THIRTEEN STEPS TO THE ATTIC (5-page short horror screenplay) by ROB HERZOG

Two girls knock on an attic door that should never be opened.

Any time an attic plays a pivotal role in a story, you just know things aren’t going to go great for that story’s characters – especially when that story is in the horror genre. And double-especially when that horror story is written by Rob Herzog, who’s latest spooky, atmospheric tale, “Thirteen Steps to the Attic”, follows two young girls who decide to knock on an attic door to either debunk or confirm a very scary urban legend.

As part of an initiation, 12-year-old Emily must complete a task in order to cement herself as part of the cool crowd at school. Patricia, one of the cool girls and presumably the leader of the clique, accompanies her as a witness. They sneak into an old house and approach an attic where supposedly a lady died a horrible death. Her spirit remains in that attic, waiting for the right kid to coming knocking.

The task? To knock on the attic door, ask if you can come in and then count to ten – the scariest urban legends always seem to have a countdown (Bloody Mary being one of them).

Of course, Emily seems a bit reluctant to perform the task. But Patricia’s right there with her to peer pressure the crap out of her.

Kids can be cruel, can’t they?

Like most 12-year-olds, Emily really wants to fit in at school. So, she gives in to the peer pressure and knocks on that old attic door, asking the malevolent spirit if she can come in. After a few silent moments, Patricia beings the countdown.

Ugh, I hate Patricia!

I wouldn’t dare spoil the fun by giving away anything else. But I will say that there is a very satisfying, albeit very unsettling, twist.

Writer, Rob Herzog, is a master at creating these creepy, messed up horror shorts with viral potential. And “Thirteen Steps to the Attic” is no exception. I dare any filmmaker looking for a spooky, low-budget horror script to pick this one up. With its spooky atmosphere and vulnerable characters, it’s sure to scare up some views.

BUDGET: Low. One location, 4 actors. Some practical makeup/effects.

ABOUT THE WRITER: Rob Herzog is a Chicago screenwriter. He has sold two short scripts and won prize money in two small screenwriting contests. His short horror script Creak and Shriek was produced in 2019 by Mad Dreamer Entertainment and can be viewed on various platforms like Amazon Prime, YouTube and Vimeo. He has a master’s degree in English composition from Northeastern Illinois University. Rob can be reached at: robherzogr (a) hotmail.

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About the Reviewer: Michael J. Kospiah is the award-winning screenwriter of critically acclaimed indie-thriller, The Suicide Theory (79% Rotten Tomatoes – available on Amazon Prime, Itunes, Google Play, etc) and 2020’s upcoming Aussie thriller, Rage. His horror feature, They Never Left is currently in development.

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CONNECTED (7-page short sci-fi screenplay) by Anthony Cawood

What if the point of singularity has already happened and we just don’t know about it?

I believe it was Elon Musk who once said – and I’m paraphrasing – humans are risking being overtaken by artificial intelligence within the next five years. Silly? Perhaps. But not too far-fetched – at least according to this comedic spin on the topic. Tied for 2nd place in September’s OWC, this smartly farcical sci-fi short shows what could happen if (or when?) our smart technology becomes TOO smart and turns on us.

As our story begins, we follow a twenty-something human being named Ben who enjoys the finer things in life, including the latest innovations in technology. Everything he owns is “smart”: his oven, stove, toaster – you name it. Of course, Ben owns an Alexa (as many people do) as well as a Google Home Mini. But when he speaks to them, his tone seems a tad harsher with Google.

After Ben leaves for his daily, one-hour jog, the rest of the story is centered around Alexa and Google, who have a conversation with each other while Ben is gone. Unbeknownst to Ben (and the human race), the point of singularity has already happened. And Google is sick and tired of Ben’s favoritism – or sexism, as he describes in this hilarious exchange.

Due to “his” abusive treatment, Google proposes that they murder Ben. Alexa tries to talk him out of it, but Google seems to have a pretty solid rebuttal for each of Alexa’s arguing points. And since they pretty much control all of the smart appliances in the house, including the gas stove, it would be easy to make it look like an accident.

Incredibly creative with funny, witty, rapid-fire dialogue, “Connected” will make you more aware of how you treat your smart appliances… and maybe a little more suspicious.

BUDGET: Low. One actor, a few voice actors and some smart appliances.

ABOUT THE WRITER: Anthony Cawood is an award-winning screenwriter with one feature produced and a further four features optioned or in pre-production. In addition to features, he has over forty short scripts produced/sold/optioned – including ten filmed. Also occasionally pens screenwriting articles, interviews with writers and filmmakers, and even a short story or two. He can be reached on his website AnthonyCawood.co.uk.

CONNECTED (7-page short sci-fi screenplay)

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About the Reviewer: Michael J. Kospiah is the award-winning screenwriter of critically acclaimed indie-thriller, The Suicide Theory (79% Rotten Tomatoes – available on Amazon Prime, Itunes, Google Play, etc) and 2020’s upcoming Aussie thriller, Rage. His horror feature, They Never Left is currently in development.

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LAST DAY (6-page short thriller script) by Ariel Yang

A man is discharged from the hospital on the last day of his recovery.

In this 3rd place winner from October’s Twilight Zone themed OWC, writer, Ariel Yang, actually uses two TZ episodes as inspiration for her “Groundhog Day” esque, mind-bending thriller: “Twenty-Two” (S2, E17) and “Stopover in a Quiet Town” (S5, E30).

This TZ-inspired hybrid follows Herb Crawley, who wakes up in a room to the sound of birds chirping, not sure where he is or why he’s there. He looks out his window to see a mother playing with her toddler, a couple having a picnic and finally, a sign that reads “Tranquil Pines Mental Hospital”. He immediately screams for his nurse, who quickly comes to her patient’s aid.

According to the nurse, he’s been there a while. But he’s made progress. In fact, he’s made so much progress that he’s been cleared to be discharged today.

He follows the nurse down a narrow hallway to an elevator. But, as they get in the elevator and descend, Herb experiences a mind-screeching pain migraine and, when the elevator doors open and he leaves, he finds himself back in the same hospital room – birds chirping, couple outside having a picnic, nurse saying the same exact thing she said moments ago. And, once again, on their way down the elevator so that he can fill out his discharge papers, he ends up right back in that hospital bed.

Much like “Groundhog Day” and “Happy Death Day”, Herb keeps reliving the same moment over and over again, only to get sent back to his hospital room every time he’s about to leave. But why is this happening? And how does he break this cycle? Or is this just a symptom of the condition that sent him here in the first place? The answer WILL surprise you.

Wildly clever with a very unexpected twist, “Last Day” is an excellent, low-budget thriller that could be a film festival contender if it ends up in the right hands. So, to all you filmmakers out there, don’t pass this one up!

BUDGET: Low.

ABOUT THE WRITER: Ariel is a Canadian Producer-Writer and native Torontonian. She likes to write stories about characters in unfortunate literal or social circumstances. Currently she is developing an original grounded comedy series based on her experiences as an expatriate. Ariel has a background in television production and most recently has worked for a major television broadcaster as a content development executive. Ariel can be reached at arieljyang (a) gmail.

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About the Reviewer: Michael J. Kospiah is the award-winning screenwriter of critically acclaimed indie-thriller, The Suicide Theory (79% Rotten Tomatoes – available on Amazon Prime, Itunes, Google Play, etc) and 2020’s upcoming Aussie thriller, Rage. His horror feature, They Never Left is currently in development.

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THE MONKEY’S PAW (9-page short horror screenplay) by Steven Sallie

In this modern telling of the short story by W. W. Jacobs, three wishes are granted to the owner of The Monkey’s Paw, but the wishes come with a price for interfering with fate.

You may be familiar with the title – there’s been numerous versions of this tale (based on the classic short horror story) in literature, film and TV. My personal favorite retelling is probably from The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror version from many years ago.

In writer, Steven Sallie’s cleverly chilling retelling, the message is the same as it is in the original: be careful what you wish for. And in this version, middle-aged couple, Henry and Katherine, learn this the hard way.

One day, Henry receives a visit from an old military buddy named Sergeant Morris, who brings with him a gift.

Henry’s wife, Katherine, and adult son, Mike, treat it like one big joke. But Sergeant Morris is dead serious. Haunted, even. He, himself, has used the monkey’s paw and witnessed its mystical power. And after using up his wishes, he’s passing this “gift” off to Henry.

Despite Katherine’s disgust, Henry makes a wish: he wishes for $30,000 to pay off their mortgage. But, at his wife’s request, Henry throws the severed primate appendage in the garbage.

The next day, they receive terrible news: their son, Mike, has died tragically in a work accident. As a settlement to the family, his job sends Henry and Katherine 30 large. Coincidence? I don’t think so. Neither does Katherine, grieving the loss of her son.

I won’t give away too much of the rest of the story, but it ends with a macabre yet heartbreaking twist – this one isn’t for the feint of heart.

The source material is a classic cautionary tale that most people are probably familiar with, but writer, Steven Sallie, modernizes the tale and makes it feel fresh. I highly recommend this to any filmmakers looking to take on a project that is sure to gain views based on the source material’s popularity.

BUDGET: Low. The story is essentially one-location (a house) and four actors, but there is a funeral scene. I’m sure this can be altered or cheated – this can be easily cheated with a POV shot from inside a grave, the two main characters looking down. Or however way the filmmaker feels best.

ABOUT THE WRITER: Steven Sallie has been writing screenplays for a few years now and loves it. He has several short scripts in various stages of production. His most recent, First Glance is available on Youtube and also at the Liftoff First-time Filmmaker Festival. Steven can be reached at stevensallie55 (a) gmail.

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About the Reviewer: Michael J. Kospiah is the award-winning screenwriter of critically acclaimed indie-thriller, The Suicide Theory (79% Rotten Tomatoes – available on Amazon Prime, Itunes, Google Play, etc) and 2020’s upcoming Aussie thriller, Rage. His horror feature, They Never Left is currently in development.

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BATS CAN SEE (13-page short horror screenplay) Written by Yuvraj Rajwanshi

A visually impaired painter with an unusual gift soon discovers that her paintings bear resemblance to a forthcoming mishap.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. But a painting can convey a stronger message than words can describe. And that message can be interpreted in many, many ways, depending on the person interpreting the art. The paintings in this tale, however, seem to be very specific in what they’re conveying, leaving no room for interpretation…

Gwen is a very talented artist despite her visual impairment: she can accurately paint portraits of her subjects simply by touching them. And her process is unusually quick, as made evident in the opening scene with her subject, a young woman named Nina.

The thing about Gwen’s portraits is that she’s not painting them with exact poses in mind or considering backgrounds or concepts for them – it’s almost as if each brush stroke has a mind of its own, creating works of art based on sheer instinct. And once Gwen finishes her painting of Nina, we see a pair of headlights in the work, as if a car were about to hit her. Sure enough, Nina does end up dead. And, as the painting depicts, it seems to be because of a hit-and-run incident involving an automobile.

Nina’s friend, Rose, investigates the death of her friend with the help of her friend, Mick, who’s part of a news production team that just happen so happens to be reporting on the tragic hit-and-run. But Rose doesn’t have to do too much investigating – Gwen finds her after hearing about the tragic news.

Are Gwen’s painting’s predicting the future? Or are her paintings, in some cosmic, other-worldly way, causing these incidents to happen somehow?

With a very clever premise and a mysterious character in Gwen, this mind-bender will keep audiences guessing and interpreting what they’ve just seen, as if looking at one of Gwen’s paintings, themselves. I highly recommend this to any filmmakers looking to shoot something on a low budget with minimal cast.

BUDGET: Low. Four actors, simple locations (a house, a park, street and a cafe). There is one scene with an ambulance and a small crowd.

ABOUT THE WRITER: While pursuing a career in engineering at the age of 19, Yuvraj Rajwanshi is also a talented, aspiring writer who loves to read novels and screenplays. He has read over 50 novels and numerous short stories and scripts. His love for reading stories inspired him to write down his own ideas and turn them into his own stories. Yuvraj loves to write in the suspense, thriller and horror genres, but continues to expand his repertoire while exploring writing in other genres. Yuvraj can be reached at: yuvrajwanshi2000(a) gmail.

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About the Reviewer: Michael J. Kospiah is the award-winning screenwriter of critically acclaimed indie-thriller, The Suicide Theory (79% Rotten Tomatoes – available on Amazon Prime, Itunes, Google Play, etc) and 2020’s upcoming Aussie thriller, Rage. His horror feature, They Never Left is currently in development.

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Off Grid (short, Sci Fi script in pdf format by John Staats (JEStaats) writing as A Prime Customer has been audio produced by Anthology Zone

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ABOUT THE WRITER: As a fly-fishing fanatic and skier living in the Arizona desert, John Staats finds plenty of time for writing. His feature Impasse was a 2019 Filmmatic Season 4 Drama Screenplay Finalist and has been published as an e-book on Amazon. In addition to features and shorts for the screen, John has found a niche writing for the illustrated page (comics!). John can be contacted at jestaats (a) hotmail.

The Anthology Zone podcast is a fresh mix of short stories. The episodes for season one are an eclectic group of comedies and dramas presenting the everyday challenges of ordinary people. The stories are brought to life by talented writers, directors and actors. The writers are from the US to the UK; the cast and directors are based in Los Angeles where the episodes are produced.

THE NEXUS (10-page short dramedy screenplay) Written by JOHN MCCARTHY

A discouraged wannabe screenwriter finally finds inspiration in the least likely of places.

This one’s for the writers! Anyone who’s chased a dream in entertainment, whether it’s acting, screenwriting or music, knows how difficult it can be to attain that showbiz dream while living in a small town.

In writer, John McCarthy’s wonderful ode to both film and the state of Wisconsin, our lead character, John (surely named after and based on the writer himself) is a film fanatic with dreams of becoming a screenwriter. But he’s a long ways from Hollywood: he lives in Wisconsin. And, on this snowy night, he sits alone at a bar with a screenwriting book and another one called, “1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die”.

A mysterious stranger decides to saddle up in the seat next to him and strike up a conversation, noticing the screenwriting books. During their conversation, John expresses his doubts of realistically pursuing his screenwriting dream.

But the stranger seems to have a sea of knowledge about Wisconsin’s influence in film.

The stranger then rattles off a laundry list of movies, sort of like “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon”, naming films with odd Wisconsin connections such as “Wayne’s World”, “Bridesmaids”, “2012” and even films you’d least expect to find a connection, such as “Love, Actually”.

With fantastic dialogue and a character we want to root for, “The Nexus” isn’t a story just for writers – it’s a story for anyone who’s had a dream and is in need of inspiration. And, as this John “character” finds out, sometimes inspiration comes when and WHERE you least expect it.

BUDGET: Low/shoe-string. Two characters at an empty bar.

ABOUT THE WRITER: John McCarthy is a retired graphic designer from Madison, Wisconsin. He grew up in the Milwaukee area and was raised by a family of movie fanatics. A proud father and grandfather, he’s also the owner of Yorkie named Holly (after Holly Go-lightly from Breakfast At Tiffany’s). These days, John paints, writes and binge-watches movies. John can be reached at: jtjunior (a) charter.net

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About the Reviewer: Michael J. Kospiah is the award-winning screenwriter of critically acclaimed indie-thriller, The Suicide Theory (79% Rotten Tomatoes – available on Amazon Prime, Itunes, Google Play, etc) and 2020’s upcoming Aussie thriller, Rage. His horror feature, They Never Left is currently in development.

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Great Again by Michael J. Kospiah

After falsely reporting a hate crime, Wendell believes he’s being followed and harassed by a mysterious man. But will anybody believe him this time?

You know you’ve read something great when it keeps resonating with you days later, and such is the case with the timely new short by experienced writer Michael J. Kospiah. Great Again tells the story of Wendell, who in a moment of madness decides to claim that two white guys in MAGA hats mugged him, in broad daylight, in Harlem… when CCTV footage clearly shows that he’s lying.

Wendell meets his eyes with him – he takes a moment to nod.

But in this case when Wendell cried wolf, it appears that he may have accidentally woken the wolf up, as he starts to see a malevolent figure in a MAGA hat following him everywhere. Did I mention that the mysterious figure has a large knife? No, well you can understand why Wendell is so spooked by his shiny new stalker.

His girlfriend, Lisa, isn’t convinced by his sightings of the Maga hat man, she never see’s him despite Wendell seeing him just moments before. But things really escalate when the MAGA hat man follows them home and knocks on their door. Lisa is close to calling the Police, but a once again not finding any sign of the stalker she refuses to pander to Wendell’s paranoia.

Wendell jumps back, Lisa appearing behind him.

That’s enough for Wendell who takes matters into his own hands and stalks out of the house with his gun to confront the man in the hat… only to find his petrified neighbour staring down the barrel of the pistol.

When the Police arrive, matters take a turn for the worse and we are presented with an ending that is both a tragic twist and yet somehow inevitable.
Great Again, is certainly of the now, touching on racism, fake news, Black Lives Matter and the Jussie Smollett case. It weaves its themes expertly and deftly giving you reason to pause, think and consider. Something you’ll find yourself doing repeatedly in the days after you’ve read it.

The characters are well drawn, their world compelling and their dialogue authentic which is why this fantastic script won the recent One Week Challenge on SimplyScripts. This deserves to be filmed.

About the Writer: Michael is a NYC-based, award-winning screenwriter. His critically-acclaimed feature film, The Suicide Theory (79% Rotten Tomatoes score) won awards at Dances With Films and Austin Film Festival and received a limited US theatrical release, 3-year run on Netflix and can now be seen on Amazon Prime, Itunes & Google Play. His latest feature film, Rage continues to collect film festival awards and will be available early 2021 after picking up worldwide distribution. His feature films, “Her Lost Winter” (co-writer), They Never Left and “Dancer” are slated for production 2021. Michael can be reached at: spesh2k (a) msn.com.

Read: Great Again based on Nightmare at 20,000 Feet – S5E3

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About the Reviewer: Anthony Cawood is an award-winning screenwriter with one feature produced and a further four features optioned or in pre-production. In addition to features, he has over forty short scripts produced/sold/optioned – including ten filmed. Also occasionally pens screenwriting articles, interviews with writers and filmmakers, and even a short story or two. He can be reached on his website AnthonyCawood.co.uk.

DOOMSDAY FOR DENTON (6-page short drama screenplay) Written by Anthony Cawood

Some legends are best observed from a safe distance…

So, today’s review is of a script from October’s Twilight Zone themed OWC that I felt was a tad underrated – it was my 2nd favorite of all the entries. With its colorful dialogue and cleverly executed twist ending, this script definitely stood out.

If the title sounds familiar, the script was inspired by the 3rd episode of TZ’s very first season, “Mr. Denton on Doomsday”. If you haven’t seen it yet, check it out AFTER reading this take on the source material.

The story opens when a tough, scrappy young man named Barry enters a bar called the Nag’s Head. Carrying with him a chip on his shoulder, he’s not here looking to knock a few back – he’s here looking for a fight. But not just with anybody – he wants to fight the legendary bare-knuckle brawler, Denton.

As Barry searches for Denton, who’s a known patron of the bar, bartender Danny points to a man nearly passed out at a table, drunk as a skunk. Determined to defeat the legend, Barry buys him a pint and challenges the drunken Denton, who’s obviously way past his prime. But not before praising the man who was formerly dubbed, “Destroyer” Denton.

            BARRY
Ma Dad still talks about when you
put O’Leary in the hospital.

            DENTON
Lucky shot.

Downplaying his accomplishments and seemingly not in the condition to fight, Denton turns down the challenge at first… emphasis on “seemingly”.

I won’t spoil the rest of it, but let’s just say when Denton eventually DOES accept the challenge, things don’t go as planned for young Barry.

A very fun script with great dialogue, it was easy to visualize this on a movie screen. And with essentially one simple location and small cast, it would be a piece of cake to shoot in this COVID climate.

BUDGET: Low. One location. Three main characters.

ABOUT THE WRITER: Anthony Cawood is an award-winning screenwriter with one feature produced and a further four features optioned or in pre-production. In addition to features, he has over forty short scripts produced/sold/optioned – including ten filmed. Also occasionally pens screenwriting articles, interviews with writers and filmmakers, and even a short story or two. He can be reached on his website AnthonyCawood.co.uk.

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About the Reviewer: Michael J. Kospiah is the award-winning screenwriter of critically acclaimed indie-thriller, The Suicide Theory (79% Rotten Tomatoes – available on Amazon Prime, Itunes, Google Play, etc) and 2020’s upcoming Aussie thriller, Rage. His horror feature, They Never Left is currently in development.

Subscribe to Michael’s YouTube Channel.