Search Film, Company, People...

THE PRIVATEERS

By Whitney HAMILTON

Historical - Pre-Production 2024

Two mature women eluding pirate catchers find exile in New Orleans, where they reunite with a powerful African queen who runs a syndicate. These privateers are pressed into service to intercept slave ships and redirect the human cargo to safety. They define their love for each other in a cruel world

Festivals
& Awards

Austin Film Festival 2021

Second rounder

HollyShorts 2021

Semifinalist

We Screenplay Diverse Voices TV pilot competition 2021

Quarterfinalist

Hollyshorts 2022

Quarterfinalist

Atlanta Film Festival 2022

Quarterfinalist

Launch Pad Pilot Competition 2022

Second Rounder

Australasian Screenplay competition 2022

Quarterfinalist

International Screenwriters Association Fast Track Fellowship 2023

Second Rounder

See all

- Year of production
- 2024
- Genres
- Historical, TV Series, LGBT
- Countries
- USA
- Languages
- ENGLISH
- Budget
- 10 - 25 M$
- Duration
- 57 mn
- Director(s)
- Whitney HAMILTON
- Writer(s)
- Whitney HAMILTON
- Cast
- Whitney HAMILTON, Judy KRAUSE
- Producer(s)
- Whitney HAMILTON (BJORNQUIST FILMS), Judy KRAUSE (Bjornquist Films), Adrian VIRUET (Bjornquist Films), Patrick SULLIVAN (Bjornquist Films)
- Synopsis
- Colleen, A Yorkshire widow, combs the beach for shells with her young son Charles. She spots a child playing among the seals and kidnaps the girl much to her son's warnings that the child is a “Selkie”, a seal woman, a mythical, magical, shapeshifting creature. When her son Charles dies suddenly, Colleen dresses the girl as Charles and pretends that her son never died thereby continuing the flow of an allowance by her mother-in-law to educate the boy. Arminta, a powerful and mighty Yoruban queen , is betrayed by her brother and captured along with a good number of her tribe. They are forced onto a slave ship bound for the West Indies. Ann Fitzpatrick, dissatisfied and terribly disappointed with her husband, James, takes up with a small-time pirate, Wyck Blethers, to indulge her passion for love and adventure. When James comes to forcefully collect his wife, Ann publicly ‘divorces’ him, humiliating his manhood in the public house. Charlotte passes as Charles Berry, a very successful privateer for England then France and then for himself as a pirate. He is captured as he proposes to his current companion, Lisa Babbage, a landed woman in English society. He reveals his true gender to her as the soldiers march him off to prison. Once in prison and stripped of male attire, Charlotte is put on trial and asks Lisa to find Ann Fitzpatrick as Ann will surely spring her from jail before she is to hang. Charlotte pleads the belly - says she is pregnant and Lisa, who really is with child, swaps places with Charlotte and thereby sets her free. Charlotte, more comfortable as Charles, comes face to face with a seal woman and the memories flood in as Charlotte was once a seal woman but lost her skin. Her mother stole it. Charles tries to reunite with Ann but is interrupted at the very last moment by Ann’s vengeful ex husband James, A pirate hunter. However, Charles pirates the ship from the English slavers and is planning to sell off the property himself in the West Indies, but they are pursued by the Royal Navy and must go into hiding in the Canary Islands off the coast of Africa. Arminta summons up a mythical creature from the waters that takes her people below the sea. She is the only one left and Charles sets her free to forage for herself while he desperately awaits a rendezvous with Ann to help him rescue Lisa from the gallows. Arminta finds Ann and nearly kills her until they both collapse in grief at the loss of their respective people and brethren. Arminta becomes a pirate on Ann’s ship. When Ann is captured by her ex-husband and Charles is shot, Arminta’s only choice is to sail the ship out to sea.

THE PRIVATEERS

Festivals& Awards

Festivals
& Awards