Over on the Unproduced Scripts page are twenty four original scripts for your reading pleasure.

– Don

An Interview with Matias Caruso

This interview originally appeared on Anthony Cawood’s ScreenWritingOpportunities blog.

I first had the pleasure of interviewing Matias back in 2016, he’d recently won Page and his script Mayhem was about to go into production.

Well I finally got to see Mayhem a few weeks ago (on the Horror streaming service, Shudder) so I thought I’d do a very quick catch up interview with Matias and see how he was getting along…

Oh, and do check out Mayhem it’s a jet-black horror/comedy and I really enjoyed it.

Anyway, over to Matias.

Q: What are you working on now?
A: I’m writing a new spec. It’s a supernatural thriller titled FAIRY.

Q: Anything in the pipeline due for release?
A: Yes, on July 25th a movie I wrote for the local market (Argentina) is opening in theaters. It’s called BRUJA (Spanish word for “witch”). Don’t know if and when it’ll be available in other countries, but I hope so.

Q: What’s the reaction been to Mayhem?
A: Luckily, the majority of reviews have been positive. I usually check rotten tomatoes before watching a movie and it’s fresh there, so I’m proud of that. There’s also been bad reviews, of course, and I read a few of them, trying to pinpoint which criticisms apply to the script in order learn a few lessons and grow as a writer.

Q: Anything you’ve learned as a screenwriter from working on Mayhem/in Hollywood?
A: You usually hear that the script is just a blueprint for the movie, which is a concept easy to understand on the surface. But I think you can only truly understand it once you see the finished film. You have to learn and accept that once other voices come into the mix, the material will change. Some changes will make you jealous (“Damn, why didn’t think of that?”) and others you won’t like them.

Q: A lot of writers are now moving to or also working in TV, have you looked/worked in TV yet or are planning to?
A: Haven’t worked on TV yet. And for now, no, I’m not planning to.

Q: Any thoughts on Hollywood/movie trends for the writers at SimplyScripts?
A: The market seems more IP driven than ever before, which makes original specs harder and harder to get traction. Lately, I’ve been trying to keep my specs’ budget down, more than before, in order to make them more competitive in this increasingly difficult arena.

Once again, thanks to Matias and all the best for future projects.

About the reviewer: Anthony Cawood is an award winning screenwriter from the UK with 4 short films produced and another 10 or so scripts optioned and/or purchased. Links to his films and details of his scripts can be found at www.anthonycawood.co.uk.

This Long Vigil (27 pages in pdf format) by Rhett Bruno

The lone spaceman aboard an interstellar Ark and his only companion, the ship-wide artificial intelligence, count the hours until his impending and unending hibernation.

Does every Sci-Fi story need to have over the top heroes saving the universe, or aliens running amok across a war-torn Earth? We don’t think so.

And neither will you after reading This Long Vigil.

The year is 2334. The Earth? It’s long gone.

And for Orion, life aboard the Hermes – a massive transport vessel containing thousands of fellow humans in suspended animation – is downright drab.

As the ship’s monitor, and the only fully conscious human, Orion is tasked with keeping an eye on the ship’s inhabitants: keeping up with a myriad of maintenance routines.

His only company is the Hermes’ super computer, DAN, who (like 2001’s HAL) is wired throughout the vessel. Dan keeps Orion occupied with conversation – and the occasional witty riddle to keep his mind sharp… even on the boring days.

The Hermes zips through space in search of a new planet to call home – but a storm is brewing inside.

Orion is about to turn fifty. Back on Earth, that would be cause for celebration, but not here. And not now. According to Dan, Orion must choose his replacement soon – and join the rest of the occupants in eternal “sleep.”

Facing that reality, Orion decides existence on life support is not for him.

            ORION
I believe that people should be
born in fluid, not die in it.

And so a plan is set into motion. With the light of a distant sun shining through his portal, Orion overrides Dan and grabs a space suit. With only fifteen minutes of oxygen left, what could faithful Orion be up to?

Perhaps we’ll find the answer to that in a riddle.

Written in a prose-like fashion, Rhett Bruno’s This Long Vigil contains the best elements of sci-fi and drama, complete with a satisfying finish that is bound to make some noise at Festivals…

Unlike the eternal silence of Space.

Budget: Mid-range. Granted, this one will need some FX. Though judicious editing may make that easier than you think!

About the Nebula nominated writer, Rhett Bruno: Rhett Bruno has been writing since before he can remember, scribbling down what he thought were epic stories when he was young to show to his friends and family. He currently works at an architecture firm, but that hasn’t stopped him from recording the tales bouncing around inside of his head. Rhett is the author of The Circuit Series and Titanborn and the novella This Long Vigil upon which his screenplay is based. He can be reached at rcbruno44(a)outlook.com or you can visit his information chocked website at RhettBruno.com, or Twitter @rcbruno44.  

Read This Long Vigil (27 page screenplay in PDF format).

Find more scripts available for production

This screenplay may not be used or reproduced for any purpose including educational purposes without the expressed written permission of the author.

About the Reviewer: Based in upstate, NY, Steven Clark is the writer of over 30 short scripts, several of which are under option, in pre-production, or have already been made into films. On A Clear Night, a family Christmas feature aimed at a Hallmark Channel-type audience, is currently in the works. Steven can be reached at Steamroller138 (a) gmail. Check out his website BadRepScript.weebly.com and his other screenplays.

Over on the Unproduced Scripts page are 24 original scripts for your reading pleasure.

– Don

Badman (5 page in pdf format ) by John Staats (JEStaats)

The J-Gang has robbed the bank again. Now it’s the Bad men vs. Badman.

(click the image to take you to the full version)

Read the rest at HyperEpics.com

About the writer: As a fly-fishing fanatic and skier living in the Arizona desert, John Staats has plenty of time for writing. After focusing on features and shorts for the screen, John has now ventured into writing for the illustrated page with hopes of eventually writing a full-feature graphic novel. His feature Impasse has also been published as an e-book on Amazon. John can be contacted at jestaats(a)hotmail.

About Hyper Epics: Home of the 3 page sagas, Hyper Epics is a bold anthology series that offers diverse and exciting comic book stories on its website – www.hyperepics.com – and in print form. Each original story is packed with stunning artwork, memorable characters, and captivating stories enhanced with dazzling soundtracks. It is quickly becoming a go-to destination for readers worldwide.

Discuss this script on the Discussion Board

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Over on the Unproduced Scripts page are fifteen original scripts for your reading pleasure.

– Don

Thanks Phillip for this!

Second Act – August 18, 2017 revised script by Justin Zackham & Elaine Goldsmith Thomas (Zackham/Segal Revision) – hosted by: Daily Script – in pdf format

A big box store worker reinvents her life and her life-story and shows Madison Avenue what street smarts can do.

Information courtesy of imdb.com

Terms of Engagement (10 pages in pdf format) by David Lambertson

Sometimes a break-up is the first step towards an engagement.

Man walks into a bar…

Typically to drown his sorrows over a woman.

David Lambertson’s, Terms Of Engagement opens with just this scenario.

The place is Sullivan’s Bar. Tending bar is Tina.

The date: Valentine’s Day.

The aforementioned Man seeking to drown his sorrows is James, replete with a box of chocolates, a dozen red roses, a red heart-shaped pillow and a sullen expression.

     Head bowed, muttering to himself, he lumbers to the bar.

When the roses are quickly dunked into a pitcher of beer and James slams back a shot of tequila we know Cupid’s arrow must have overshot its target. When James proceeds to bang his head into the pillow over and over we know there’s been trouble in paradise. What kind of trouble you might ask? Well, it seems Amy, James beloved, wanted something special this Valentine’s Day and James failed to deliver.

Hmm, something special… Yes, sometimes we girls speak in code. How fortuitous then that Tina is on hand, not only to offer a friendly ear and a kind word, but to also unravel that code for James.

Tina sets about telling James where he’s gone wrong –

            TINA
The pillow’s bout five bucks. The
roses are bound by a rubber band.
any florist worth their weight
would’ve bound them in a ribbon.
     (points at roses)
Those scream retail.
     (taps the box)
But those are the dead give-away.

James is about to discover that a heart-shaped pillow ‘made in China’ is not at all classy, that drug-store flowers don’t cut it, and that chocolates are a far more complicated purchase than he ever would have guessed.

            TINA
…You got your Godiva chocolates.
For my money, the best… but they aren’t
going to be on the shelf of your local grocery.
After that, you have your Sees Candies.
Not real expensive, but you have to actually
drive to a Sees store to get them. You know,
Make an effort. And then…
     (picks up the box)
You got your Whitman’s Samplers.

     No good, asks James?

     Only if you’re broke or if you’re twelve, says Tina.

And so proceeds James’ education in the art of love and all things special.

With its clever twist in the final act Terms Of Engagement is a delightfully funny RomCom in the style of How To Lose A Guy In Ten Days, and with the comedic insights of What Women Want.

FILMMAKERS: We trust you’ll know what you want especially when it’s right in front of your eyes. Best save the date pronto with the writer of this one though, lest it be booked out.

About the Writer, David Lambertson: I took up writing rather late in life having already been retired before I put pen to paper (okay – finger to computer key) for the first time. My favorite genres to read and write are dramedies and romantic comedies.

In addition to this short, I have written four features; “The Last Statesman” (a 2015 PAGE finalist and a Nicholl’s and BlueCat quarterfinalist), “The Beginning of The End and The End” (a PAGE Semi-Finalist). Taking Stock (a drama) and a new comedy – “Screw You Tube”. Want to learn more? Reach Dave at dlambertson (at) hotmail! And visit his website.

Read Terms of Engagement (10 pages in pdf format)

This screenplay may not be used or reproduced for any purpose including educational purposes without the expressed written permission of the author.

Find more scripts available for production.

About the reviewer: L. Chambers has been writing all her life – especially in her head, and on scraps of paper. It’s only in the last few years she began to get serious about screen-writing. Prior to this she worked in the Features Department for ABC TV as a Program Assistant, and trained as a FAD. She currently works as a freelance web-content editor and lives with her husband (also a screenwriter) in Sydney, Australia.

The Perfect Pair (10 pages in pdf format) by Mark Moore

An improbable pair meet their match.

As the old saying goes: We can’t choose our family… But we can definitely choose who we fall in love with. Or can we? Perhaps it boils down to simple relationship chemistry, that special connection and instant spark, but attraction is definitely in the eye of the beholder and can mean many different things to different people.

What happens if the object of your affection is not of the warm-blooded variety? In Spike Jonz’ movie, Her, Theodore falls in love with Samantha, a computer operating system. In Lars And The Real Girl, the impossibly shy Lars teams up with a lifelike plastic doll named Bianca. In Blade Runner, Rick Deckard has a dalliance with a beautiful droid named Rachael, and in TED, a bromance develops between John and his foulmouthed childhood teddy bear come to life.

In similar fashion Mark Moore’s The Perfect Pair examines the relationship between Kevin, a big lug of a guy in his twenties and his very unconventional relationship with girlfriend, Nicole. Kevin is what we’d call a late bloomer and in true Millennial form he is yet to leave the nest.

The dilemma facing long-suffering parents, Frank and Peggy, is not simply what do you do when your adult kid won’t cut the apron strings, but what do you do when the object of your son’s affection is a sock-puppet named Nicole? They’ve been open-minded and patient up until now, allowing Nicole to share their home, their dinner table, even allowing Nicole to share Kevin’s bed, but they’re at their tipping point – Frank’s taken to hyperventilating over the whole affair and something drastic has to be done.

Frank and Peggy take the ‘tough love’ route issuing Kevin with an ultimatum: Either he finds ‘an actual woman of the human kind’ or he’s out.

So, what’s a guy like Kev to do? Go to an Internet dating site of course, rustle up a good sort with shared interests (in this case sock-puppets) and hope and pray for compatibility.

But, what of fiery red-head, Nicole? She’s not going to go easy. And she’s definitely not the sharing type.

Talk about a bizarre love triangle.

Filmmakers: Do you like the comedy in your RomCom veering into absurd, screwball, and laugh-out-loud whilst maintaining sweet and sentimental on the romantic side?

Reminiscent of Lars And The Real Girl and Something About Mary and with an hilarious montage that’ll have your audience laughing out loud, The Perfect Pair could be your perfect debut.

About the Writer: Mark Moore is an aspiring screenwriter originally from Ireland, currently residing in Upstate New York. He has had multiple shorts produced, including one award winner and currently have another on option. He typically enjoys writing comedy and can be reached at mmrem24 (a) yahoo.com

Read The Perfect Pair (10 pages in pdf format)

This screenplay may not be used or reproduced for any purpose including educational purposes without the expressed written permission of the author.

Find more scripts available for production.

About the reviewer: L. Chambers has been writing all her life – especially in her head, and on scraps of paper. It’s only in the last few years she began to get serious about screen-writing. Prior to this she worked in the Features Department for ABC TV as a Program Assistant, and trained as a FAD. She currently works as a freelance web-content editor and lives with her husband (also a screenwriter) in Sydney, Australia.