REEL FACE: | REAL FACE: |
Kat Dennings
Born: June 13, 1986 Birthplace: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA | Renee Yohe
Born: November 8, 1986 Birthplace: Orlando, Florida, USA |
Isabella Iannuzzi
Born: 2005 Birthplace: Fort Myers, Florida, USA | Renee Yohe (young)
|
Chad Michael Murray
Born: August 24, 1981 Birthplace: Buffalo, New York, USA | Jamie Tworkowski
Born: January 24, 1980 Birthplace: Morehead City, North Carolina, USA |
Rupert Friend
Born: October 1, 1981 Birthplace: Oxfordshire, England, UK | David McKenna
Born: August 6, 1979 Birthplace: Manhasset, New York, USA Death: December 14, 2012, Lake Mary, Florida, USA (car accident) |
No. The To Write Love On Her Arms true story reveals that despite being portrayed by British actor Rupert Friend in the movie, the real David McKenna was not British. He was born in Manhasset, New York. -TWLOHA.com
Yes. In the movie, David (Rupert Friend) places a statue of the Virgin Mary next to Renee's bed and tells her that his father kept it next to him when he detoxed at his parents' house. "I remembered going over to my parents' house, 27 years old or whatever, a few years ago," recalls the real David McKenna. "And literally just lying on the couch at my parents' house, and my father just sitting there, holding my hand, putting his hand on my head like any parent would do for a sick little boy." -I am Second
Yes. In the movie, Renee (Kat Dennings) gives Jamie (Chad Michael Murray) her last razor blade because she doesn't want to hurt herself anymore. "It was an important moment in my life," says Jamie, "and it's an important moment in the film. While they were shooting that scene, Chad actually stopped and asked to talk to me. He wanted to know what the moment was like in real life. He wanted to get it right. That meant a lot to me." -TWLOHA.com
Yes. Prior to founding the non-profit organization To Write Love On Her Arms (TWLOHA), Jamie Tworkowski worked in the clothing industry. Born in Morehead City, North Carolina, Jamie's family moved to Melbourne Beach, Florida when he was approximately 6-years-old. His father was a surfer who sold t-shirts for a living, and Jamie followed in his footsteps. At age 18, Jamie was an avid surfer who became an assistant sales rep for the clothing company Quiksilver. He left college midway through his junior year to accept a full-time position as the Florida sales rep for the clothing brand Hurley. Once TWLOHA began to take off, he gave up his six-figure position at Hurley to work on the non-profit full-time. -CNN
In an article posted on their website, the To Write Love On Her Arms non-profit organization responded to the movie by writing, "It's based on a true story. The broad strokes of the film are true. It's not as if every moment and every sentence is 100% true, but the film definitely gives people a sense of the true story." The organization pointed out that their office space was not nearly as big as it is in the movie.
"...the idea of my story reaching more people through film is beautiful," says Renee. "There were some scenes that were never part of my story but also parts that feel true, and it's kind of beautiful to see it being portrayed. Artistically, it's a good movie, and the soundtrack has some great songs that I personally fought for. ... If I set aside how accurately or inaccurately it depicts me, my story, or the people in it, I would say it carries a message that is significant and powerful." -TWLOHA.com
Yes. Prior to the movie's five-week shoot, Jamie Tworkowski and his onscreen counterpart, Chad Michael Murray, met at Starbucks. Chad actually filmed Jamie reading the "Jamie" lines of the script so that he could learn Jamie's voice. Jamie was also often on set during the filming. -TWLOHA.com
Yes. She credits her favorite bands with helping her to get through some of her darkest times. Later on, the To Write Love On Her Arms organization (often abbreviated TWLOHA) would receive its biggest initial support from bands that would wear TWLOHA t-shirts. -Official TWLOHA Movie Website
Yes. The real Renee Yohe signed with Working Group Artist Management, and she released an EP in June 2012 as part of her music project Bearcat. It is available on iTunes. An acoustic version of the EP was released in December 2013.
Yes. "David passed away after the filming of the movie," says Jamie Tworkowski. "Knowing that people will be introduced to his life (when they see the movie), that means the world to me." In 2006, after the treatment center wouldn't let Renee in, she went back to David's house and detoxed with the help of David and her friends. Jamie and David were roommates at the time. -TWLOHA.com
David McKenna was killed in a car accident on December 14, 2012 when his Infiniti SUV, travelling in excess of 100 miles per hour, crashed into the back of a box truck that was traveling roughly 65 miles per hour. This happened several months after the To Write Love On Her Arms movie, on which David was a producer, premiered at the 2012 Florida Film Festival. -Orlando Sentinel
Expand your knowledge of the To Write Love On Her Arms true story with the videos below, including Renee Yohe and Jamie Tworkowski interviews, as well as the real David McKenna speaking about his own struggles with addiction.
WATCH Renee Yohe and Jamie Tworkowski InterviewThis news segment chronicles how Renee
Yohe's story led to an online movement.
Her friend and To Write Love On Her Arms
founder Jamie Tworkowski is interviewed.
Renee also speaks. |
WATCH Renee Yohe Talks About Her Addiction and RecoveryRenee Yohe shares her personal account of
drinking, drug addiction, self-mutilation,
and recovery. She talks about trying to
kill herself by getting hit by a car and
keeping her drugs, cutting and suicide
attempts from her parents. She says that
her friends at school stopped talking to
her. Renee eventually moved in with her
drug dealer and became very addicted to
cocaine and pills. With little hope left,
her friends intervened to help her detox
and get treatment. |
WATCH David McKenna Shares His Story of Drugs, Felonies, God and RecoveryDavid McKenna talks about his descent from
a happy childhood into a life filled with
partying, abusing and dealing drugs, five
DUIs, felonies and jail time. On a road
that was basically a fast track to the pit
of hell, David turned his life around
after he was released from jail, worked
through a rehab program, and was
introduced to God. McKenna is portrayed by
British actor Rupert Friend in the To
Write Love On Her Arms movie. |
WATCH Jamie Tworkowski Addresses Depression and Recovery at TEDxJamie Tworkowski founded To Write Love On
Her Arms, a non-profit
organization/movement dedicated to finding
help and offering hope for people
struggling with depression, addiction,
self-injury and suicide. Here, Jamie talks
about the numbers of people who struggle
with untreated depression and how his
organization is encouraging them to seek
help and get better. He also touches on
his own battle with depression. Jamie is
portrayed by actor Chad Michael Murray in
the To Write Love On Her Arms
movie. |
WATCH David McKenna InterviewThis David McKenna interview was conducted
several months before his death in 2012,
just after To Write Love On Her
Arms premiered at the Florida Film
Festival. He is portrayed by British actor
Rupert Friend in the movie. In 2006, Renee
Yohe detoxed at David's house after the
treatment center considered her too high
of a risk to admit. |
WATCH To Write Love On Her Arms Movie TrailerKat Dennings (2 Broke Girls)
portrays Renee Yohe, a Florida teen who
struggles with addiction and abuse. When
friend Jamie Tworkowski (Chad Michael
Murray) begins to share Yohe's story via
MySpace and sells t-shirts to help fund
her treatment, several high profile
musicians take notice and soon a global
movement begins. It leads to the founding
of the TWLOHA non-profit organization to
help people struggling with addiction,
self-injury, depression, and thoughts of
suicide. |