Regan Linton, filmmaker and former artistic director of Denver’s disability-affirmative Phamaly Theatre Company, is turning beans into screen magic this month on the streaming platform Max (formerly HBO).
In celebration of its 100th anniversary, Warner Brothers Studios selected Linton among six filmmakers from around the nation to develop and shoot 20-minute short film adaptations that reimagine some of the studio’s iconic films through a contemporary lens.
Linton chose “Jack and the Beanstalk,” turning to both fellow Phamaly alumnus Jeremy Palmer to co-write the script, and Kalyn Heffernan, MC for the local hip-hop band Wheelchair Sports Camp, to score the film. (Palmer made his feature-length screenwriting debut in 2024 with “Detained,” now streaming on Prime Video and AppleTV.)
Reframed: Next Gen Narratives
The easiest way to find “Jack and the Beanstalk” on Max is to search for the series’ overall title: “Reframed: Next Gen Narratives.” If you don’t have a subscription to Max, you can sign up for $9.99 and cancel at any time.
Linton’s triumph is a win for the entire Colorado theater community. Her project, filmed in March 2024 mostly in and around downtown’s Sakura Square, generated union-scale employment for 26 crew and 14 cast members – including 11 disabled actors.
Regan Linton directs ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’ as part of a new Warner Brothers tribute series now airing on Max.
JOHN MOORE/DENVER GAZETTE
“My selection was incredibly meaningful to me, especially as a Denver-based artist,” said Linton, a graduate of Denver East High School and a wheelchair user since a car accident in college. “And to be the primary disability representative in this group was really gratifying.”
Linton’s charge was to pay homage to Abbott and Costello’s (now fairly obscure) 1952 musical version of the famous fairy tale about a young boy who trades the family cow for magic beans. Not by copying it. By envisioning it anew from a 2024 perspective.
Linton, the Denver Gazette’s 2017 Colorado Theatre Person of the Year, drew on her stage experience for inspiration. She previously co-directed “Imperfect,” a 2021 documentary that followed the making of her own production of “Chicago” for Phamaly.
A still from the new short film ‘Jack and the Beanstalk,’ airing on Max.
Warner Bros.
“In our theater tradition, we still wanted to honor the original’s musical inclination, its humor and its whimsy,” she said, “but also to bring a new lens to it that had to do with disability. “Specifically, by addressing sub-minimum wages for people with disabilities – which is very much a current issue.”
Did you know it is legal for some employers to pay people with disabilities less than minimum wage? It’s true, thanks to the ironically titled (if initially well-intended) Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938.
Director Regan Linton, left, calls the shots (literally) for the new short film ‘Jack and the Beanstalk,’ filmed largely in Denver’s Sakura Square. It is now airing on Max. With her are actors Valentina Fittipaldi and Josh Elledge/
JOHN MOORE/DENVER GAZETTE
According to the APSE – The Association of People Supporting Employment First – 90 percent of working disabled people were earning less than half of the federal minimum wage ($7.25) in July 2024. That’s 38,000 people. It’s an issue outgoing president Joe Biden is still trying to push through Congress with the Transformation to Competitive Integrated Employment Act.
A look at the scrbipt for Warner Bros.’ new ‘Jack and the Beanstalk,’ filmed largely in Denver’s Sakura Square. It is now airing on Max.
JOHN MOORE/DENVER GAZETTE
In Linton’s film, Jack is a neurodivergent employee at a young grocery store that is denying him a livable wage. The beanstalk is the corporate ladder. And the not-so-jolly green giant is corporate America.
Sometimes you take what you can get when you are borrowing film locations on a tight budget. Regan Linton filmed the short narrative ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’ largely in Denver’s Sakura Square. It is now airing on Max.
JOHN MOORE/DENVER GAZETTE
“It’s about a young man who is a hard worker and is pushing to be promoted to a full wage,” Linton said. “When he is denied that opportunity, he has to use his community and his inner drive to push for what’s right.
“In my mind, Jack is a pretty common young person who becomes the hero by fighting the giant who doesn’t want to pay him what he is worth.”
The film features several local disabled actors, including Joshua Elledge and Stewart Tucker Lundy, as well as longtime Buntport Theater ensemble member Hannah Duggan. The soundtrack’s original music includes “I Fear Nothing” by the iconic Heffernan, who also makes a cameo. The popular RiNo mural “Holding Hope” by Chloe Duplessis and Valerie Rose is also featured.
Director Regan Linton calls the shots (literally) for the new short film ‘Jack and the Beanstalk,’ filmed largely in Denver’s Sakura Square. With her is Fredo Jones, director of photography. The film is now airing on Max.
JOHN MOORE/DENVER GAZETTE
Duggan reveled in the chance to play the villainous corporate head. “True to the fairy-tale spirit of the original, the bad guy is really bad – but I do have a little bit of redemption in the end,” she said with a laugh.
Director Regan Linton calls the shots (literally) for the new short film ‘Jack and the Beanstalk,’ filmed largely in Denver’s Sakura Square. It is now airing on Max.
JOHN MOORE/DENVER GAZETTE
She is especially happy for Linton and the further opportunities “Jack” might bring her. “The thing is, Regan can do anything as a writer, director or performer,” Duggan said. “She is a visionary when it comes to storytelling, especially when it involves disability. As a director, she is very thoughtful and unpretentious and irreverent – which are three of my favorite things.”
For her part, Linton had a blast making art, bringing attention to an injustice, and uplifting the local film community.
“I think this is a reminder that Denver is a great place for film and other cultural opportunities, and I hope to continue to work and promote that aspect of Denver,” said Linton, whose upcoming projects include an original stage play called “The Menagerist.” That’s a satire of “The Glass Menagerie” she is developing in collaboration with Duggan and Buntport Theater, and is scheduled to run March 7-29.
Other titles in the Warner Brothers “Reframed” series on Max include “A Star is Born,” “The Adventures of Robin Hood” and “Calamity Jane.”
Regan Linton, center, with her sister Allie, left, and award-winning actor Alfre Woodard at a 2022 film festival showing her documentary, ‘Imperfect.’
Courtesy Regan Linton