Summary: Andrew learns that his partner has a new boyfriend and all his friends knew about, to make matters worse, as soon as he moves on to someone new, they all plan to help his ex get back together with him.
Performed by Val Cole
Get to know the writer:
1. What is your novel about?
Andrew Maras claims he isn’t stalking his impossibly handsome ex-boyfriend. He’s just curious when he sees Jake Riley on M Street in the heart of Georgetown on a Thursday evening. A little too curious. Andrew spends too much time watching Jake and not enough time watching the road. When the driver in front of him stops short, Andrew slams into her. The fender bender leads him to Wharton’s Auto Body, where he meets Marco Paresi—a romance blossoms between the Vice President of Marketing and the Bethesda auto body shop clerk. Andrew’s friends won’t let him date a mechanic. After all, his ex, Jake, is a catch, the CEO of a Fortune 500. It doesn’t matter that Jake is also a world-class jerk. Plans are hatched. Arrangements are made.
2. What genres would you say this story is in?
The story is a RomCom.
3. How would you describe this story in two words? Happy ending
4. What movie have you seen the most in your life? What’s Up, Doc with Ryan O’Neal and Barbra Streisand.
5. What is your favorite song? (Or, what song have you listened to the most times in your life?)
I don’t know music. I like what I’m listening to when I’m listening to it.
6. Do you have an all-time favorite novel?
I have read “Emma” and “Pride and Prejudice” a few times. I have also seen multiple movie and TV versions of each.
7. What motivated you to write this story?
“Why I Hate My Friends” is a partially true story, but a heightened version. I took a variety of incidents from my life and compiled them into one story.
8. If you could have dinner with one person (dead or alive), who would that be? I’d love to have dinner with a publisher or producer who could turn this manuscript into a real book or movie.
9. Apart from writing, what else are you passionate about?
I love to swim, hike, and travel. I got back from Italy recently, and my favorite thing was just walking around everywhere to get the “lay of the land.”
10. What influenced you to enter your story to get performed?
I was looking for a place for people to see my stuff. I love writing, but it doesn’t do much good to have a project sit in a drawer.
11. Any advice or tips you’d like to pass on to other writers?
Read other writers. Go to staged readings. See art. Immerse yourself in art and, of course, write as much as you can.
The story is of my personal journey after God first began pursuing me.
Performed by Val Cole
Get to know the writer:
1. What is your short story about? God’s calling for salvation and my failure to do as I promised, followed by my running from a commitment I made to him, only to be permitted to fall into a pit of despair where I called out for him to save me.
2. What genres would you say this story is in?
Spirituality
3. How would you describe this story in two words? Saving Grace
4. What movie have you seen the most in your life? Pride and prejudice
5. What is your favorite song? (Or, what song have you listened to the most times in your life?) So Will I – Hillsong United
6. Do you have an all-time favorite novel? Villette or Jane Eyre equally
7. What motivated you to write this story? I believe that is is encouraging to know that God does pursue us even we run away from him
8. If you could have dinner with one person (dead or alive), who would that be?
John Adams or Mother Teresa
9. Apart from writing, what else are you passionate about? Drawing and Reading
10. What influenced you to enter your story to get performed? I think that some people prefer not to read or are not able to for many reasons and I wanted to share this with everyone.
11. Any advice or tips you’d like to pass on to other writers? Don’t give up. Keep writing no matter what it is.
Although Annika is blind, she doesn’t need eyes to “see,” and she finds joy in the small things. This Easter is no different as she plays with her cousins, helps her family bake, and comforts her little sister.
Performed by Val Cole
Get to know the writer:
1. What is your short story about? “Annika’s Easter” tells the tale of a little girl who enjoys celebrating Easter with her family, and who is able to join in the fun despite having a disability, as she is blind.
2. What genres would you say this story is in? Most likely Children’s Fiction
3. How would you describe this story in two words? Heart-warming and Simple
4. What movie have you seen the most in your life?
Probably the 1994 version of “Little Women!”
5. What is your favorite song? (Or, what song have you listened to the most times in your life?) This is so hard for me to answer. I don’t have one favorite, but I do love Electronic Dance Music. I also really love “The Weeknd.” One song that has recently been on my playlist is “Cry For Me” by the Weeknd.
6. Do you have an all-time favorite novel?
For a modern novel, I really love “The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo” by Taylor Jenkins Reid!
7. What motivated you to write this story?
I wanted to depict a character with a disability who does normal, fun things and embraces her dis(ability). People who have a disability can lead lives just as happy as anyone else!
8. If you could have dinner with one person (dead or alive), who would that be?
Ooh. Probably Sylvia Plath! Her writing has always spoken to me.
9. Apart from writing, what else are you passionate about?
I love animals, spending time with my dogs, reading, and traveling when possible.
10. What influenced you to enter your story to get performed? I wanted to put out the story of a young character who was different, but utilized this uniqueness in a special way, demonstrating that all people can have full, productive lives, even with a disability!
11. Any advice or tips you’d like to pass on to other writers? Write from the heart. Always from the heart, even when it’s scary. It will get you the best results.
Type of story- Speculative, religious fiction. ~3,100 words
Synopsis- A man working in public broadcasting is roped into a date with a beautiful and powerful man. Both outcasts in their own right, quickly fall in love and share what they hide from the world.
Performed by Val Cole
Get to know the writer:
1. What is your short story about?
– An office worker named Clay getting thrown into a date with a high-profile man, Sam Luz. The man named after an angel that has the power to make businesses crumble. They fall in love, of course, and share who they really are with each other.
2. What genres would you say this story is in?
– Speculative, religious and LGBTQ+ fiction.
3. How would you describe this story in two words?
– Honesty and Beauty
4. What movie have you seen the most in your life?
– White Chicks
5. What is your favorite song? (Or, what song have you listened to the most times in your life?)
– I Will Be Here (Benny Benassi Remix) by Tiësto & Sneaky Sound System
6. Do you have an all-time favorite novel?
– Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi. Beautifully written and I’m a sucker for anything that will make me cry.
7. What motivated you to write this story?
– I like to believe that Lucifer or the Devil- whatever people call him- isn’t the purest evil out there. He would be rather merciful yet straightforward about his behavior. I wanted to explore him falling in love with Adam, some regular guy that gets nervous about a date and also has his own secrets to hide. Even the Devil himself can be loved.
8. If you could have dinner with one person (dead or alive), who would that be?
– My Aunt Lisa. My favorite person in the world. I’d like to see her one last time to tell her how much I love her.
9. Apart from writing, what else are you passionate about?
– Singing! My voice is precious to me and I am very lucky to have it. Education. I love learning and higher education needs to be more accessible.
10. What influenced you to enter your story to get performed?
– The risk of putting my work out in the world. Maybe someone will listen to the performance and write something of their own or see a bit of themselves in Sam or Clay. I would only know if I went for it.
11. Any advice or tips you’d like to pass on to other writers?
– I am only just beginning so maybe more than a grain of salt is needed, but there are two things- You can’t fall in love with all of your words, but you can with some of them. And in the word’s of the great Mariah Carey, “Never, never listen to anybody when they try to discourage you. Cuz they do that.”
James Stuart Donovan Hastings, Earl of Billingswood, has had one headache after another. First his home is in disrepair, his nephew is too young for his own good, his best friend thinks he’s gone round the bend and now someone just tried to kill him. If it wasn’t for the angel with strawberry blonde hair and amethyst eyes, he might well be dead. Blasted horse, thinks he knows more than the master!
1. What is your screenplay about?
James Stuart Donovan Hastings, Earl of Billingswood, has a potentially deadly encounter on his way to Sandringham. He is rescued by a beautiful angel. His horse decides it is his right to make choices for the master. Can there be a happy ending?
2. Why should this screenplay be made into a movie?
With the success of other Historical Fiction/Romances such as Bridgerton allowing for viewers the chance to escape their day to day experiences, allowing them to immerse themselves in an era that has been romanticized.
3. How would you describe this script in two words?
Captivating drama
4. What movie have you seen the most times in your life?
Princess Bride
5. How long have you been working on this screenplay?
Couple of months
6. How many stories have you written?
Seven novellas
7. What motivated you to write this screenplay?
I really want to see it as a story in pictures.
8. What obstacles did you face to finish this screenplay?
Finding someone to help turn into a reality.
9. Apart from writing, what else are you passionate about?
Family, animals, reading and social justice
10. What influenced you to enter the festival? What were your feelings on the initial feedback you received?
Great feedback! More please. I want to advance to the next stage.
11. What movie have you watched the most times in your life?
Great feedback! More please. I want to advance to the next stage.
STAYCATION, 93min,. USA Directed by Russell Emanuel How is the world affected by a catastrophic event? Everyday people live through a government mandated quarantine during a global pandemic while desperate scientists race to find a cure before it’s too late.
INSECT_O_CIDE, 76min., UK Directed by Georgina Willis We are fast approaching an Insect Armageddon. Insect_O_Cide is narrated by the Times Bestseller author Professor Dave Goulson, and explores the reasons for the dramatic insect declines occurring worldwide. Dame Joanna Lumley after seeing the film said “watch this heartbreaking and important film. It is enraging and inspiring at the same time: we can make good the harm we have done, but only if we start now, right this very second.”
How to Write a Screenplay? PART 3 – PLOT Screenwriting
For most writers, PLOT is the most interesting part of screenplay writing, and why they begin to write to write the script in the first place. They have a good idea for a story, and they want to write it.
PLOT Screenwriting is a mixture of two things: 1) What happens to the characters 2) What they do because of WHO they are
Most PLOTS wouldn’t happen if it wasn’t for the CHARACTERS. A CHARACTER(s) should drive the story, and vice versa.
You always know you’re watching a BAD FILM when any human being can insert themselves into the film. The UNIQUE character has to drive the PLOT.
The last thing you want is for you, the writer, to be a character in the plot.
“The stuff that I got in trouble for, the casting for The Godfather or the beginning scene I wrote in Patton, was the stuff that was remembered.” -Francis Ford Coppola Writer/Director (Godfather Trilogy, Apocalypse Now)
LET’S TALK ABOUT THE BASICS
Every story has a BEGINNING, MIDDLE and END, and every story has to come from a certain point of view. It can come from the point of view of a character (or characters from scene to scene) OR it can come from the audience’s point of view. WE the audience are looking into the story and seeing what is happening.
Think about reading a NOVEL. Either it’s written in the first person, where the character is telling the story, OR it’s in third person, where the actions are telling the story. The same goes for a script.
KNOW WHAT’S AT STAKE IN THE MOVIE – WHAT IS THE CONFLICT?
1) SURVIVAL – Many good films are about survival – human instinct – do-or-die situations. If you’re into Hollywood scripts and stories, think about the top-grossing films of all time. 99 out 100 are stories with characters in DO-or-DIE situations.
2) SAFETY AND SECURITY – Need to find a secure/protected setting once again. 3) LOVE AND BELONGING – Someone longing for connection – wanting to feel LOVED. 4) ESTEEM AND SELF-RESPECT – Wanting to be looked up to, and be recognized for their skills. 5) THE NEED TO KNOW AND UNDERSTAND – Curiousity, and understanding how things happen and what they have to go through to get answers. 6) THE AESTHETIC – Trying to be connected with something greater than themselves – a higher power. 7) SELF-ACTUALIZATION – The characters need to express themselves – to communicate who they are. The audience roots for someone to succeed. A lot of comedies have this plot. RAISING THE STAKES WHILE THE CHARACTER GOES AFTER THE GOAL: PRESSURE AND ROADBLOCKS
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SCENE DESIGN
SCENES are unified around DESIRE, ACTION, CONFLICT and CHANGE
Each scene has to be a minor, moderate, or major turning point
The effects of TURNING POINTS are fourfold: SURPRISE INCREASED CURIOUSITY INSIGHT NEW DIRECTION
You need to lead the audience into EXPECTATION, make them think they understand, then CRACK and open a SURPRISE
SURPRISE and CURIOUSITY always bring the audience into the story
Give the audience the pleasure of discovering life, pains and joys at a level – and in directions – they have never imagined
SETUPS/PAYOFFS-Setup is layering-in knowledge-Payoff is closing the gap and delivering the knowledge to the audience
THREE POINTS YOU NEED FOR THE AUDIENCE TO FOLLOW YOUR STORY 1) Empathy with the characters. We don’t need to like them, but understand them and feel for them. 2) We must know what the character wants and let the character have it. 3) We must understand the values at stake in the character’s life.
The more often the audience experiences something, the less effect it has.
EMOTION peaks and valleys rapidly in a great story. It’s the catalyst for the PACE of the story.
THE LAW OF CONFLICT – Nothing moves forward in a story except through conflict.
As long as conflict engages our thoughts and emotions, we travel through the hours unaware of the VOYAGE that is leading us.
Make sure to check out WILDsound’s Screenplay Festival where you can submit your script and get it read in front of hundreds of industry people.
“Usually when you have a block, it’s because you’ve lost the motor of the story.” – Amy Holden Jones, Screenwriter (Indecent Proposal, Mystic Pizza)
“The singular image is what haunts us and becomes art.” -Julia Cameron, Author (The Artist Way)
REMEMBER, THE SCENE IS NEVER WHAT THE SCENE IS ABOUT 1) Define Conflict -Who drives the scene, motivates it and makes it happen? -Look at the character; what does she/he want? Then ask: -What blocks that which they want? -What do the forces of the Antagonist want? 2) Break the scenes into BEATS -A beat is an exchange of action/reaction in character behavior
3) Survey BEATS and locate the Turning Point -Find the ARC in each character’s transaction 4) Note what begins the scene and what ends the scene -The great industry cliche is to LEAVE THE SCENE EARLY and ENTER THE SCENE LATE
RHYTHM AND TEMPO – Set by the length of scenes. How long are we in the same time and place? Two or three minutes average for a scene (but come on – it’s not always that easy).
UNITY AND VARIETY – Because something happens in the beginning, something has to happen in the end.
PACING – Rhythm, serenity, harmony, peace, revelation. But we desire change – challenge, tension, danger, FEAR – never repetition.
JUST LET THE STORY BEGIN IMMEDIATELY, THEN LET THE CHARACTERS BRING NEW PEOPLE ON BOARD.
TRUST YOUR CHARACTERS TO TELL YOU HOW THE PLOT CAN EVOLVE IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION. THERE’S ALWAYS SOMEONE IN YOUR STORY WHO CAN BE INTRODUCED TO SEND THE ACTION TOWARD THE CLIMAX.
One of the greatest aids when writing a screenplay is to BELIEVE in the story – believe you are discovering it, instead of creating it. If you believe it already exists somewhere in your head in its entirety, there is no problem you can’t solve with a little detective work.
Grounded: Creating Space for Black Peace, 38min., USA
Directed by Brittney Brackett
Grounded: Creating Space for Black Peace is a tragically poignant documentary short exploring how Black and Brown communities navigate mental health challenges, trauma, and the journey toward healing, that fosters peace and wellness.
Two brothers find themselves entangled in a violent confrontation at a beach house in Malibu. One of the brothers loses his life, while the other, awaiting the arrival of the police, reflects on the events that led to this tragedy.
Festival Reviews 