Your submissions took us to all sorts of new worlds and magical lands, but in the end our Sci-Fi and Fantasy Award 2020 winner ended up being set on Earth: HIGHER by Samantha Brennan!
While sci-fi often focuses on unusual concepts, HIGHER grabbed our attention with its lovable characters and its sharp, witty dialogue. As the WriteMovies Sci-Fi and Fantasy Award 2020 winner, Samantha has won guaranteed pitching to industry, two sets of Development Notes, and further advice on honing her script from our screenwriting experts. She’s also still in contention for our Summer 2020 Screenwriting Contest; Quarter-Finalists will be announced this Friday!
Here’s a summary of HIGHER:
Max Baker has spent her life bouncing from school to school. Her mother is a recovering alcoholic and the only communication she has with her father is through the birthday cards he sends her. Dealing with undiagnosed dyslexia, Max struggles with anger issues and is constantly the target of bullies no matter the school she attends.
After an incident one day at her new school, Max decides to flee in the middle of a hurricane. But when she spots a blue flash in the sky, she follows the light and discovers an alien boy in the woods with no recollection of his life before landing on Earth.
With the help of her new friend, Ty, Max names the alien boy “Roger” and sets out to help him piece his life back together. But with someone from his home planet hunting him, and his body starting to becomes more monstrous each day, she soon finds that time is running out…
If you’re a producer interested in this project, email talent@atalentscout.com today!
And here’s a quick bio of the writer of HIGHER, Samantha Brennan:
After graduating from the University of Tampa with a bachelor’s degree in writing and a minor in film, I went on to teach English in South Korea for the past three years. While currently residing in Seoul, I continue to work on my passion which is screenwriting.
I have written eight feature-length screenplays and I am currently writing my ninth feature. Each screenplay involves a certain “monster” in my 7 Monsters Universe.
Most of my main characters are outcast teenagers who struggle through several life dilemmas, including the “monster” within.
Keep an eye out for the announcement of our Summer 2020 Screenwriting Contest quarter-finalists on Friday – all submissions to the Sci-Fi and Fantasy Award 2020 are still in the running!