needed to do something! I would have the closed captions on the TV screen while I watched my favorite families live their perfect lives. If it wasn’t for The Cosby Show, Hanging with Mr. Cooper, Three’s Company, Martin, The Fresh Prince (rest in peace Uncle Phil) and A Different World I don’t know where I would be. After a couple years, I realized “damn, I think I like words now, this crazy.”
I just want to give that little girl that I don’t know the same emotional impact that I received. Television raised me. Sitcoms were my big brother and sister. John Singleton was a goal, not just a name on a VHS box! I just aged myself. Anyway, every little person out there that is struggling in the same forms that I was should have someone to look up to; a name from the same streets that they roam with the same struggles that they faced but a different outcome than the one that was promised to them by their surroundings. That is true inspiration. That is true motivation.
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
My personal favorite is The 50th Law by Robert Greene and Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson. 50 Cent is can be… challenging but he is for sure a man without fear! I can honestly credit him with my ability to avoid panic and anxiety because of this book. Fear is the number one killer of dreams and I did not realize how much it was intertwined into my life until after I closed The 50th Law. Now I walk into every room as if I was created to be there… no fear. My entire mindset shifted after Fiffty’s motivation, but this isn’t new. I get a burst of motivation with each and every book I read.
Books and reading have become so important to me and are a big part of not only my life but the lives of my boys. Even my dog gets a story read to him every now and again. CEOs read about 50 to 75 books a year and they are very intentional with the topics they select. There won’t be any romantic novels on Barack Obama’s published reading list. Why do they do that? Because all of the good stuff all of the secrets all of the things the world doesn’t want you to know are between the covers of a book you probably would never pick up. A goal this year is to match those CEOs with Fifty’s book being a yearly reread.
If books like The 50th Law aren’t your thing, pick up anything you can get your hands on. Read about birds or cars or the history of Post-it notes I don’t care but read something! Once you start really dedicating space to self education, you won’t be able to stop. The fountain of knowledge flows from the creative craft of literature, trust me. Pick up a book, any book read the first page and after that… just keep reading.
Contact Info:
- Website: Www.Charlie-savage.com
- Instagram: Www.instagram.com/dasavage_writer
- Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/charlieisavage