The Interview
A man sits down for a performance review of his life and how he lived it, hoping the outcome of the meeting will mean good things for his future.
This story is obviously meant to be a conversation between a man and God, basically the often dreaded or idealized interview everyone imagines at the end of their life when they find out if they’re going to Heaven or Hell. The protagonist is forced to examine his interpersonal relationships, particularly the ones he had with his family, and ask if what he did was right and if not can he be forgiven?
I originally wanted to try and write this idea as a short film, but the longer I’ve worked on it the longer it gets. Thus, I think it could work well as a full length feature, specifically as a frame narrative as the protagonist and his interviewer discuss key moments in the protagonist’s life.
A Modern Dracula
Jonathan Harker starts off his business trip abroad posting about the food he eats and making a video diary for his fiancée, only to then direct his camera towards documenting the strange things occurring all around him. Meanwhile, said fiancée is utilizing her social media skills to track down and bring him home.
At the same time, Dr. John Seward runs a successful health and wellness video blog, intending to educate his audience on mental health before getting dragged into a fight for the life of the woman he loves.
Dracula is a story about six friends coming together to fight off an ultimate evil. A timeless classic, every adaptation has had their own unique take on the story and characters – especially the titular monster. Dracula is only one flavor of vampire, and yet he’s today’s gold standard for what to expect when dealing with one in your story.
Vampires in a modern setting is nothing new, but I think Dracula told in a modern context could be a breath of fresh air for the timeless classic. My idea is to take the epistolary novel and turn it into a found footage miniseries, allowing for the necessary time needed to properly explore the setting, the monster, and our characters in as much depth, or even greater, than the book does. As well as common vampire and Dracula tropes as a whole, such as the debate of whether or not a vampire could see it’s reflection in a modern mirror because it wouldn’t be backed with silver? Could Lucy accept so many transfusions if her blood type was AB+? (The answer to that one is yes.)
The Darkest Hour
On the anniversary of her best friend’s death, a girl is forced to juggle her grief alongside the discovery that the people and world she knew aren’t quite what she’d believed them to be. This leads to questions of if her best friend is truly dead or not.
Sophomore year was when the mania of the Marvel Cinematic Universe really took hold of my friend group. Everyone had a favorite hero. Everyone dressed up as that hero. The love of the movies and the characters are what brought all of us together. Sadly, tragedy tore this friend group apart soon after graduation.
The Darkest Hour is meant to be a tribute to the superhero genre and to people struggling with loss that are forced to become their own hero. This feature length action mystery, something along the lines of Captain America: The Winter Soldier meets Stranger Things, that would ask questions like: what would you do if you realized the people you cared for were willing to betray you? What if you could no longer trust your own mind? Is it possible to trust again? What makes a true friend?
Emily Cuthbert Portfolio 