The first 10 pages of your script are critical for many reasons. Not only do they introduce the characters, they also set up the story and establish the tone. It’s within these pages that the inciting incident will push the story into motion and readers will decide whether to continue with the script or simply give it a pass. Have these 5 HSSW writers crafted compelling introductions? This review will look at that question.
Join the HSSW team in reviewing the first 10 pages of 3 original, new scripts.
First up is Murmur written by Eafat Newton.
Log Line: A historian of disease with an unstable past uncovers a modern day plague that spreads in sleep and drives its victims to hear the murderous thoughts of the infected.
After earning an MBA in 2001, Eafat Newton worked for years as a market researcher. Eager to explore human behavior beyond data analysis, she turned to creative writing and became an active member of HSSW. Murmur is her sixth script. She has been a quarter finalist at the PAGE Awards and was the runner-up in the Feature Screenplay for Drama category at Woods Hole Film Festival ’14.
Then comes Strays written by writer-duo, Charlie Lyons and Rodrigo Monterrey.
Log Line: A teenage girl on the run crosses paths with a young war veteran, and together they try to navigate their dangerous worlds of crime and family.
Rodrigo Monterrey, musician, composer and health care administrator and Charlie Lyons, lawyer, have been working on Strays for some time now and it’s safe to say there is as much drama in their writing relationship as there is in the script itself – maybe more. They both have day jobs in which they have garnered countless accolades – but who cares?! All that matters to them is what’s on the page, what’s going to be on the screen, and which one of them is going to get to say more during the Oscar speech.
Last, but not least, is Mr. Vincent’s Detention Room Rules written by writer-duo, Christine Cannavo and Dave Lucas.
Log Line: When four prep school students are sent to detention for bullying an underclassman, they become prisoners until they can find remorse for their actions. Punishment turns to survival as a mysterious closet door opens to the gates of hell, dragging the non-repentant to perpetual misery.
Christine Cannavo is a Boston based actor, writer and director. She is an alumni member of ImprovBoston and Improv Asylum. As a founding member of Musical Improv Company, she co-wrote a musical that received rave reviews at the Hovey Players Summer Shorts Series. She has written and directed original children’s play, one of which was published in ‘Plays’ magazine. For many years, Christine also directed the employees of Fidelity Investments in their annual Holiday Show. Christine is a graduate of the Emerson College Certificate Screenwriting Program. She is a current member of The Harvard Square Script Writers where she directed a staged reading of the screenplay Zombie Cop. She is also an Associate Producer of the Women in Comedy Festival.
Dave Lucas is a Boston based engineer and screenwriter. He is a graduate of the Emerson College Certificate Screenwriting Program. With his screenplay Will To Live, David was a first place winner of Emerson College’s Judges Choice Screenwriting Contest. He is a current member of The Harvard Square Scriptwriters. David has been a reader for several of the Women In Film & Video/New England Screenplay Competitions. For fun, you can find David as the troublesome student in the opening scene of the Paul Newman 1968 directed drama Rachel, Rachel.
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