Genre: Sci-Fi, Thriller
Benjamin Monroe, eager to prove his father innocent of a crime he did not commit; goes back to his hometown only to find himself caught in the same dirty deeds his father is accused to. It’s Jumper meets Logan’s Run.
CAST LIST:
Narrator: Elizabeth Rose Morriss
Benjamin: Hugh Ritchie
Graham: Geoff Mays
Get to know the writer:
What is your screenplay about?
The story is set up in a post-apocalyptic drought ridden world; where a man who’s determined to prove his father innocent of a crime he didn’t commit finds himself involved in the very same dirty deeds his father is accused of.
What genres does your screenplay fall under?
It’s a sci fi thriller feature screenplay.
Why should this screenplay be made into a movie?
I believe the story offers a good entertainment. This screenplay is the first installment of a saga and I think that such a franchise would be welcome by the audience. It treats about teleportation, water resources; and on a human perspective, about trust, love, devotion, self-confidence, betrayal and faith.
How would you describe this script in two words?
New world.
What movie have you seen the most times in your life?
Probably Die Hard with a Vengeance.
How long have you been working on this screenplay?
For the record, I first wrote Continentalis as a novel. It took me two years to build this world in my mind, then on the paper. After publishing the novel, I felt I needed to “see” it, I wanted people to really see what I see in my head. So, I decided to write the screenplay out from the book, and it took me around 6 months to do so. Such exercise is very constructive and exciting, trying to fold a 300-page story into a 100-page screenplay; I learned a lot.
How many stories have you written?
Couple of novels and few screenplays in different genres: romantic drama, sci fi, action, thriller, fantastic, horror.
What is your favorite song? (Or, what song have you listened to the most times in your life?)
It really depends on the period, if I’m writing or not, how do I feel, etc. From time to time I find one song I really like and I can listen to it 12 hours non-stop. For example, the song I’ve been listening a lot while writing this story is Medicine by The 1975.
What obstacles did you face to finish this screenplay?
I faced three major obstacles during the writing:
I’m French, and not being a native English speaker appeared to be quite challenging in finding the right words to make the dialogues feel natural and smooth,
This screenplay being an adaptation, it was heart-breaking to cut some scenes I enjoyed writing in the book but were not crucial in the film. The difficulty was to keep certain coherence in adjusting the story to fit a reasonable screen time,
Being a sci fi story, it’s a challenge to describe sci fi elements (e.g. technology) in a screenplay so they can be understood just looking at it, rather than explaining their functioning in a book paragraph.
Apart from writing, what else are you passionate about?
I like video games but I can’t find anymore the time to play between my job and the writing, which became a real passion through these past years.
What influenced you to enter the festival? What were your feelings on the initial feedback you received?
I think I came across this festival by chance. I submitted the logline for this screenplay with no big expectations and found myself very surprised when it was elected logline of the day in April. The feedback I received was positive with constructive recommendations that I’m going to look into to strengthen the craft of the story. I think that’s a huge opportunity offered to authors to get such exposure on the industry and the market. Thanks for giving me that chance!
*****
Director/Producer: Matthew Toffolo http://www.matthewtoffolo.com
Camera Operator: Kierston Drier
Editor: John Johnson
Casting Director: Sean Ballantyne
BEST Scene – KIDICIDE
BEST Scene – THE UNCONQUERABLE
BEST Scene – THE LEGEND OF YAKATUTCH
BEST Scene – THE ROSY HUE OF THE DYING DAY
BEST Scene – NO MORE GOODYBES
BEST Scene – SANDWICH