This is your chance to discuss the week’s amateur scripts, offered originally in the Scriptshadow newsletter. The primary goal for this discussion is to find out which script(s) is the best candidate for a future Amateur Friday review. The secondary goal is to keep things positive in the comments with constructive criticism.
Below are the scripts up for review, along with the download links. Want to receive the scripts early? Head over to the Contact page, e-mail us, and “Opt In” to the newsletter.
Happy reading!
TITLE: Toxygen
GENRE: Post-apocalyptic Sci-Fi Thriller
LOGLINE: An Irish lawman reluctantly joins forces with a religious leader to wrest the freedom of the masses from the militaristic police force that grips the nation… in a near future where oxygen is highly flammable, and humanity is confined to gas masks.
WHY YOU SHOULD READ: “The script I’ve sent you is one that reflects my journey thus far as a learning screenwriter. It was written over pretty much my whole film school career, and morphed according to new knowledge I attained about the craft. It was basically my thesis film. I’ve sent it out to a couple professional readers, as well as other colleagues. The readers liked it, but said it needed work and gave me extremely helpful notes that I’ve since implemented. Out of all who have read it, the compliments seem to remain totally consistent while the complaints tend to vary. I feel like this is a good thing because it means there aren’t any problems that stick out like a sore thumb.”
TITLE: Districts Divide
GENRE: Sci/fi action
LOGLINE: Hunted for his DNA, a black market dealer discovers he may be the key to the evolution of mankind.
WHY YOU SHOULD READ: “I can’t say I’ve placed or entered any competitions, but I’ve got passion for this. Given an honest chance, this won’t disappoint.”
TITLE: Sasquatch Armageddon
GENRE: Horror/Comedy
LOGLINE: The year is 1954. A teenager and his loyal friends go looking for his lost father on a spooky mountain, where they are stalked and methodically murdered by an enraged, sexually deviant Bigfoot.
WHY YOU SHOULD READ: “I recently graduated from SUNY Purchase with a BFA in Screenwriting. Sasquatch Armageddon was my senior project, and since I graduated I’m assuming someone thought it was a good script. I wanted to write something that both parodies and pays homage to the hokey old sci-fi movies of the 50’s and 60’s (e.g. The Giant Gila Monster, Horror at Party Beach, The Blob, etc.). Sasquatch Armageddon takes a group of clean cut 50’s teens and places them into a hyper-violent game of cat-and-mouse. It’s fun, horrifying, and it just might make you think (there’s a running theme throughout about the dangers of jingoism and nationalist fervor, if you care). Thanks!”
TITLE: Sunny Side of Hell_2013.pdf)
GENRE: Drama/Action
LOGLINE: When a woman is kidnapped in Texas during the Dust Bowl, her husband embarks on a harrowing odyssey where he’s forced to confront danger in the forms of Mother Nature and man and also the mysterious past he buried years ago.
WHY YOU SHOULD READ: “Who am I? I’m 28 years old, live in Boston and have a day job in PR. For the last several years I’ve been moonlighting , weekending and every-free-fucking-second-I-have-ing as a writer. I’m hell bent on breaking in, by any means necessary. Anyway, back to the script. Sunny Side of Hell is set during a time where most us who frequent SS wouldn’t have lasted a week — the Dust Bowl. My grandparents actually lived through it and their stories set the backdrop for SHOH. The script, although a first draft, has a page-turning plot, interesting characters, compelling themes and a couple twists and turns to keep everyone locked in.
With all the work I’ve put in over the years (queue the violin), a review from you and your motley crew of followers would be pay dirt in and of itself. Maybe this is my Neo, maybe it isn’t. Regardless, I’d like to throw it to the wolves and see if it’s got a little Liam in it. See what I did there? I’m awesome…”
TITLE: Relevance
GENRE: Horror
LOGLINE: Past events bring lifelong friends to a sinister place they must confront as a vengeful, sociopath killer wreaks havoc on their lives.
WHY YOU SHOULD READ: “I started writing horror feature scripts when I was 13 years old. As a high school student, my ideas at first were dull and had really no story or concept. Throughout the years however I have been writing much stronger, my scripts started to have stories that were interesting and characters that were worth caring for. This is my fourth polished, professional screenplay. After numerous rewrites and positive feedback from several industry professional writers I finally think this is worthy to send out to you.”
