SCREENPLAYS
THE MURDER OF ROGER ACKROYD
Based on the novel by Agatha Christie
Full-length Screenplay
Genre: Mystery Thriller
Rating: PG
Hercule Poirot comes out of retirement to solve the case that made Agatha Christie a household name.
Note: Agatha Christie's 1926 novel is now in the public domain (in the USA), and I'd like to see a decent film rendition of it. In adapting the book into a screenplay, I cut a few characters, condensed the story such that it takes place over the course of just one night, and had Poirot work through some lingering PTSD from the events of the story's predecessor, The Big Four.
NIGHT OF THE BLACK CAT
Full-length Screenplay
Genre: Supernatural Thriller
Rating: PG
On Halloween, a frightened teen girl tries to stop supernatural beings from abducting the children in her foster family.
Note: The idea for this story came out of a desire to see more Halloween movies that aren't slashers or kids' cartoons, and thus appeal to a broader range of audiences. This one, though scary, would still be appropriate for most older children.
ROAD TO REUNION
Full-length Screenplay
Genre: Dramedy
Rating: PG
A young outcast competing for the family fortune drives across America looking for seven blood relatives, while his sister tries to stop him.
Note: A shopping agreement for this script was signed with Captive Entertainment in 2016, and expired a year later. The script received an Honorable Mention in the Drama category of the 2012 Screenplay Festival Contest.
JACKOBURN MANOR
Full-length Screenplay
Genre: Supernatural Thriller
Rating: PG or PG-13
When eight strangers are trapped in a remote mansion, a young woman investigator tries to deduce which one of them is a killer...and discovers they are all from different years.
Note: This script was optioned in 2014 by Magic Elevator. The option expired later that year.
Poster design by Raishel Wasserman.
KAYDA
Full-length Screenplay
Genre: Action Thriller
Rating: PG-13
Several people, both inside the law and out, try to track down a teenage girl with apparently superhuman powers.
MONSTER MYTH / THE EVIL WITHIN
(working titles)
Full-length Screenplay
Genre: Thriller/Fantasy
Rating: PG-13
An ancient concoction gets loose that can transform anyone who drinks it into a monster.
"ALARM CLOCK"
Short Screenplay
Genre: Horror/Thriller
Rating: PG-13
A knife-wielding killer stalks a group of people who realize they're in someone's dream.
Note: This script placed as a semi-finalist in the 2011 Table Read My Screenplay contest, and among the top fifty in the 2015 Shoot Your Short competition. It was based on the stage play of the same name (see Plays).
"NIGHT OWL"
Short Screenplay
Genre: Supernatural Thriller
Rating: PG
When almost everyone in a small town suddenly drops off to sleep, the few who remain awake try to find out who is murdering the sleepers.
Note: This script was filmed in 2010 (see Short Film).
SPEC SCRIPTS FOR TV SHOWS
WITHOUT A TRACE: "STAR-CROSSED"
When two teens go missing, it's not only a question of where they are, but who kidnapped whom.
DOCTOR WHO: "THE EMPTY WORLD"
With four exceptions, every human being on Earth suddenly vanishes.
DOCTOR WHO: "STORYTIME"
The Doctor must evacuate a planet that's about to be demolished, and he only has a twelve-second recurring time loop in which to do so.
SPEC FEATURE SCREENPLAYS
These five screenplay adaptations were written for a graduate school class, all based on Lloyd Alexander's fantasy novels,
The Chronicles of Prydain.
THE BOOK OF THREE
THE BLACK CAULDRON
THE CASTLE OF LLYR
TARAN WANDERER
THE HIGH KING
Note: These projects provided ample opportunity to practice plot structure–building techniques learned in graduate school as well as adapting older stories for a modern audience. For example, while the books featured what would have been radical feminism for the time in which they were written (such as a female character wielding a sword), such elements would be considered rather tame by today's standards. Therefore new forms of feminism appeared in the screenplay adaptations, addressissues such as choice, consent, and agency.
