The Grey Zone: The Director's Notes and Screenplay

A seductive young woman chooses the dangerous path of confronting the justice system and corporate power for the sake of her children, her passion for life, and her desire to be loved.

Kelly Jensen was only six years old when she witnessed her mother's murder, for which her father was wrongfully convicted. Moved from foster home to foster home, Kelly was exposed to abuse, neglect, and human trafficking. By age fifteen she was a runaway, combining her innate intelligence with street smarts to become a chameleon capable of losing herself in every character she impersonated. Beautiful and bewitching, Kelly used her talents to become the most notorious identity thief in the country.

Ruggedly handsome defense attorney Jake Brooks finds the enigmatic Kelly Jensen irresistible despite suspecting her of murdering his best friend from law school. His obsession leads him to risk his own illustrious career in Los Angeles to see that justice is served. Kelly finds him addictive. Together, the two uncover a sordid link among immoral foster care parents, high rollers in Vegas, politicians, and the legal system itself. Kelly ultimately takes fate into her own hands behind closed doors in the gray zone.

A stunning foray into the mind and actions of the acclaimed actor/writer/director who worked for more than five years to produce first a play, then a movie, now a book—his most personal work to date, a searing Holocaust drama starring David Arquette, Daniel Benzali, Steve Buscemi, David Chandler, Allen Corduner, Harvey Keitel, Natasha Lyonne, and Mira Sorvino.Tim Blake Nelson's powerful account of what inspired him, and how he prepared himself and others to make this haunting movie, reveals how and why a writer/director chooses such a difficult subject and surmounts its challenges. First realized as a play, which earned numerous awards, the story is based on historical events, centering on Auschwitz's twelfth Sonderkommando squad, prisoners assigned work in the crematoria, and their struggle to organize the only armed revolt in October of 1944. Financed by Millennium Films, produced by Killer Films, and released by Lions Gate Films in the US, The Grey Zone debuted in the United States in October 2002, garnering major media attention. This book is the definitive record of Nelson's journey—from his initial readings and research, to assembling a brave cast that could tackle the material, to reconstructing the crematoria 80 percent to scale on location outside of Sofia, Bulgaria, and to his work with the art director, costume and production designers, and others on his team. To acquaint his cast and crew with the difficult material, Nelson summarized his research and his cinematic vision in a compelling, lengthy pre-production memo, which is reproduced in this book. Also included are his screenplay, his annotated reading list, movie stills, excerpts from an essay by Primo Levi, and the source chapter from the book Auschwitz: A Doctor's Eyewitness Account, by Dr. Miklos Nyiszli.

About the Author:
: Tim Blake Nelson is best known for his acting roles in O Brother, Where Art Thou?, Minority Report, The Good Girl, The Thin Red Line, among others. He made his film writing/directing debut with Eye of God. He is also an award-winning playwright of such plays as Eye of God, The Grey Zone, and Andadarko. He is a graduate of Brown University and Juilliard Theater Center. Born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, he lives with his wife and sons in New York City.