60 minute drama pilot.

A free-spirited woman facing middle-age in middle-America and the eclectic people in her orbit have their lives torn apart by gentrification and a soul crushing redefining of the 21st Century American Dream.

SYNOPSIS:

Overview

Friends made us laugh and cry as those millennials navigated adult life.

Just Like That… follows three women as they enter a new stage in life.

The New Bohemians takes both to create a one-hour, serialized drama centered around TABITHA VINCENT and four, diverse inhabitants of a Soho like area in the Midwest. At stake is a future they define or succumb to, while coming into conflict with friends, neighbors and their own shattered worldview. Fear of, or adapting to change drives each to latch onto a cause they feel will fill a void in their lives, with unintended consequences. It examines the themes of life choices and what does the future now hold for those like them.

Allusions to Alice in Wonderland: Like characters from this story, each find themselves down the rabbit hole of the 21st Century, separated by the proverbial 6 degrees. Like Alice, each suffers a loss of innocence or expectations; a death of the worldview they once believed in, or groped for. Each drink from the bottle of reality, where size (reality) changes: their inner selves expand or shrink, often in conflict with their reflection in the mirror.

Comps Nomadland. This is Us. Gentefied.

Tone/Why Now

Millennials do not have the same opportunities as before. The current economy, cost of college, the Great Recession and COVID have altered America. Facing a lower standard of living, they question what the American Dream now means. The Middle Aged now see their life’s work ripped away and face the same challenges. Gentrification affects areas brought back from decades of decay, only to fall prey to success. We see the casualties of Enron, the mortgage collapse and the pandemic long after the perpetrators (real or perceived) have faded away. Change is inevitable. How each deal with it is not.

Main Characters

Tabitha Vincent (45)- The story’s omnipotent narrator. Big sister type. Unconventional. Grasping for meaning, saving a local landmark from demolition gives renewed purpose.

Simone Babcock (29)- Single mom. Vivacious but no attention seeker. Focused on her son and troubled art gallery. Friends with Tabitha, but may lose it for her family's future.

Edward Sieger (40)- Intelligent. Measured and reserved, but socially awkward. Business consultant. Seeks a greater connection with younger Samantha to bring out his inhibitions.

Samantha Erickson (23)- Devout drummer for a local garage band. Works while attending community college. Seeks a life on her own, but stymied by the times and friends.

Jacob Delgato (34)- Friendly but an introvert at heart. A talented artist in oil and watercolor. Wants to help Simone but is a functioning alcoholic. Roommates with Edward.

Pilot

Tabitha sets the tone: various non-conformist, all feeling unfulfilled, searching for meaning; the friendships, rivalries and sexual tensions. Her chance run in with Eddie increases her more than friendly interest in him. Simone hides the fact her gallery’s in trouble. Jacob notices she’s drawn to prosperous local attorney Andrew. Edward enjoys Sam for his repressed feelings she brings out. Sam and friends lament the lack of opportunities and see Eddie’s contact with an online music company to get a start. Her headstrong facade hides her qualms, but she may have to move back home if their music careers go nowhere. The PT job isn’t cutting it.

Season

We see the intertwined crisis each character faces (and open to adding new ones):

Tabitha, drawn to Eddie, drifts along until she finds a cause in saving the building where she works from demolition. She rallies support, but the community’s divided: the new development will add jobs/venues while others see it as an attempt to drive out older residents/clientele. One of the developers wants Simone as a new tenant. A losing battle to save the building and inability to win Eddie’s affection result in a torturous reassessment of her life.

Edward’s blind to Tabitha’s interest in him. He focuses on Sam, who bows to pressure and asks for help. But it ends up helping her, not the band. They and Eddie feel used, but he fears losing her friendship. Her other friends are not so forgiving. All the while, his “responsible capitalism” views do not bode well with some of the denizens of the area.

Sam gets an invite to LA. But once the thrill wears off, she realizes she’s only there as an eye candy drummer for an established band. Feels used. Hiding her fear, she doesn’t want to go back home as a failure, nor face her disgruntled friends. Eddie goes to her, drawing each other closer. Hides his occasional cocaine use from her.

Simone raises her son while owning/managing a gallery. Art is her passion. She’s torn between using Jacob to save her gallery and growing relationship with Andrew, leading to a choice between the person she needs (Andrew) and the one she wants (Jacob). Her past with Jacob adds to the dilemma while fighting to save her gallery from higher rent and declining interest.

Jake’s aware of her struggle. Wants to be more to her than a friend but might do more harm than good when she needs stability. Falling off/on the wagon and a tryst with a socialite doesn’t help. Tension within the artist commune add to his problems and growing frustration. He considers selling his loft/studio and leaving, more so after an offer from a high-class gallery in NYC.

Season Ending Cliffhangers: After celebrating her first studio recording, Eddie and Sam end up at her hotel room where they may take a leap of faith. Tabitha discovers Simone’s offer. Challenging her, Simone states her son’s future comes first, all but ending their friendship. Jake decides to leave. Giving Simone money from selling his loft, an angry plea from her gives him pause. Her world falling apart, Tabitha leaves the audience with a thought: Dreams never sleep in the same bed twice. So, find another dream. Or find another bed.

Future Seasons Ideas: Back stories on each character, going to the ‘90s or ‘00s. Tabitha struggles to reconcile with Simone. Wavers between winning Eddie over or letting him go. Simone faces a fresh start and ire of the old guard. Sam goes on tour and discovers the highs/lows of life on the road. Eddie loses interest in music. Draws closer to Tabitha. Contentment eludes Jake, more so after meeting an old lover who drove him away in the past.

Why Me? For twelve years I witnessed how the renewed downtown Springfield, MO rose to become a bohemian renaissance. A rebirth of an area once the jewel of the city. Then I saw the effect of the Crash of ’08. It’s still a lively place, but not the same one that grew on me. During this time, I befriended many there. Most worked for the places I visited. Others lived in the area. Many were younger than I. I saw their ups and downs, concerns about the future, lamenting the past. COVID only added to the changes. Now, working for a university I lament those young students who will leave with tons of debt and fewer prospects. Taking classes serving no useful purpose in the future. This is a story (fictionalized) about them. I’m also writing the novel The New Bohemians on which this is an adaptation. A sequel to my first novel Like A Drug set in the same SoHo like area.

For additional info, including pitch deck and actor types, visit the Scriphop page .

THE NEW BOHEMIANS