Christian decides to redeem himself and help the father in the search for his daughter, while facing resistance from the community, police and his own publication. By the end, everything came together, but it wasnt a point that I necessarily wanted to make in the beginning of the production, Feier further noted. He then explained why he feels its important to showcase that inequalities in the films story. Ben: Two, its highly unlikely that police could dredge up physical evidence of what happened to Monique 15 years ago. Please click here if you want to opt-out. Ben: Moniques more positive outlook in recent months is definitely because of her friends. In the drama, Christian initially pursues a false lead, which turns the entire case upside down. Or worse, she could have become a victim -- vulnerable and weary from the treacherous trip. The other girl. Interview: Vlad Feier, Johnny Whitworth and Jeremy Holm Talk Still Here (Exclusive), https://www.bluefoxentertainment.com/films/still-here. Friends shes made in recent years who have supported her through tough times. Amory: Ventura County PD did give Monique the original police report from the day she was abducted. Monique S Watson, age 40. Monique Watson she/her. Her memories are incomplete, she was only five when she was kidnapped. The show had reached out to local police and the McMullen family, and aired an hourlong profile in January 2009. I wanted him and I to have a language between our characters, he divulged. Monique: My mom started getting really heavily into drugs and that resulted in my aunt actually getting custody of me. She actually tried to kill herself when she was younger. When he first starts writing the story, hes excited to do something, and he kind of went with his investigative instincts, and his role in the case, the actor noted. With public interest waning and time running . "She was crying and said, 'Somebody abused me in Louisiana,' and they wouldn't let her out of the house," Patel said. | police say McMullen was a thief, and that's why she has been missing since September 2008. Monique Watson. ", Michael McMullen said his daughter endured "pretty horrific" things while she was away. I would call them and they would pick up the phone and talk to me during the times when I was allowed to have the phone. She had friends. According to authorities, about an hour later, Monique was found shot in her head and torso with her hands taped behind her back in an alley in the 1300 block of N. Russell Avenue. She helped me take care of myself again. And as we were driving to the beach, he had a couple of porn magazines and he ended up giving us the porn magazines and made us look through them and kind of suggested that we do that. And I think that she never got help for it. Stay up and watch it with me. And I ended up just falling asleep because I was so tired and just so exhausted and just really confused. It contains a police report with her name on it. We found 93 entries for Monique Watson in the United States. Especially when the person who ends up being responsible for drawing those clear lines, is really just a kid. Ask about video and phone sessions. She stayed with her other aunt in Las Vegas. One of her clients recognized her as Michelle after watching a rerun of the Investigation Discovery show. This brings down a series of pains. Holm began his conversation by sharing how he was cast in the thriller, and what attracted him to the role of Detective Spaulding in the drama. ", The family is refusing to dwell on what happened but is instead focusing on helping Michelle rebuild. And since the memories are traumatic, digging into them has also been really scary. I don't wanna talk about it." I couldn't shower. Michelle was young and impulsive, and she felt incredible shame because her mother is a pastor, he said. She was running. I just have a lot of people to prove wrong. For two years, she lived with Tokpa, working in her African hair salon, learning the trade. "All I know in my mind is that she's like my daughter.". "Not a penny. Monique: When I woke up, it was crazy, just so many responses, so many private messages from complete strangers. (This style of filmmaking) is exciting, because you dont have much time to think and adjust; you just keep moving forward, the actor shared. "I love her.". And re-visiting her case. Still Here. And he says her run wasn't calculated and cold, like it's been portrayed. Required fields are marked *. Amory: For now, Moniques focused on her next semester at college. We collect and match historical records that Ancestry users have contributed to their family trees to create each person's profile. There are cases of white-collar theft for far more money in which defendants are sentenced to probation as long as they pay back the money. And a description of the kidnappers car: a dark blue, 1995 Honda Civic. So I was just really confused. The assignment lands in the hands of journalist Christian Baker (Whitworth), who at first pursues a false lead, turning the entire case upside down. Im surprised that it was written by someone from Romania, because its such an American story, he admitted. He discussed the origins of the script, changing the narrative and the timeliness of current events in America. They all think that I'm going to end up like my mom, like a drug addict. It's about the likelihood someone will show up for her next court hearing. I was just looking at a magazine. Still Here is currently playing in select theaters and on VOD. Its why Im in education. "I decided to leave," she wrote in a police confession when she was caught in January. We have to go to your mom. And, you know, I was a little kid, I'd seen this guy before. Monique: We ended up going to the beach and spending quite a lot of time there. In September 2008, Susquehanna Township police Detective Michael Thornton said he called Michelle McMullen and left a voicemail: Progress-Immanuel Presbyterian Church, from which she was fired for poor performance in July, had checked its books and found she had forged checks and made unauthorized pay raises to herself during the two years she worked there. On top of that, Moniques not on the best terms with her family, and nobody in her family is willing to talk about it. Thursday marked seven years since 27-year-old Monique Figueroa was kidnapped, and detectives have yet to find any clues on the mysterious cold case. She goes to class. 2. Ben: A mystery about a day shes just starting to fully remember again. Engage via Email. I think the distributor (Blue Fox Entertainment) had a pretty hard decision to make when choosing the release method for the film, especially with the whole pandemic, and not knowing when theaters would reopen, and if they would stay open, he pointed out. In California, Danielle moved around a bit -- spending time in Piedmont and Hayward before settling in Oakland. She said in a letter written from her Dauphin County jail cell that she can't talk about her story right now. We just realized like, oh, they were probably doing drugs together. She was said to have been shot three times. Amory: Monique has always known she was abducted. Monique excels at bringing her collective expertise and zest for operational excellence, to the world of fashion. Once the actors were cast, the filmmaker was able to collaborate with them to a small degree to build their characters arcs in the drama. Monique: Yes. 2008, a jury found Monique guilty of accessory in several murders and/or rapes or attempted rapes. And after the whole breakdown in the mental hospital, I couldn't take care of myself. She spent 28 months on the run, never speaking of her son, who was 6 years old when she left. She always tried her best. Amory: She wrote the post, and went to bed. Moniques abductor got off with a slap on the wrist 15 years ago. So I'm sure she might remember a lot more than I do. It's likely she never would have gone to prison. Facebook . Pseudonymph: And just looked up a few different search terms. But the stuff that she went through as a kid, the remaining questions about her abduction, it was all still there. Christian decides to redeem himself and . On January 17, . Still Here is set in the aftermath of the disappearance of twelve-year-old Monique Watson from her New York City apartment. 323 posts. But my wife and I had just had our second baby, so we moved from Brooklyn to New Jersey, he shared with a laugh. But we then thought about a city like New York, which has millions of people living there, Feier shared. "They missed her by minutes," Thornton said. And she's like, "Do you even know who this guy is? The name Yvonne Watson has over 143 birth records, 18 death records, 27 criminal/court records, 516 address records, 116 phone records & more. She was consequently sentenced to a life term . Most of them are men. And it will tell you all this information. Her attorney did not return repeated calls for comment. Up until a few weeks ago, Monique had been looking for that police report for 15 years, even though she might not have realized it. Regardless, this was difficult for Monique to learn. She told him she was hiding from an abusive man in Louisiana. Christian Baker, a young New York journalist from The Chronicle, gets assigned to a social story about the disappearance of Monique Watson, a 12 years old African-American girl from Brooklyn. So I think that if this crime happened before Spaulding was married and had kids, he wouldnt have been able to change his views on the way he worked on his cases, and see that what he was doing wasnt right, Holm added. Monique: The other day we were talking to each other and I was like, "You remember when I would come over with my mom and then your mom and my mom would go into their room and lock the door and be in there for hours?" Ben: One of the reasons that Monique needs to solve this mystery of a day in her life when she was five years old, is that almost nobody in her family will talk to her about it. A child who was reported missing in 2019 when she was 4 years old was found hidden under a wooden staircase with her noncustodial mother, in a home officials had visited several times . When 12-year-old Monique Watson disappears from home, her father Michael Watson (McRae) refuses to give up even as the media and police make little effort in solving the case. And we were playing in the front yard and this guy came up. In general, theyre the most open-minded people in the world, the actor also noted. The Moore teenager dreamed of being a doctor and having a family of her . Its at the center of a mystery shes trying to solve. And hes out now. She could be a Jane Doe patient in any hospital between the midstate and Louisiana. And that is because of her post on Reddit. At the same time, I like the underdogs, and I would like to share my voice for the people who may not be able to speak up, the writer revealed. Whitworth also commented on the process of working with his co-stars throughout the production of the movie. Holm was drawn to emphasizing those feelings of reflection and guilt throughout the story. View the profiles of professionals named "Monique Watson" on LinkedIn. We were shooting in New York when the protests about racial injustice started happening. Amory: She never got any real answers about her abduction. She recognized him, too. I have a lot of plans, I have a lot of dreams. monique watson missing true storyteams work better when the organizational structure. And she was telling me, "I honestly didn't believe that he was gonna do anything. The irony of Michelle's story is that even if found guilty, she probably would not have spent any time behind bars had she stayed and faced her alleged crimes in 2008. She decided to ask her god-mother for more information. Shes doing the work. In this case, the unfortunate thing was that he took a shortcut, and wrote a piece that just presented an option. Amory: What happened next is another blurry part of Moniques memory about the abduction. I couldn't eat. Other parts have come back in bits and pieces over the years. She talked her way out of a minor traffic stop with police and was even able to keep a low profile for 12 months after being featured on the Investigation Discovery show "Disappeared." is tony soprano, a narcissist; ted white aretha franklin husband dead; which sentence in the passage contains an allusion? The customers really liked her, Topka said. Amory: This Mary Poppins of libraries known as Pseudonymph on Reddit also had a useful tool at her disposal: access to pay-walled newspaper databases. Check resumes and CV, social media profiles, places of employment, publications, arrest records, business records, photos and videos, public records and skilled experts . Doing the odd jobs she needs to do to stay on her own feet because the traditional safety net, family isnt really there. "She was really friendly, especially to my customers. He was my mom's friend, maybe her boyfriend. Not to mention, the timing of the films release relates to the current affairs in the United States today. Ben: This home life, is what led to Monique running away when she was 17. The top city of residence is Jamaica, followed For 15 years, all Monique has had are the fragments. Its also because she knows much more about what happened to her. And it's still stuck with me for 15 years. Topka said. But bail isn't based on that. It looks like we don't have any synopsis for this title yet. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. Meth. And when we got there we were playing in the water. According to the information online. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. "Still Here" repeatedly uses the Watson family's social class as a way to make . His case was originally treated as a kidnapping, but investigators found that, quote, the mother had omitted important information about her relationship with the defendant.. But we had to also think of the audience, Feier stated. Amory: The title of her post reads, I was abducted as a child. It was posted to the Reddit Bureau of Investigation community, which is described as quote using the power of the internet to solve real world problems., Ben: Moniques post was just a few paragraphs, describing the town she was in when it happened, some other vague details. We have 144 records for Monique Watson ranging in age from 27 years old to 64 years old. We then worked on the script, and finished it, together, the helmer revealed. Source: LRM Online Exclusive, Blue Fox Entertainment. She's reportedly likely to stand trial later this year for her role in the murder of Joanna Parrish and the kidnapping of Fourniret's two other victims. Danielle built up a client base. WASHINGTON A woman who was abducted as a child is telling authorities not to give up hope of finding Relisha Rudd. He developed and directed several short films in the past, including The Intruder and Lamentables. Amory: Step 1: try to find the address of the house Monique and her mom were living in when she was taken from the front yard. Sacha Baron Cohen Has Screened A Secretly-Filmed Sequel To Borat. Whitworth also shared that he loved being on location. amarillo texas billionaires And, honestly, all of my friends have that attitude. The routine of a college kid. I think I looked up Amber Alert, I looked up the city she was in at the time and a date range. ", In Oakland, hairdresser Leemu Topka still thinks of her as a daughter. And, you know, I was so confused. I left my wallet and my keys in the car, and I just walked away.". But after seeing the film, I totally appreciate his style. I don't know where he is. And he was glad to hear it. And through therapy Monique has realized that knowing the full story about what happened to her is an important part of moving past it. steve thompson bethel; the hive server ip and port; shooting in juarez, mexico today; is monique watson still alive. Join Facebook to connect with Monique Watson and others you may know. If I say the actors need to say the lines in a certain way, I may be limiting them. And they told me, we don't have these files about this this case because he got let go on a misdemeanor. His grief leads the writer to help Michael in the search for his daughter, even though hes facing resistance from the community, the police and his own publication. Don't hesitate to reach out with reactions to episodes, ideas for future stories, feedback about the show, or just to say hi. They said she was someone else. He had found A New U Spa on Instagram and sent a . But there are a lot of people who are really scared to just take that first step. "She's a good kid," he said. So in addition to offering emotional support and advice, she also helped Monique take some immediate next steps. It was nice but at the same time, my aunt wasn't like my mom. Not searchable in the newspapers own archives. But, at the same time, I'm really scared to even talk to her about it because what if she doesn't remember at all? So they were all going through similar things. It was Jan. 27. The transcript has been edited from our original script for clarity. He said she never stole a cent. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). Who agreed to take her in up until she turned 18. The rest of the missing money was the result of bad accounting practices that Michael McMullen says were already in place at the Progress-Immanuel church. But police were developing a different theory. View Monique Watson results in California (CA) including current phone number, address, relatives, background check report, and property record with Whitepages. Monique Watson is a Luxury Sales Executive , Buyer and Authentic Confidence Coach . Monique Watson is recognized for her deep knowledge and understanding of energy law, policy, economics, and regulation, with particular focus on oil and natural gas pipeline matters. I do attend community college out here and I do a lot of odd jobs just to provide for myself. Ben: Was that because your aunt was basically suggesting that you wouldn't necessarily keep staying with her if you, you know, did the wrong thing or something? Theres an energy that helps the workI love shooting in New York, and have done it many times. 11/25/2022 11:49 PM. She dated. Whitworth also enjoyed his experience of collaborating with the writer-director on Still Here. I like the way that (Vlad) trusts his actors. Whitworth felt his character should have double-checked his sources before he put them in the paper, because people believe what they read and see on the news. In November 2008, the TV show "America's Most Wanted" posted a blurb about her on its website, but no leads came from that, either. It was an interesting process to go from working on the script to directing the movie. Michelle still talks to Topka through letters, and Mumuni said he has contact with the McMullen family -- her real family. Still Here is set, and was shot, in Manhattan and Brooklyn, like Feier mentioned. I think having that deadline helped though, because it gave the movie a totally different shape. I believed that I deserved absolutely everything bad that's ever happened to me. There were just certain triggers that would remind me of my kidnapping. Your email address will not be published. One thing led to the other, and it spiraled out of control. But when police got to the hotel, she was gone. Because people around them, who love them, have to draw clear lines. And by me talking to her and having a conversation with her, you know, it could trigger things that just might have been better off not addressed for her because, you know, everyone's different. "He said, 'Yeah, she got some explaining to do with me,'" her father said. "I felt sorry for her," he said. But like I mentioned, I spent several years working on the script, and then spent several years on production and editing. I have to thank Adrienne Stern for this great casting.. Monique D Watson, 57. It's more like, after a while, she has to help herself. The conversation with Feier began with the scribe explaining what inspired him to work on the script for Still Here. Im originally from Romania, and I came across a story about a missing girl around 12 or 13 years ago, and it really inspired me, he shared. It was her own private jail cell. Amory: One: it will help a lot if someone else can corroborate her story. Police dogs, helicopters and firefighters converged on the area where her car was found, but Michelle evaded the search. Thank you! Bed. And it's always just been excuse after excuse. Contact info for Monique Watson in Los Angeles, Riverside, Orange County, California: Phone number, address lookup, email address, and social networking profiles on Spokeo, your people search engine for contact info & public records. Monique Watson, as Michelle called herself, scurried to a back room, told employees she had to deliver a message to a housekeeper and vanished as the family friend called the McMullen family. Ben: Legal matters aside, theres something else Monique is focused on right now. She took Interstate 81 south and drove until her car ran out of gas near a Volvo truck plant in Hagerstown, Md. Her duties include interviewing filmmakers and musicians, and scribing movie, television and music reviews and news articles. And it was like, "Now what do I do? Susquehanna Twp. After she goes missing, her father, Michael Watson (Maurice McRae . This brings down a series of pains. "She told me she don't have a kid. And he ended up telling us, "Well, we're going to have a fun day. Trying to get the assignment behind, he quickly and poorly researches the story and goes with the first lead. The trio also shared how they appreciated being able to shoot the movie on location in the storys real settings of Manhattan and Brooklyn, as it helped provide the plot and its messages with an extra sense of authenticity. They told Monique they throw out case files for misdemeanors after 10 years. Still Here (2020) NR, 1 hr 39 min. It was never brought up unless I brought it up. By Laurel Mallory. Pa. woman missing since 1992 found alive in . Basically, he was found at fault for dropping the children off in the park and leaving them alone. In Still Here, when twelve-year-old Monique Watson disappears from home, her father, Michael Watson (McRae), refuses to give up even as the media and police make little effort in solving the case. But another Redditor reacting to Moniques post, a librarian, found an actual lead. And he was like, Oh, your mom needs you. We didn't really care about anything. So then I auditioned for Vlad Feier, and he cast me.. "I really didn't have a plan. I am passionate about solving problems for you. That's not fair at all. Because she made it clear she could get in trouble for that. The assignment lands in the hands of journalist Christian Baker, who at first goes with the first lead, turning the entire case up side down. So for me, it was more about talking to the actors about who I wanted their characters to be, and what I was expecting from the characters, more than the lines said in a particular way. And the evidence of that is in a special folder on Moniques desk. Josh Crane Twitter Producer, Podcasts & New ProgramsJosh is a producer for podcasts and new programs at WBUR. SHARES. And it was a huge change from always hopping around to actually being in a set place for about, I want to say five, six years of my life. Instead, she led others to believe that she was abandoned, abused and in desperate need of help. But her case file, with all the information about the police investigation, thats a different story. So during the preparation for the movie, I took walks with Johnny throughout New York, and told him who I wanted his character of Christian Baker to be, and what he does on a daily basis, Feier shared. Amory: We're coming to you from WBUR, Boston's NPR station. She is a family to me. Monique has been found in 21 states including Indiana, Ohio, Connecticut, South Carolina, California. Miraculously she was found alive. Monique: I've been living with this for 15 years and this is something he did in a matter of a day. In Oakland, Calif., they knew her as Danielle Jones, the adopted daughter of abusive parents who left her Chicago home with no money or identification. Ben: But that same night that Monique and her friend Alyssa had been trying to find information online with no luck, Monique did something a little radical. Because she's considered a flight risk, Michelle has spent four months behind bars, waiting for a trial that hasn't been scheduled. Many people who run from crimes run from really big ones, such as murder or rape. I couldn't get up out of bed. They keep the same name and move around a lot. Monique says: "Without the scholarship, there is no way that I would have been able to take time off work and dedicate so much time to my writing. Theres one particular scene where Danny and I get breakfast, and its one of my favorite scenes, because it was born out of something that really happened between us. And if she didn't get the money, something bad was gonna happen to you." But she didnt really know how to go about getting it. My job on the set with him was to be supportive of him, because there was a big load to carry. She's excellent. That decision catapulted him into the seriousness of what the results were, and the guilt he then felt for his actions, which were haphazard and a mistake, he also stated. When 12 year old Monique Watson disappears from home, her father Michael Watson, refuses to give in as the media and police make little effort in solving the case. They liked it. In her two decades of energy experience, including senior legal roles at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), she has . Broken promise after broken promise. There are 100+ professionals named "Monique Watson", who use LinkedIn to exchange information, ideas, and opportunities. Living in the same area. They're kind of not accessible anymore. They have also lived in Norcross, GA. Monique is related to Ernestine Clay Watson and Onario Wayson. In the beginning, there was a little bit of rehearsal. She had been searching for ways to get a fake ID, police said. Monique: By the end of the day, he just dropped us off at a park and said, Oh, I have to go to work, stay here. And, you know, we were both cold. Among some old clips of The Ventura County Star newspaper. LRM Online exclusively spoke with director Vlad Feier last month about this project. "She's not some villain that needs to be holed down in her situation because of an error in judgment that she's made.". Amory: But, they can look into the abductor to see if he has a pattern of similar offenses. I thought it was weird but I didn't know what was going on. We found 166 entries for Yvonne Watson in the United States. Michelle took a job at a McDonald's to try to keep up with her bills and talked to her parents about sending her son back to live with them. Vlad Feier, Johnny Whitworth and Jeremy Holm, Writer-director-producer and actors of the crime drama thriller, 'Still Here'. And my family felt like it was all their fault, too. "We were together like family. She works on homework, takes a nap. Ms. Watson, who will reside in the firm's Washington office, joins Steptoe from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), where she spent 15 years in senior legal positions, with a particular focus on oil and natural gas pipeline matters. akroma's memorial banned; monique watson missing true story.