Meet the Team
Betsy Burke, Writer/Director
Route 66 Films
In Ain’t It Cool News by Harry Knowles, Betsy was described as “… an inventive filmmaker on the verge of much bigger things… Keep your eye out for her!”
Enchanted by the vibrant folklore, history of human struggle and triumph, as well as the austere beauty of her once ghost town in New Mexico, Betsy was compelled to write her latest screenplay: Night of Starlings.
Betsy has been a part of filmmaking for decades, from a start-up job at Lucas Film, to acting in micro to big budget films and television, a stint as part of the Quentin Tarantino entourage, and on to writing and directing films herself. Since relocating in New Mexico, Betsy has won four writing awards; two for screenwriting, one for fiction, and one for non-fiction. She recently won her first award for Best Cinematography.
Betsy has completed writing several other feature scripts, ranging from Sci-Fi to a suffragist drama set in 1900. Her feature script Scandal of the Century was a finalist in Francis Ford Coppola’s Zoetrope screenplay competition, and others. Her TV series script The Eternals has been a finalist for the George RR Martin Science Fiction Grant three times and was once tied for first place.
Night of the Starlings has been a finalist in three screenwriting competitions.
See Interview in SF Reporter
See Betsy's director reel
Watch Betsy's actor reel
Betsy's IMDb page
Our Vision
We weave gothic shadows and heartfelt tales, echoing themes of healing and mystery through Rae’s eyes.
Night of the Starlings at IMDb
Fritz Eberle, Executive Producer
Keyvision Media
Jerry Angelo, Producer
Rokitpig Productions, LLC
A Note to Aspiring Filmmakers
Night of the Starlings took 18 years from the first draft of the script to being in the can. This is not unusual. Guillermo del Toro dreamt of and planned for Frankenstein for over 30 years. You probably have a phone with a great camera. Start shooting when inspiration strikes.
Don't be discouraged!
“Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful people with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.”
– Calvin Coolidge
“Let yourself be silently drawn by the strange pull of what you really love – it will not lead you astray.”
– Rumi
“You are a success because you believe in your movie. You keep working at it. You cannot control how it will do, or even if it will ever get made. You are a success because you believe in it.”
– Richard Ricci, co-creator Night of the Living Dead
The Plot
Rae and her mother flee danger, uncovering dark secrets and spirits.
Themes
Domestic violence, Gaia’s healing, and the myth of La Llorona intertwine.
Outcasts and spirits rally to help Rae face her darkest fears.
The Cast
