My comedy script “Don’t Eat Paper!” is one of 10 Finalists at VisionFest in NYC.
Short Synopsis: Roy is obnoxiously in love with his therapist, Joanie, whose attempt to “fire” her client unintentionally leads to his death, but Roy’s ghost expects to maintain their “relationship”; however, a wild road-trip with Roy leads Joanie to discover her true mission in life.
Logline: I drove down to San Pedro for the final night of the San Pedro International Film Festival (for those outside LA, it’s the port for Los Angeles right next to Long Beach, but is only connected to the rest of LA by a narrow corridor so that it feels very much like a different city). The San Pedro downtown can be desolate in some areas but there’s an arts / restaurant revitalization in a few blocks, which is where Collage: a Place for Art and Culture is located and the place for the closing night party and awards.
“Don’t Eat Paper!” remained only a nominee but I did take part in a presentation with the winning screenwriter about our respective screenplays. An unexpected lively Q&A followed where I was asked quite a few questions and even asked for advice for the beginning screenwriter. (I actually could give her some practical advice as I’ve been doing this a while, but it was the first time I’ve ever been asked that question.) I also got to drink some Croatian wine (a sponsor of the festival)… haven’t had Croatian wine since 1987 when I took a vacation there.
Next to Collage was a beautiful Art Deco former Montgomery Ward department store from 1930, which has been put to re-use.
So, this was a surprise to me: a YouTube podcast reviewing my script, “Don’t Eat Paper!”. The Portland Comedy Film Festival just put this out yesterday. What’s cool is that the other reviews are for some of the films that will be shown at the festival but so far, I’m the only script that’s gotten talked about on the channel. (Click on the picture)
(It’s 99% percent positive but the one negative is actually moot now. They got an earlier version of the script so the current version is 7 pages shorter which should address any questions of pace.)
Film Crash has been around for nearly 40 years, starting in NYC and currently held in Los Angeles (at the Royale Theater), while the San Pedro International Film Festival is at the gorgeous old Warner Grand in that Los Angeles harbor neighborhood.
Just got notified that my screenplays “Don’t Eat Paper!” and “Limping Towards Babylon” are Official Selections of the Austin Comedy Film Festival. Also “…Paper!” is an Official Selection of the San Pedro International Film Festival (located in Los Angeles).
Amongst many strong reader feedback’s:
– Blue Cat Screenplay Awards 1st reader analysis: “Despite dealing with ghosts (and the chilly physics of the air around them), this script is full of warmth, a big-hearted and earnest read with endearing characters and a clever, original setup from the first scene. Joanie and Roy never wear out their welcome individually, but their dynamic together is fresh, compelling, and constantly changing — the writer smartly uses Roy’s neurotic transference to illuminate and twist the relationship between the two, as they shift from therapist and client to friends to near-partners to an almost mother-and-child kinship (which is healthier than the real mother-and-child relationship between Dottie and Roy). I appreciated that the script quickly inverts the predictability of Roy’s unrequited love for Joanie into a more complex journey for both of them, as he moves toward self-discovery and freedom while she moves toward commitment and purpose. The rules and details of the ghost world are fun to learn about as they unfold, but they never overwhelm the story, and the wonderful supporting character of Lyuba acts as an exceedingly funny tool for exposition as well as an emotional, bruised soul in her own right.”
– 2024 – First Prize Comedy Feature Screenplay – Film Crash (40th year)
– 2024 – Best Comedy Screenplay – Woods Hole Film Festival (32nd year)
– 2024 – Finalist – Catalina Film Festival Screenshot
– 2024 – Finalist – Houston Comedy Film Festival
– 2024 – Finalist – Northeast Film Festival
– 2024 – Semi-Finalist – Table Read My Screenplay (Hollywood)
– 2024 – Best Screenplay, 3rd place – Hollywood Reel Independent Film Festival
– 2024 – Best Fantasy Romance Screenplay – Golden State Film Festival (at the Chinese
Theatre in LA)
– 2024 – Semi-Finalist – Big Apple Film Festival and Screenplay Competition
– 2024 – Semi-Finalist – Flickers’ Rhode Island International Film Festival
– 2024 – Semi-Finalist – Los Angeles Comedy Film Festival
– 2024 – Quarter Finalist – Richmond International Film Festival
– 2024 – Quarter Finalist – Emerging Screenwriters Screenplay Competition
– 2024 – Honorable Mention, The Art of Brooklyn Film Festival / Screenplay Contest
– 2024 – Official Selection – Austin Comedy Film Festival
– 2024 – Official Selection – Portland Comedy Film Festival
– 2024 – Official Selection – San Pedro International Film Festival
– 2024 – Official Selection – Hollywood International Indie Screenplay Awards
– 2024 – Official Selection – Berlin International Screenplay Festival
When I initially finished “Don’t Eat Paper!” in 2023, I began to submit that comedy screenplay to competitions: major, minor and those in-between. I then started to submit my older screenplays to some of these contests simultaneously because I had never submitted to most of them. (Since 2023, I’ve done several re-drafts of paper as the current version is shorter than what I submitted in 2023… ditto, I’ve done polishes on the older scripts too.)
“DON’T EAT PAPER!”
– 2023 Semi-finalist – Final Draft’s Big Break
– 2023 Semi-finalist – Flickers’ Rhode Island International Film Festival
– 2023 Semi-Finalist – Polish International Film Festival
– 2023 – Quarter-Finalist – Wiki World’s Fastest Screenplay Competition
– 2023 – Official Selection – Culver City Film Festival
