When he received a biography of the Marquis de Sade as a gift, Wright became intrigued by the notorious author and was struck by one incident wherein the writer's paper and quill pens were confiscated in order to prevent him from creating his pornographic prose. Utilizing that image as a jumping off point, and addressing the themes of censorship and the role of the artist in society, Wright crafted "Quills". When it was produced in 1995 at the New York Theater Workshop, "Quills" earned rave reviews and enjoyed a successful run. After landing an OBIE award, Wright saw the play go on to productions throughout the USA and Canada. When it came time to adapt the material for the big screen, Wright took a shot and was fortunate to land Philip Kaufman as his director. Kaufman, no stranger to controversy regarding sex on screen (see "Henry and June" 1990), sensitively handled the adaptation, working closely with the writer to fine tune the screenplay. The film garnered excellent notices, particularly for its stars Geoffrey Rush (as de Sade), Joaquin Phoenix and Kate Winslet, and was dubbed the best of the year by the National Board of Review. By that time, Wright had completed his adaptation of Stephen Dobyns' novel "Church of the Dead Girls" for Good Machine.