ISA Staff Picks: July 2024

These screenplays and their writers were selected by ISA staff members as standouts in their genres and formats for the month of July 2024. They are being submitted to agents, managers, producers and production companies actively looking for writers to rep or projects to produce. 

KATRINA VAN TASSEL AND THE WITCHES OF SLEEPY HOLLOW by Paige VanTassell (Pilot)

Logline: Katrina Van Tassel dreams that there is more to her eighteenth-century life than a stuffy marriage to an average man. But when one of those average men is murdered by a headless ghost, she'll find herself up to her neck in supernatural danger.

Selected by: ISA Staff Member Caitlin Arcand

Comments: A refreshing re-imagining of the classic tale of Sleepy Hollow with a powerful female protagonist. Though rooted in eighteenth century life, this project touches on modern struggles of misogyny and social ostracization, making it timely and relatable to today's audiences. Paige absolutely nails the combination of old and new. The dark subject matter is balanced out with playful humor, applying modern archetypes like "frat bros" to an ancient society. An enchanting read with stunning visuals and well-developed characters that you want to (and also ones you don’t want to) root for. 

ISA Connection: Paige was discovered via her ISA Fast Track Genre Selection and through her ISA Script Notes submission.

Awards:
ISA Fast Track Fellowship - Genre Selection
Emerging Screenwriters Screenplay Competition - Quarterfinalist
Table Read My Screenplay Competition: Park City - Quarterfinalist
ISA Development Slate
ISA Top 25 Screenwriters to Watch 

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DEATHLESS PODCAST by M. Rowan Meyer - Producer/Screenwriter (Podcast)

Logline: It’s been almost 10 years since we stopped dying. Let’s talk about that. I interview people with unique relationships to immortality, attempting to answer the question of the decade: Does life still have meaning if it never ends?

Selected by: ISA Staff Member Felicity Wren

Comments: Rowan's screenplay Deathless started as a Feature, and has a shopping agreement with Besties Make Movies. Rowan has been advised that this story is bigger than 90 mins and is subsequently working on the series, and I have to agree. The breadth of exploration that Rowan touches upon in the podcast he created to support the series is breathtaking. The podcast is poetic, philosophical, engaging, funny, and thought provoking. The knock on effect of not dying is explored through a raft of unique characters and their personal experience of staying alive through physical trauma, drag, faith and more. Rowan supports these spokespeople with dynamic world building reports of new laws regarding birth control, risk mitigation and a tweet from the Dalai Lama. These mind bending episodes might convince you there is true value in living and ultimately dying. Also you get to met Rowan, a writer, director and actor hyphenate, as the impeccable host and witness the shows tagline - How's Your Immortality Going?

ISA Connection: Rowan was discovered via several ISA contest wins. 

Awards:
Table Read My Screenplay Competition - Grand Prize Winner
Fade In Sci-Fi Competition - Grand Prize Winner
Emerging Screenwriters Genre Screenplay Competition - Drama Genre Winner 
Emerging Screenwriters Shoot Your Short - Grand Prize Winner
ISA Development Slate
ISA Top 25 Screenwriters to Watch 
Austin Revolution Film Festival - Award Nominee
NYC Screenplay Awards - Top 10 
Shore Scripts Screenwriting Competition - Finalist 

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PLEASE DON'T DIE, ROGER BERMAN by Ryan P Shrime (Feature)

Logline: Grieving his father’s death, 14-year-old Clarence has taken solace in his favorite, yet-unfinished fantasy series by author Roger Berman, but when he finds out Berman has recently suffered a severe heart attack, Clarence runs away to his hospital to learn the fate of his favorite characters before they’re lost to him forever.

Selected by: ISA Staff Member Max Timm

Comments: Among the thousands of projects I've read and considered in my time with the ISA and as a development executive, I feel safe to say that this is one of my, if not the, favorite script I've read. A story about a young teenager trying to find his place in the world, and he does so with a famous aging author who also happens to yet come of age. It has so much heart, sweeping adventure, incredible visuals, the cutest romance (among multiple characters), and all occurring during the holiday season. It could sound cliche to say that this project has it all, but it's the truth. A feature for the entire family, "Please Don't Die, Roger Berman" will be someone's favorite holiday movie some day.

ISA Connection: Ryan was discovered when he placed 3rd in the Emerging Screenwriters Genre Screenplay Competition

Awards:
Emerging Screenwriters Genre Screenplay Competition - 3rd Place
ISA Development Slate
ISA Top 25 Screenwriters to Watch
A prolific writer/producer, Ryan has extensive experience in the industry as a writer, line producer, on set, in front of the camera, and we're proud to have him as one of our own.

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FLASH by Zoë Hodge (Feature)

View Table Read of the Screenplay

Logline: After her best friend cancels on their comic con plans, a camera-shy teen reluctantly agrees to be her ex-best friend’s photography muse in exchange for him going to comic con with her.

Selected by: ISA Staff Member Molly Kasch

Comments: Flash is a fun, heartfelt YA rom-com/rom-drama that explores themes of race, self worth, love and betrayal through the eyes of a teenage girl on the journey toward finding and accepting herself. The relationships and characters in this script are wonderfully complicated and made me nostalgic for my high school days. Zoë does a phenomenal job of interweaving important messages with lighthearted banter and high school drama.

ISA Connection: Zoe was discovered when she placed in the Top 50 of the ISA Fast Track Fellowship.

Awards:
Table Read My Screenplay Competition - Grand Prize Winner
ISA Development Slate
ISA Top 25 Screenwriters to Watch
ISA Fast Track Fellowship - Top 50 
Outfest Fusion x Concord Pitch Contest - Top 50 


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WORST. DAY. EVER... AGAIN!? by Oliver Warren (Feature)

Logline: ALIA, a closeted teen, is forced to repeat the worst day of her life, looping inexplicably through four different movie genres —driven by a wayward app on her cellphone—where she must learn to position herself as the star, writer and director of each movie world, in order to find her happy ending. 

Selected by: ISA Staff Member Reggie Singh

Comments: One must acknowledge that despite the sage advice of 'writing what you know', sometimes this may be strongly influenced by the movies that you tend to repeatedly watch.. and fall in love with. This is the entry point to 'WORST. DAY. EVER... AGAIN!?'. The story is guided by the time loop & multiverse tropes that put it on a par with GROUNDHOG DAY and EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE, yet at its core it tells a heartfelt and moving high school coming of age story. In some ways I was surprised that this was an emotional read as I thought I would be too distracted by the plot device nuances yet the narrative was somehow skillfully married into the main character's inner struggle. Ultimately, when you breakdown this movie it is ridiculously clever, yet somehow completely relatable - and it's testament to the screenwriter that this middle aged reader is strongly recommending a high school teen movie.

ISA Connection: Oliver was discovered when he placed in the Top 10 of the Emerging Screenwriters Screenplay Competition.

Awards:
Emerging Screenwriters Screenplay Competition - Top 10
ISA Development Slate
ISA Top 25 Screenwriters to Watch

Interested in reading any of these projects?
Please email Felicity@NetworkISA.org.

To request the screenplay via the ISA platform, you must be an ISA-vetted Industry Pro. Please apply here in your profile.

To be considered for our monthly ISA Staff Picks, please complete your profiles, add your projects, post your success stories, apply to writing gigs, fellowships, contests and the ISA Diversity Initiative. You don't need to apply to all resources, you just need to be proactive as we are actively scanning the entire ISA platform for our next month's picks.