Hello, Stage 32.
Over the past year or so, I've been tweaking and retweaking my script for a potential movie set in a dystopian and divided Britain after it has left the European Union (in the story, the north of the UK is a high-tech dictatorship while the south is a low-tech communist haven - both halves are their own self-governing states á la Korea).
Entitled "Vox Populi", it takes its cues from a combination of 1980s cult cinema ("To Live and Die in LA" with its moral ambiguity, "Escape from New York" with its militaristic undertones and "RoboCop" with its extreme violence and social commentary) and allusions to key events in 20th Century British history, such as the fall of the Empire and the ratification of the Good Friday Agreement, which brought an end to the Troubles. Virtually everyone I have spoken to about this story is pleading with me NOT to pitch it, particularly with the upcoming (at the time of writing this) General Election.
Is the idea of such a story really THAT divisive? While I do think controversy is needed to shake up the norm every now and then, I'm starting to wonder if maybe the subject matter is a little TOO close to home for some people, which could potentially impede the script's evolution and/or production. Any thoughts, opinions (constructive ones - I don't care how you voted in that infernal referendum if you did vote) are more than welcome.
Kind regards,
Stefano Pavone.
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No. Seems tame to some.
Watch “Child of Men”
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Have done. Thank you for your reply. :)
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Why NOT pitch it time of general election? Get it out there when it will cause maximum reaction. Reaction does not have to be good, it can be bad or controversial but “hot on the lips” brings viewers to film.
I'm trying.
Does the script include a plot to restore the monarchy, but with the House of Trump, instead of the House of Windsor? If so, then I heartily endorse it.
Stefano, I hope you get that script out there and produced. (And I wish you all the VERY BEST!)
Richard Buzzell No. :)
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I don't see why you shouldn't pitch it, maybe try pitching it outside if its too close to home. Especially with something like this, it seems time sensitive and could potentially lose its appeal depending on the way things pan out.
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I guess people here don't use specs as writing samples? It's either "my script must be made into movie or bust."
You're failing from the jump. The mindset should be writing fantastic samples. Fantastic meaning strangers show your script to other strangers in the business. Your spec is a spec until it ain't.
Dan MaxXx It would be nice, yes, if it were filmed, but if it gets at least picked up, then I can be happy. There are three scripts of mine which I am VERY overprotective towards, being adaptations of my own novel (which is also in 3 parts). Those are the scripts that I will fight tooth and nail to protect.
Stefano - Are the dueling duchesses the head of two opposing states?
Richard Buzzell Yes and no. :)
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Dan MaxXx is right - a spec is a spec until it isn't, but honestly, if everybody I pitched my idea to hated it, I'd take that as a good sign I was on the wrong track.
If you're getting that feedback because you're pitching it too close to home, you could try pitching it to producers in other territories, but then the question would be - who is my audience if people in the country I'm writing about don't like the concept? Will other markest be that interested in the story?
I seem to recall a recent project that was made, or was struggling to be made, about a second American civil war. I'm guessing it faced this same dilemma. Not sure what happened to that one.
Sigh
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yes, it may be too close to home, and may not be well received by some, however, are yo sure its the subject material and not the way your pitching it? Consider making the characters motivations universal, much deeper than Brexit and also, keep in mind, Brexit is known internationally, too. Consider implications for people in other countries etc, if you know it, or are interested in more research.
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Hi Stefano,
Hey...it's your story. If Brexit is what caused the split, and/or if it's scarcely/somewhat/prominently mentioned throughout the script...it's your baby, and your strategy.
Be at least a little aware that, outside of the EU....I'd bet that the average person knows very little about the whole Brexit saga. At least...not until Brexit is implemented (or not)....and Britannia splits into the two nations as your story deems. God save the poor people! Or is it...God save the rich people! Or both? Hmmm. Oi! :)
Best fortunes in your creative endeavors, Stefano!
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Sounds timely.
How will it play outside of the UK? Film is an international business. A movie has to appeal to the world. Even if it ends up a sample for an assignment, part of what they are judging is your understanding of the business and the audience.
It features an international cast of characters complete with multilingual abilities, along with taboo subjects such as interethnic relationships and the criticism of democracy, as well as deconstructing popular tropes, so I think it could appeal to both American and European audiences.
What’s the plot & character conflict?
Just a lot of sheep in the north. Isn't the London area the tech/banking/etc part so it wouldn't be the north, right? I guess it could work, though, why not, if it's good. Possibly like V for Vendetta?
Gary Smiley Depends on where exactly you go in the north and south, just like any other nation. Dan MaxXx The plot involves a modern-day Robin Hood trying to overthrow the powers that be who have re-Victorianised the entire UK (both north and south), along with the abolition of the Good Friday Agreement. He enlists the help of a diplomatically gifted teaching assistant who becomes his protégé (their opposing modus operandi are a minor conflict) while trying to keep his girlfriend safe.