The Creation of Oz (6 pages in PDF format) by Marnie Mitchell
Sometimes, the most beautiful dreams emerge from the most modest beginnings…
Where do wizards come from?
And not just wizards. Thoughts. Ideas. Stories. Do they all sprout from random events? An odd sparking of the synapses – with no true rhyme or reason? Or it there always an ah-hah origin – no matter how small or unexpected – from which our grandest tales and myths grow?
In the Creation of Oz, talented writer Marnie Mitchellweaves an imaginary tale of the origins of “The Wizard of Oz.” While it may not be rooted in historical fact, The Creation of Oz taps into the colorful fantasy of this beloved film… capturing the spirit and magic at its heart – if not the true reality.
The opening description: a farm located in South Dakota – smack dab in tornado alley. As a twister approaches, young Frank Baum (10) is herded into an underground shelter, along with the rest of his family. Aunt Emogene. Uncle Luke. Crotchedy neighbor Mrs. Krause. And three year old Dorothy.
Shivering in the shadow of the twister, the family wait out the storm. It is here in the dim light of an oil lamp that young Frank – a natural storyteller – passes the time. Distracting his family with an impromptu tall tale… of a little girl, and her tumultuous journey to find her way home from a strange and magical land. It’s a story we’ve all heard before. But even the most time-worn tale has it’s beginning somewhere.
Filled with tons of Easter Eggs for Wizard of Oz fans, The Creation of Oz is a charming script with great characters – not to mention a built-in fan base! If your tastes run towards the whimsical, grab this script while you can. Before it’s gone… over the rainbow.
Budget: Eminently producible. One setting (the shelter), and seven characters.
About the writer: An award winning writer AND photographer, Marnie Mitchell-Lister’s website is BrainFluffs.com. Marnie has had 5 shorts produced (so far) and placed Semi-final with her features in Bluecat.
Read The Creation of Oz (6 pages in PDF format)
About the reviewer: Michael O’Farrell is a mathematician who worked on the Space Shuttle Program and now writes fiction.
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This screenplay may not be used or reproduced for any purpose including educational purposes without the expressed written permission of the author.
2 Comments so far
1.
marnieml
December 25th, 2014 at 3:56 pm
Thanks for posting, Janet! And thanks for the great suggestion to add the line, “You’re a wizard of a storyteller”. Might be the best line in it too. Dammit Janet! 😀
Great review, Michael. I really appreciate it. 🙂
With some stock footage of a tornado and a rainbow, this shouldn’t be too difficult to shoot. Hopefully someone picks it up. 🙂
2.
KP Mackie
December 25th, 2014 at 11:03 pm
Such a charming story.
I’m a fan of MML’s writing, so I’m not surprised how visual it is.
Someone needs to make this gem pronto! 🙂