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Hang Fire: A Front-Row Seat to
Hollywood's Paradise Lost
By Sylvia Delgado
In the ever-evolving landscape of contemporary literature, Anthony Mora's "Hang Fire" offers readers a searing glimpse into the heart of Hollywood's dream factory.
Set against the backdrop of pre-pandemic Los Angeles, Mora's novel navigates the thin line between admiration and criticism, offering a nuanced portrait of the film industry that is as seductive as it is unforgiving, capturing both the intoxicating allure of Hollywood dreams and the sobering reality of their pursuit.
Mora, whose career has spanned novels, plays, and films, brings his experience to bear in "Hang Fire."
His journey from novelist to playwright to filmmaker infuses the narrative with an authenticity that is both refreshing and unsettling. In the glittering, ruthless world of Hollywood, where dreams are both made and shattered with alarming regularity.
Hang Fire is an electrifying tale of power, greed, lust, and cutthroat ambition. A razor-sharp satire of Hollywood, think “The Great Gatsby” meets “La La Land.”
"Hang Fire" is set in 2019, just before the pandemic. How has the passage of time and the dramatic changes in the entertainment industry since then influenced your perspective on your novel?
I know of quite a few projects that were delayed, changed or canceled, but there are countless stories of projects that never saw the light of day that I don’t think most of us will ever know about.
Careers were put on hold, lives were changed. Projects that were initially given the green light never made it to the finish line. My characters are all chasing dreams, none of them have any idea of what’s coming, just as none of us did.
The industry was already in flux but the pandemic accelerated it. It has been forever changed. Apart from blockbusters, it’s harder than ever to get audiences to go see films in theaters.
What I wonder most about is what are the projects and talents that we lost due to the lockdown.
A play that I was working on based on my novel, “Virtual Velocity,” came to a full stop due to the lockdown. Not only did the play never see the light of day, the theatre went under.
The novel is inspired by a true story. Can you elaborate?
After my first novel, “Bang! A Love Story,” was published, I was approached by a producer who said she wanted to make it into a film.
I knew enough to be weary, but also wanted it enough to follow the piper. She would only meet at the Polo Lounge or the lounges at the Beverly Wilshire, or Four Seasons. I always ended up paying the check.
Each time I thought things were going off the rail and was set to walk, she’d bring a heavy hitter to a meeting. She was well connected. So I stayed – too long.
Eventually , and inevitably, it all blew up. But I knew what my characters were going through. Sometimes you want something to be real, so no matter what the facts tell you -you try to will it to be so.
That is the novel’s starting point, but the bulk of the story is fiction. Covid and the pandemic were nowhere in sight at that time.
The characters in your novel are driven by ambition, often to destructive ends. Do you see this as a particularly Hollywood trait, or a more universal human characteristic?
Definitely a human trait. Hollywood just puts it on steroids.
Your novel captures a specific moment in time - the end of an era, so to speak. Was this something you were conscious of while writing, or did it become apparent in retrospect?
Like my characters, I started working on the novel before the virus surfaced. During the lockdown the arc of the story changed. I was able to view things both pre and post Covid.
I was set to go on a book tour to promote my novel Virtual Velocity and to direct my play based on the novel. Then came Covid and all of that came to a crashing halt. None of it ever happened.
Similarly my characters are brought to the brink of the shift that’s going to alter all of their lives. They don’t see it coming.
What is the significance of the title? How does it relate to the themes of your novel?
"Hang Fire" is a term that originally comes from firearms. It dates back to the 17th and 18th centuries, when firearms used gunpowder ignited by a spark or flame. It refers to an unexpected delay between the triggering of a firearm and the ignition of the propellant.
Today it means to delay or be suspended in action or outcome. The characters in the novel go about their lives and pursue their dreams unaware of the impending global crisis, their world is essentially in a state of "hang fire.”
I wanted to capture the final moments of pre-pandemic life in Hollywood - a world that's about to change irrevocably.
In 2020 you and your wife, Ann Convery launched Swan Place Productions. Your first film "Exposé" is an award-winning short film, written by Ann, which was followed by the documentary "An Unimportant Girl." You’re currently in post-production on “The Revenge Sessions” based on one of your plays. Did your experience in filmmaking influence your portrayal of the film industry in "Hang Fire?”
Well, I was pretty far along in the first draft of the novel when Covid hit. 2020 was when we started on "Exposé."
We had done a one-night performance of it as a play. It clicked. We then decided to make the film.
We were blessed to keep the same actors for the film. We had a great run on the festival circuit. "Exposé was very well received which was gratifying.
The first draft of “Hang Fire” had no Covid reference. It was initially not a part of the story. It was the experience of the lockdown that changed the arc of the work.
That was something we all shared, something none of us saw coming, none of us were prepared for. I figured I’d take my characters along for that ride.
Do you see it as a film?
That would be an interesting 180 considering what the book’s about. But, yeah, I’d love to see it as a film.
Charlize Theron or Margot Robbie would both be perfect as the psychotherapist. If you could send a copy of this article to them, that would be appreciated.
For more information visit: AnthonyMoraWriter.com.
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