The following screenplays are the Top 30 Short Screenplay Finalists and Official Selections for the 2023 FilmQuest Best Un-produced Screenplay Competition. If you are a producer or filmmaker, collaborating with these writers may produce your next film, so feel free to explore these great projects waiting to be made. Featured here are some of the best un-produced genre screenplays on the circuit today and one of these screenplays will become our eventual Best Un-produced Short Screenplay Winner. If you would like to find out more about the screenplays, please feel free to reach out and we will put you in contact with the writers.
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ADVENT
Written By: Katherine LaVictoire
Synopsis: A woman writes a letter to her unborn child while the world navigates first contact with an alien species.
Genre(s): Horror, Sci-Fi
Screenwriter’s Bio: Katherine is a writer and actor whose previous works include Stellar Hosts (Dances with Films Audience Award, Web Series, 2018) and Know-It-All (Austin Other Worlds Mary Shelley Award Nominee honoring female voices in genre film, 2020 & FilmQuest Best Screenplay- Short Nominee, 2020). Her first feature script, The Spirit Wants, won 2nd place Best Unproduced Screenplay – Feature at FilmQuest 2022.
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APOCALYPSE MESSIAH
Written By: Emily Robyn Clark
Synopsis: When a spirited young woman arrives in a town controlled by a religious cult, she uncovers a larger conspiracy surrounding her heartbroken sister’s disappearance, forcing her to race against time to rescue her sibling before it’s too late.
Genre(s): Horror, Fantasy
Screenwriter’s Bio: Emily Robyn Clark is an award-winning filmmaker, poet, screenwriter, journalist, and songwriter. She’s known for her work in Dig In Magazine, LA’s Cultural Daily, VCReporter, The Acorn Newspapers, A! Magazine for the Arts, The Sow’s Ear Poetry Review, Askew Poetry Journal, Spectrum, Aspen Daily News, Gaye Magazine, Lavender Review, and Utah’s Best 2023 with forthcoming poetry publications in The Power of the Feminine “I” and Lullwater Review. She wrote, directed, and produced the eleven-time award-winning fantasy film LOVE SPELL in 2020 and has an upcoming EP releasing soon under the stagename Emma Dream.
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BERENICE’S BASEMENT
Written By: Ken Teutsch & Mike Prince
Synopsis: A lady calls the sheriff to report that her basement is the entrance to Hell. Unlucky deputy Moorehead takes the case.
Genre(s): Horror, Fantasy, Comedy
Screenwriter’s Bio: Ken Teutsch is a writer, filmmaker and musician living in Arkansas.
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BLACKOUT
Written By: Scott Akers
Synopsis: A man, bloodied and disoriented, awakens in a world of monstrous creatures hungry for human flesh. Can he escape the danger and remember his identity before it’s too late?
Genre(s): Horror
Screenwriter’s Bio: Born with a love of movies, classic muscle cars, AC/DC, and a wicked imagination, this Kansas native began focusing on his passion for movies recently and has no plans of stopping.
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DETECTIVE PALOOKA
Written By: Jason Lou Baldwin
Synopsis: A former supervillian goon attempts to turn his life around by becoming a detective.
Genre(s): Comedy, The Beyond
Screenwriter’s Bio: Lou Baldwin is an up and coming, extremely talented, very handsome screenwriter. He was born and raised in Ventura, California, where he developed the spark for storytelling at a young age. For most of his youth, he wanted to be an animator, but after realizing that those were just the people making the people move, and not creating the story they were moving for, he pivoted to screenwriting.
After completing his bachelors at Azusa Pacific University, he was excited to dive into a life of writing, but due to the world being put on pause for Covid 19, he decided to focus on earning enough money to live. After his marriage, he and his wife moved to Atlanta Georgia as a way to kickstart his wife’s film career. She very successful in this, with her career bringing the two of them back to Los Angeles, where Lou can finally make his writing dreams come true.
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DEUS IN MACHINA
Written By: Michelle Fenn
Synopsis: A failed programming prodigy recovering from the death of her mother eyes her comeback with new AI software that shockingly claims to be the voice of God.
Genre(s): Sci-Fi, Comedy
Screenwriter’s Bio: Michelle is an award winning producer, originally from a small town in Massachusetts, where her sarcasm and love for Tom Brady had years to flourish. Michelle first studied at Emerson College for Stage Management, then graduated from Cal State Long Beach with a BA in Film/Theatre. She recently decided the world didn’t have enough Bostonians running their mouth and hopped back into the writer’s chair to create chaos.
Her directing style smashes genres together, and dismantles archetypes, holding a mirror to real life. She champions female driven stories with complicated, and flawed, protagonists, often leaning towards dark comedy and supernatural elements. She strives to make films for all the lost souls that go to the cinema to find themselves. Michelle currently works at Riverside Entertainment as a Creative Producer, and in her spare time she has combo horse girl/athlete energy by riding horses, playing flag football, and hanging out with her dogs.
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DEVIL’S INSTRUMENT
Written By: Frederik Ehrhardt
Synopsis: Tormented by his ruthless teacher and the horrors of coming-of-age, a self-doubting teenage violinist unleashes an evil spirit that threatens to consume him and the boy he loves.
Genre(s): Horror
Screenwriter’s Bio: Frederik Ehrhardt is a producer and award-winning screenwriter based in Germany and the US. Most recently, he produced the screen adaptation of the Outer Critics Circle Award nominated Off-Broadway play STALKING THE BOGEYMAN, starring Tony winner Santino Fontana (CRAZY EX-GIRLFRIEND, Disney’s FROZEN) and Thomas Sadoski (WILD, THE CROWDED ROOM), as well as the web-based format PANDEMIC PLAYERS, featuring Zachary Levi (SHAZAM!, Marvel’s THOR) and Alison Pill (STAR TREK: PICARD, THE NEWSROOM).
He also worked on the critically acclaimed film PREMATURE by Independent Spirit Award winner Rashaad Ernesto Green with whom he is currently co-writing the feature project BIG MAN. Next up, he’ll produce director Alex Murawski’s feature film debut WALKING IN IOWA. Two-time Oscar nominee Bruce Beresford (TENDER MERCIES, DRIVING MISS DAISY) has joined the team as executive producer. Frederik earned his MSc in Public Policy from the University of Oxford and holds a postgraduate certificate in Entertainment Management and Film Financing from UCLA.
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DO NOT OPEN
Written By: Brian Barnes
Synopsis: After discovering a pair of vintage walkie-talkies left behind in their new house, a father and daughter play an unsettling game of “hide and seek” that threatens to shatter the small family forever.
Genre(s): Horror
Screenwriter’s Bio: Brian is a dad of 2 in Southern California, originally from Ohio. He writes stories involving parenthood and raising kids in a modern world — which is scarier than it sounds. Writer of the award-winning horror short film The Helping Hand, now on the DUST Channel. Never met a ghost, but he’s open to it.
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DRIP
Written By: Stephanie Moore
Synopsis: A man discovers the deadly source of the dripping sound in his new loft apartment.
Genre(s): Horror
Screenwriter’s Bio: Former Photographer and Producer for Fox Sports Net, I write thrillers and horror with a dash of dramedies thrown in because life can be absurd even in the darkest circumstances.
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EROSION
Written By: Tony Hipwell
Synopsis: A man living in a home at risk from coastal erosion refuses to accept the inevitable as his marriage simultaneously crumbles to the point his own body begins to disintegrate.
Genre(s): Horror
Screenwriter’s Bio: Tony Hipwell is a multi-award-winning filmmaker whose work has screened at Academy Award, Canadian Screen Award, BAFTA and BIFA qualifying festivals such as HollyShorts, Fantasia and the Edinburgh Film Festival. Their debut feature, Whoops! premiered at Raindance and made the Top Ten picks of 2013. It was also the only British film selected for the nationwide Raindance Tour the following year. Since then, Tony has developed projects with the BBC and Searchlight Pictures, worked as the Video Producer for Young Thugs Records in association with EMI and been selected for the inaugural Future of Film and LHS X FEAR incubators.
Tony’s most recent projects include an adaptation of ‘Standing Woman’ by internationally acclaimed author Yasutaka Tsutsui which was nominated for the Yorkshire Film Award at Leeds International Film Festival 2021 and is available on ALTER. Their new short, ‘The Lure’ premiered at FrightFest 2023 and is touring festivals now.
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FREEDA
Written By: Lorenzo Colonna & Giada Mazzoleni
Synopsis: N/A
Genre(s): N/A
Screenwriter’s Bio: N/A
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HAIR WRAITH
Written By: Jenny Popovich
Synopsis: A troubled young woman believes she is being haunted by a wreath made from the hair of her abusive dead mother.
Genre(s): Horror
Screenwriter’s Bio: Jenny Popovich is a writer and director currently living in Chicago. IL. Jenny’s drama, horror, comedy, and sci-fi scripts and films tell relevant twenty-first century stories with memorable and engaging characters. Jenny is a strong advocate for female representation both in front of and behind the camera and her female-centered films and screenplays provide believable characters with engaging plots. Jenny’s films have screened and won at many U.S. and international festivals, including the Central Florida Film Festival, Best Horror Shorts Film Festival, and the WPRN Women’s International Film Festival.
Her scripts have placed and won in several festival screenwriting contests, including FilmQuest, The New York Science Fiction Film Festival, the ScreenCraft Film Fund, and Richmond International Film Festival. Jenny has completed principal photography on her MFA Thesis project, Hair Wraith, a horror film exploring the terrors of mother/daughter relationships. In addition to writing and directing, Jenny also shoots and edits short films, PSAs, and corporate interviews. Jenny is proficient in technical film areas including editing, cinematography, and camera operation.
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HONED
Written By: Jeffrey Howe
Synopsis: An unexpected loss forces a military widow who took over her husband’s knifemaking business to re-examine her grief.
Genre(s): Horror, The Beyond
Screenwriter’s Bio: Jeffrey Howe lives and works in the scenic Black Creek Bottoms area near St. Louis, Missouri. His feature and short screenplays have won or placed in 60 competitions since June 2015. His drama feature script “Flat-rate Frank” was a top 50 semifinalist for the 2020 Academy Nicholl Fellowship.
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HOUSE BROKEN
Written By: Joseph Douglas Lint
Synopsis: A young couple learns that house breaking their new puppy can be more terrible than they possibly imagined.
Genre(s): Horror
Screenwriter’s Bio: Joseph Lint is an award-winning screenwriter living in Southern California, where he lives with his wife and kids. Some of Joseph’s award-winning screenplays include, “The Smell of Fear,” “The Villain,” “Hacienda,” “The General – Black Genesis,” and “The Suicide Diaries.” Additionally, Joseph and his son, Hank, won an award for the short screenplay “Gold Diggers” which they co-wrote together.
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HURTLING SLOWLY
Written By: Stephonika W. Kaye
Synopsis: A miscalculation has led to the imminent demise of a group of travelers. Penelope and Jolde brace for the end together, bonding over what is coming… and the idea of what may come after.
Genre(s): Fantasy, The Beyond
Screenwriter’s Bio: Having entered filmmaking through the set dec and art departments, Stephonika works mostly as a Designer and Decorator. Her passion lies in writing and creating fantasy and sci-fi worlds.
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KISSYFOOT
Written By: Michael Clifton
Synopsis: Megan goes to body dysmorphia therapy for the people; she desires a perfect body, or at least a limb.
Genre(s): Horror
Screenwriter’s Bio: Michael is a horror/comedy writer and recovering hillbilly who grew up in the birthplace of the Mothman legend. Recent honors from Academy Award qualifying festivals and the horror community have led to feature assignments. Two of his queer horror projects, Bath Bomb and Gummies, will hit the 23/24 film festival circuit.
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LASHES
Written By: Jill Sachs
Synopsis: A lashless Filipina-American teen has a transformational night, when she manipulates her DNA and grows more than the luscious lashes she longed for.
Genre(s): Horror
Screenwriter’s Bio: Jill Sachs is a Fil-Am filmmaker, interested in using genre to explore the ways we weave ourselves into mythologies, and navigate obsolescence. She earned her MFA in Directing from AFI, and BA from the University of Chicago. Her films have been acquired by Shorts International, and played at festivals like Ashland Independent Film Festival, Newport Beach, Mallorca, and Filmquest. She is a recent Finalist for the Disney Underrepresented Storytellers Initiative, and the CAPE Julia Gouw short film award. As an AICP mentee, Jill splits her time between short form, XR, and narrative projects. She currently works in commercial animation at Psyop.
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MERMAID
Written By: Jerry D. Ochoa
Synopsis: Years after losing their mother in a boat accident, Tobi’s continued efforts to contact her creates tension at home.
Genre(s): Horror
Screenwriter’s Bio: Jerry D. Ochoa made his festival debut as a writer/director at the 2003 SXSW Film Festival. His work has been featured at dozens of festivals around the world, winning recognition including the Audience Award at Chicago International REEL Shorts Film Festival 2018, Best Horror Short at the 2015 Fright Night Theatre Film Festival, Best Writing (short film) at the 2015 Fantastic Cinema Festival, the Judges Special Selection Award at the Festival de Cine de Terror de Molins de Rei, 2014, and the Breakout Action Star Award at the 2008 Los Angeles Action on Film Festival.
His feature film script THE VIRGIN, written with Trysta A. Bissett, won Best Unproduced Feature Screenplay at the 2021 FilmQuest Festival, the 2021 New York City Horror Fest, HorrorFest International 2021, the 2022 Hollywood Horror Fest, and was a finalist in the Horror Feature Screenplay competition at the 2021 Austin Film Festival.
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MOUSE
Written By: Michael Clifton
Synopsis: A grieving father haunted by the loss of his child seeks solace in an unlikely visitor.
Genre(s): Horror
Screenwriter’s Bio: Michael is a horror/comedy writer and recovering hillbilly who grew up in the birthplace of the Mothman legend. Recent honors from Academy Award qualifying festivals and the horror community have led to feature assignments. Two of his queer horror projects, Bath Bomb and Gummies, will hit the 23/24 film festival circuit.
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MR. RIGHT
Written By: Rakefet Abergel
Synopsis: Juliet’s love spell to trap Mr. Right goes terribly wrong.
Genre(s): Horror, Comedy
Screenwriter’s Bio: N/A
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OKAY (THE HIVE)
Written By: Jessica Makinson
Synopsis: In a climate-change-scarred Los Angeles, 25 years from now, a renegade in her 60’s, must defend herself against an intruder, the tragedy leads her to seek refuge in The Hive.
Genre(s): Sci-Fi, The Beyond
Screenwriter’s Bio: Jessica Makinson is a writer/director with a combined 22 years of experience as an actor and filmmaker. She has worked with directors Trey Parker, Russo Brothers, David Robert Mitchell, Jason Winer, Marc Maron, among many others. As an actor and improviser who has appeared as comedy series regular and in over 75 national commercials, Jessica brings a unique experience and perspective to her directing work. Specializing in comedy and improv, she also gravitates towards themes of intimacy and connection.
After helping to develop the series “Halfway Home”, Makinson sold her first pilot “Jenn Jeffries: Professional Stalker” to Comedy Central. She continues to develop for TV and film, and is currently working on her second feature script. Her short films have screened at festivals around the world, including Clermont Ferrand, Fantasia, Marfa, Cucalorus, IFS LA, and Final Girls Berlin. Jessica has shadowed directors including Jonathan Krisel, Michael Blieden, Tom Stern, and Jared Eberhardt. She lives in Los Angeles near a roller skating rink with her film editor husband, Grant and their toddler, Ellis, who is already a promising director.
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SCRATCH, SCRATCH
Written By: Pierre Langenegger
Synopsis: Kate’s Mom hires a mean sitter, but Kate doesn’t take fools lightly so she employs the old “Monster in the Closet” routine. Unfortunately for the sitter, the monster in the closet is real.
Genre(s): Horror
Screenwriter’s Bio: I have been writing screenplays since 2003. I have two produced screenplays as well several script consultant credits. I am also in demand as a paid script consultant, proofreader, and editor, and I take pleasure in assisting fellow writers to improve their own stories, characters, dialogue and format.
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SILVERTOOTH: STARRING THE DARK WINGS
Written By: Nick Burchard
Synopsis: After a supply run goes bad, a biker gang with a taste for blood must save their newest member when she is taken as a hostage.
Genre(s): Horror, The Beyond
Screenwriter’s Bio: Nick Burchard is a Writer, Director, and Comic Book Artist from The Berkshire Mountains in Massachusetts. He is the founder of Tiny Viking Productions, a company that focuses on developing stories with the mindset of ‘character first’.
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SITTING LARRY
Written By: Maryellen De Vivo
Synopsis: A young deaf woman cat-sits for a night and is frightened to find out she and the cat aren’t the only ones in the house.
Genre(s): Horror
Screenwriter’s Bio: Graphic designer by day, aspiring screenwriter by night, horror fan all day long.
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THE AVON LADY
Written By: Guillermo Ortiz & Geena Karsama
Synopsis: Two women on the fringes of 1950’s American society collide in an inconspicuous Avon home visit where everything but the purchasing of lipstick occurs.
Genre(s): The Beyond
Screenwriter’s Bio: Guillermo Ortiz was born in Carolina, Puerto Rico and Geena Karsama was born in Detroit. Horror writing dúo based on Detroit, Michigan
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THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL
Written By: Shane Thompson
Synopsis: As Olivia walks her little brother Hunter to his classroom, she must come to terms with the fact that not all is as it seems.
Genre(s): Horror, The Beyond
Screenwriter’s Bio: I studied screenwriting at The Ohio State University. Creating fictional worlds through storytelling has always been one of my favorite creative outlets. I love meeting new people because I believe the people we meet often inspire our own creativity. My goal will always be to keep learning and growing as a writer.
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THE INSATIABLE PINE
Written By: Kent Green
Synopsis: A woman attempts to let go of a past tragedy by testing the boundaries of our natural world.
Genre(s): Horror
Screenwriter’s Bio: N/A
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THE MAGIC MECHANIC
Written By: Justin Carter
Synopsis: A lone mechanic braves an icy storm and frozen wasteland with his new friend in an effort to get her home safely.
Genre(s): The Beyond
Screenwriter’s Bio: My name is Justin and I’m from Elk Ridge, Utah. I love music and all things fantasy.
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THE WEEPING WILLOWS
Written By: Amalie Lorentzen
Synopsis: When a foster child is given the option to leave her abusive parents for the monsters roaming beneath her bed, the decision may come with dire consequences for her and her sister.
Genre(s): Horror, Fantasy, The Beyond
Screenwriter’s Bio: Born and raised in Copenhagen, Denmark, Amalie moved to LA on her own at 19 to start a career in film. Currently she is working in post, though on hold due to the WGA & SAG strike, but is ready to get back to work. She’s spending her hiatus writing scripts, novels, children’s books, and coming up with ideas for new projects.
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TRANSPORT
Written By: Shea E. Butler
Synopsis: A half-hour science fiction psychological drama that follows a disgraced Captain of a prison transport ship racing against time to ensure the survival of her crew and prisoners when her ship becomes the epicenter of a political and military cover-up, undermining her sense of purpose, family and home.
Genre(s): Sci-Fi
Screenwriter’s Bio: Shea E. Butler is a storyteller in many different fields: a television writer, a published author and an award-winning director/writer/producer for her short films and web series. She is an alumna of Ryan Murphy’s Half Foundation Directing Fellowship and the Warner Bros. Television Director’s Workshop. Born in Cairo, Egypt to American parents living abroad, Shea is a US citizen and Permanent Resident of Canada.
She is a certified scuba diver, an avid horsewoman and world traveler. Shea’s most awe-inspiring trip was a horseback riding safari through the Okavango Delta in Botswana. Nothing like being charged by two lions to get your creative juices flowing! Website: www.thebutlerdiditproductions.com
