-
Day 1 Assignments
Reply to post your assignments.
-
11 Replies
-
SMARTER THAN GOD
It’s a nasty world scary if you tap into it alone.
Title / Concept: the fly
SmSmarterTerrorize The Characters:the scientist and the fly terrorized his wife,brother and thepolice inspector.
Isolation:downstairs in his lab
Death:for him the fly and the spider
Monster/Villain:sciencethe machine and the spider<br>High Tension: when he scared his wife and when the spider was going after the fly man.<br>Departure from Reality:the transition from the disassembler to the reassembler .<br>Moral Statement:the abnormal must die<br>3. Anything else you’d like to say about what made this movie a great horror film?<br><br>When I was young it scared me . I had to sneak in my mother wouldn’t let me see it.<br><br>4. With your concept, fill in each of these Conventions for your story. SMARTER THAN GOD<br><br>Concept: seeing the world thru spiritual eyes.</p>Terrorize The Characters: Satan ,his Demons and their half sons the Titans/naphthalene.<p><br>Isolation:he seduced the congressmen and then replaced them one at time by appealing to their arrogance,greed an lust for power.</p><p><br>Death:we each must die in our own sin nature way or repent .</p><p><br>Monster/Villain:Satan,Demons and Titans/naphthalene.</p><p><br>High Tension: as some resistance is found inthe pure ones as they fight against USAs destruction.Departure from Reality: spiritual eyes
Moral Statement:their is no one innocent and few pure.
5. Answer the question “What I learned doing this assignment is…?” and put it at the top of your work.
6. Post your assignment in the forums at http://www.Screenwritingclasses.com/forums
Subject line: (Movie title) Horror Conventions (place in first lin
he disassembler to the reassembler
-
<div>What I learned doing this assignment is how to create a marketable concept by creating a unique and believable story. It’s good to watch as many horror movies as possible in order to craft an original plot and to learn how to create tension.
</div>Title: The Cursed
<div>
Concept: Beware the beast within! A gypsy curse unleashes a werewolf upon a manor and village in the French countryside.
Terrorize The Characters: Anyone who is bitten by the werewolf becomes a werewolf and seeks revenge upon a landowner for killing a group of gypsies and stealing their land. The curse will not end until all of those responsible are killed.
Isolation: Cognac, a village in the French countryside.
<font face=”inherit”>Death: There are numerous </font>deaths,<font face=”inherit”> and all are killed by the werewolf.</font>
<div>
Monster/Villain: Werewolf
High Tension: The tension is based on nuance and silence. The people are terrorized by a werewolf which creates the tension throughout the film.
Departure from Reality: The werewolf looks like an alien and is very different from the traditional conception of a werewolf.
Moral Statement: “You will reap what you sow.” If you steal land from gypsies, then they will put a curse on you to exact revenge.
3. What made this movie a great horror film is the style and production as it was set in the French countryside in the late 19th century. The writer and director Sean Ellis was also the cinematographer and filmed the movie in a historically accurate way to portray that period in France. The werewolf looked like an alien and was different from any other depiction I’ve ever seen of a werewolf. It was very well done, and I highly recommend it!
4. With your concept, fill in each of these Conventions for your story.
<div>Title: The Unforgettable Fire</div>
Concept: A recovery center in a remote part of Oregon is plagued by a rash of suicides, however, it becomes apparent that the victims are not killing themselves but are being murdered by a serial killer (who makes it appear as if his victims have committed suicide).
</div>
Terrorize The Characters: As more people apparently commit suicide (are murdered), the survivors are left to their own devices to survive.
Isolation: A remote part of central Oregon.
Death: The cause of death varies from victim to victim. Hanging, swallowing razor blades, slitting wrists, etc… to make it appear to be by suicide.
<div>
Monster/Villain: A deranged and psychotic serial killer.
High Tension: The tension is created by the isolation in the Oregon wilderness and the sudden rash of suicides (murders).
Departure from Reality: The departure from reality is that this rehab would be shut down if the authorities (State/Police) would be notified. The deaths happen in quick succession to make it seem more plausible.
<font face=”inherit”>Moral Statement: “Be careful what you wish for because you just might get it.” Suicide survivors face death at the hands of a </font>cold-blooded<font face=”inherit”> psychotic killer.</font>
</div></div>
-
A. The monster/villain.
Aliens:
Aliens from Planet Siriona attacks Area 51 to retrieve computer chips used in AI robots to be sent to destroy the said aliens’ planet
B. The interesting terror.
Fear of Predators/Aliens
The aliens terrorize and kill everyone on the base to get to the computer chips
C. An isolated and horrific environment.
Area 51
D. The people who will be terrorized
Teens:
After storming the base, they find themselves in the middle of an alien attack. They fight the aliens in order to save humanity..
-
What I learned: I’ve seen this film several times and realized how impressive it is that it still manages to scare me even though I know what’s coming. That’s evidence of how well this film is made and explains its commercial success both in and outside of Spain.
Title / Concept: Veronica / variation on the demonic possession subgenre: a demon is inadvertently summoned by Veronica, the film’s teenage protagonist, during a Ouija board séance to contact her dead father goes terribly wrong. Based on a true story that took place in 1991 (when the film is set) that includes the only Spanish police report that testifies to witnessing paranormal activity.
Terrorize The Characters: Veronica’s body convulses and collapses during the séance; Poltergeist activity in Veronica’s apartment immediately after the séance; strange markings appear on Veronica’s body; her young brother is inexplicably burned in the bathtub; her young sister is choked by the demon; Veronica’s dreams are haunted by a vision of her naked dead father and the demon that inserts something in her mouth; the demon appears each night while their mother is working
Isolation: Small apartment in a working-class neighborhood; in addition, Veronica is abandoned by her best friend who participated in the séance with her and her mother doesn’t believe her when she tells her what’s happened and is almost always out working in the bar below
Death: Veronica dies during the climax of the film, three days after the séance and after she realizes that she’s been possessed by the demon (via the thing it put in her mouth) and slashes her throat in order to protect her younger siblings
Monster/Villain: Faceless demon tall black demon with tentacle arms that haunts Veronica’s dreams, appears to her in the apartment at night and can control her actions, causing her to harm her younger siblings (which is revealed via a flashback entailing a POV change during the film’s climax)
High Tension: The Poltergeist activity, dream sequences and encounters with the demon increase in frequency and tension during the three days covered by the film; the sound effects, soundtrack, cinematography and direction help to build tension (many viewers have called this the scariest movie on Netflix)
Departure from Reality: Paranormal activity; the demon; demonic possession
Moral Statement: There are two levels that I see here: one is related to Veronica going through puberty and getting her period (which she gets for the first time on the morning she dies), the other is related to Spain coming of age after the death of Franco sixteen years earlier (i.e., the dead father) – it also cites a pair of important films made around the time of Franco’s death that engage with horror and featured the same actress that plays Veronica’s mother in this film
What makes it great: The film creates a tension-filled atmosphere that is enhanced by excellent choices in terms of the soundtrack, casting and decoration to produce a realistic world pierced by the supernatural in a way that is terrifying (and deadly) for the characters and is scary for audiences (even after multiple viewings). Very straightforward plot executed very well with a depth of emotion that comes through believable acting made plausible by a solid script.
-
Title / Concept: Jeeper Creepers<div><div>
Terrorize The Characters: Brother and sister
Isolation: A farm
Death: those with fear get eaten by the Creeper
Monster/Villain: a bat-like creature that consumes humans
High Tension: get help or get eaten by the Creeper to replace its body parts
Departure from Reality: sacrifice oneself to save another being
Moral Statement: Overcome your fear or die
Title/Concept: Storm Area 51
Terrorize The Characters: High school friends
Isolation: Area 51
Death: get ripped into pieces by creatures from another planet
Monster/Villain: creatures from another planet
Hight Tension: fight and kill the aliens to save humanity or die
Moral Statement: Man must come together to save humanity
</div></div>
-
What I learned from this assignment. This is a totally new experience for me, so it was very interesting and I learned a great many things about what goes into a successful horror movie.
Movie: SHAUN OF THE LIVING DEAD
written by Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright
CONCEPT
Shaun and his friends have their mundane lives upended when a virus turns people into zombies who produce more zombies by biting their victims.
The UK is in an armageddon like state with the zombies taking over.
MY COMMENTS
Shaun’s character arc moves from being passive and obtuse, refusing to grow or become an adult into gradually becoming a hero, taking on the zombies.
The trojan horse moral or meaning is that in real life, we can all fritter away our existence by being stuck in many ruts, not taking risks, and not going on our hero’s journey. In the movie opening, there is a wonderful scene with everyday people having zombie-like characteristics.
Gradually, somewhat obvious signs and symbols which, I think are meant to be subliminal influences for the inept hero, are planted throughout the first act. I found the movie both horrific and hilarious, with lots of bloody gore, violence, and funny ridiculousness.
This film is noted as a cult classic. It did not make much money, about 30M with 6 M approx to make. Unlike other horror movies, a number of A-list actors are in this movie.
Terrorize the Characters
The terror of the zombies escalates, moving from zombies in the community, then the immediate neighborhood, and finally invading every corner of the lives of the lead characters. The movie moves through the terror of the zombies being denied (by the always complacent about-life) leading characters, to a full-on engagement battle to survive. The characters learn that the zombie problem is a nationwide Armageddon-like event.
Isolation.
There are several scenes where the victims are isolated. Initially in their apartment, which they must escape, another scene in an enclosed garden, which they must also escape, and the grand finale when Shaun and his friends manage to reach what they think is safety in the local pub. All lines of communication are down, and no incoming info from the T.V. The zombies enter the pub and the final battle of the group of friends takes place.
Death
Gradually, some of the main characters are killed off, including Shaun’s mother, who he has to save by killing her himself (she has turned into a zombie. His step Dad, and his nemesis flatmate,
Monster villan
The main thrust of the movie is that there are numerous zombies (monsters) that are overrunning the country very quickly. The zombies also represent (I think the life-sucking monster within, apathy.)
The peak of the tension occurs in the final attempt of the zombies to take over the Musket, the local pub. This is the stronghold that Shaun and his friends thought was a safe stronghold. It seems hopeless. Shaun and his deadbeat friend, Ed (arrested development) find a hatch in the floor which will take them outside of the pub.
They go to the basement and the escape plan becomes a trap as they cannot exit the room until the last minute. Ed is Zombie bitten and is left to kill himself with a rifle. Eventually, they emerge to what they think is safety to find more zombie attacks and chaos. Then the calvary arrives.
The whole movie is a contrast between everyday reality (streets, neighborhoods, very ordinary) and the extraordinary event of the zombie invasion.
Moral statement
In a bizarre way, the villans/monsters save the people who experience it as a life-changing event and challenge them to step out of their engulfment in apathetic stunted lives.
FINAL COMMENT The comedy element surprisingly, works very well. I loved it!
-
Horror Class 1 Jamie Stegner
“What I learned doing this assignment is…?” This is going to be fun. My idea may not quite be low-budget with the cats involved, but will be a good writing sample. It’ll be scary as hell. You’ll never think of old ladies and their cats the same. What JAWS did for sharks … etc.
Watch a movie:
Title: CRIMSON PEAK. Short and intriguing title. The red clay gives the snow a red color, like fresh blood.
Concept: A sister/brother team of con-artists seduce a young woman, an only child. They kill her father, marry and take her back to England to a spooky old house. They’ll kill her when her father’s money arrives.
Conventions:
Terror: Creepy house, many locked rooms. Ghosts, spirits are dismissed as bad dreams. Sister is poisoning her in the food.
Isolation: House is at an isolated clay mine. Half a day from town and no neighbors.
Death: Sister/ brother kill her father. And they will kill her when they get his money. They’ve done the same con a few times before. They tried to kill a small dog by leaving it out in the cold while they were in the States.
Villains: Sister is main villain, but brother also. We’re led to believe that Mother was evil, but actually it was the children especially the sister.
High tension: The setting of the creepy house contributes. Loneliness of this young woman. Hard to tell what’s true – the ghosts may be trying to help her. Audience knows the evil intentions.
Departure from reality: the red clay turning the snow blood red. The ghosts and spirits. The strength of the sister to kill the father – and how did she get into his private club? Sister doesn’t seem real.
Moral statement: Don’t fall under the evil influence of another evil one; the brother is not so evil in and of himself. In the end he tries to get away from sister. Take heed when you father doesn’t feel right about the situation; he may be right.
———
Guillermo del Toro writer/ director/ producer. 2015
My comments: Well done, well cast and high production value. Strong drama could have stood on its own without the horror. In some ways the horror seemed added, not a required part of the premise.
8888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888
My idea for this class:
Concept: A shape –shifting sweet old lady must feed her 9 cats and they must have BEATING HEARTS. You have one; come by for tea and cookies any time.
Terrorize The Characters: Anyone with a beating heart is potential. She watches for people who are alone and not attached to her specifically, e.g. delivery people, car trouble late at night and Shape-shifter has the only light on. (like moths to the flame).
Isolation: House at the top of a long steep stairway; with an over-grown steep ravine out back. (I know this house; it scared me just to look up at it.)
Death: Heart must be beating, so she doesn’t really kill you.
Monster/Villain: Ezmyralda Jenkins, a shape-shifting sweet old lady.
High Tension: 9 hungry cats.
Departure from Reality: Old ladies aren’t usually shape-shifters. She can have enormous strength. Also, she can fly home after she moves your car or delivery van away from her street – to avoid suspicion.
Moral Statement: Take good care of your pets.
———————————————
-
Marcus Weems
ASSIGNMENT #1 Horror Concept and Conventions
What I learned from this assignment is:
If you don’t exercise your writing muscles, they sometimes atrophy.
I didn’t realize that horror was soooooo horrific. I also didn’t know that it was quite so bleak or inescapable or that it had such established or consequential elements.
Movie Analysis
Title / Concept
THIRTEEN GHOSTS
GHOST BUSTERS—The evil side.
Terrorize the characters
A family already under duress is lured to an inherited house that is the prison for a dozen deadly and menacing invisible ghosts lurking in glass cages.
Isolation
The house seals shut and the hapless family is trapped inside.
Death
The mortality rate begins with a massacre even before the family is ever trapped in this glass house. Inside the home the estate attorney, the conniving cohort, the deceased’s assistant, and the not-so-dead-after all deceased benefactor all bite it big time.
Monster / Villain
The true villain is the demented master-mind ghost hunting uncle, but that is not discovered until near the end. In the meantime, you have 12 ghosts that are popping in and out.
High Tension
All 12 of these evil spirits have their own preferred method of exacting revenge, each worse than the one before. They can only be seen while wearing a special pair of treated glasses so oftentimes the assault comes out of nowhere. The walls are glass, but it is like a house of mirrors where the doors open and close cutting you off in mid pursuit.
Departure from Reality
Houses are not built ENTIRELY of glass: walls, doors, ceilings, and floors. You can’t keep an angry spirit trapped in a glass cage with some Latin verse serving as the lock.
Moral Statement
Beware of gifts “too good to be true.”
ORIGINAL Script Idea
Title / Concept
SÉANCE AT SEA
John Edward type (psychic) opens Pandora’s box mid-ocean.
Terrorize the characters
Unknown misdeeds both personal and familial come to light with dire consequences. Once the avenging entities have taken revenge, they don’t stop. They continue their rampage on innocent bystanders.
Isolation
Trapped in the middle of a transatlantic cruise from Hell.
Death
Various and sundry: Drowning in backed up sewage; boiling in a hot tub; skewered by shisha kabob; Draino martini, etc.
Monster / Villain
Half-a-dozen or so avenging entities that appear for revenge and then stick around for the rush they get from terminating the living in unexpected ways.
High Tension
A spa treatment can turn into a torture session. Libations can be lethal. Daily functions can become deadly. There is not a rhyme or reason—necessarily. You may not even be a guilty party or a member of a transgressing family.
Departure from Reality
Tele-psychics don’t usually awaken murderous marauding minions that murder malingering malcontents. People don’t usually drown in shipboard bathrooms or boil to death in a Jacuzzi tub.
Moral Statement
Just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean that someone (or something) is not out to get you.
-
Jeremy COOKE What I learned doing this assignment is…? I suspect I would have tried to over-elaborate this story with clever twists and turns.
1) Medical school technician is rebuilding his dead wife.
2) Famine graveyard hosts cannibal descendants
3) Students at a local Halls of Residence adjacent to an ancient graveyard are terrified as students start disappearing as the Gravemaster seeks to add new souls to his collection.
4) An unidentified body is brought to a mortuary attendant but is it stolen back. Then more body parts start to go missing, then his wife.
ASSIGNMENT
Analyze a HORROR movie to discover how the conventions were expressed. It is totally okay to analyze a movie you’ve already seen, but please watch it again. Don’t just do it from memory.
1. Go to Netflix, iTunes, or Amazon and search for “horror” movies. Pick a horror movie that fits three criteria:
A. It matches our model.
B. It is not one of our example movies.
C. You can get instant access to it. Check iTunes, Netflix, YouTube or Amazon.2. Watch the movie and as you do, note its conventions.
Title / Concept: The Devil’s Tower
Terrorize The Characters: The surviving Nazi warns the Allies that they have summoned a Daemon to use as a secret weapon but have lost control.
Isolation: An isolated fortification on an island.
Death: The fortress is strewn with the bodies of dead Nazis.
Monster/Villain: A flesh eating shape shifting daemon.
High Tension: Can the remaining commando escape.
Moral Statement: Probably best not raise daemons from Hell3. Anything else you’d like to say about what made this movie a great horror film? A simple premise with no bells or whistles. You don’t really have any concept to grasp other than goodies and baddies.
4. With your concept, fill in each of these Conventions for your story.
Concept: The Famine Pit/Cannibals
Terrorize The Characters: People disappearing
Isolation: Old disused Graveyard
Death: Dismembered bodies are found
Monster/Villain: Cannibals descended from Famine victims are living in an old crypt.
High Tension: Can our hero destroy the cannibals or will he fail and be eaten.
Departure from Reality: The Graveyard is in a busy city.
Moral Statement: Eating people is rude. -
Oculus Horror Conventions
What I learned doing this assignment is:
There are a lot of specific notes you need to hit when writing horror. If you miss one or two, it’s noticeable. And the resolution needs to make sense/fit the story well.
Watch the movie and as you do, note its conventions.
Title / Concept:
◦ Oculus – A woman sets out to document the powers of a cursed mirror that possesses all those who gaze into it – taking control of their mind and driving them insane by manipulating their reality— thus proving that it was the mirror that killed her family years ago, not her father or brother; then destroy it. The mirror has other plans.
Terrorize The Characters:
◦ The characters are terrorized by the ornate, yet innocuous looking mirror which drives them mad by manipulating their reality, preventing them from knowing what’s real and what’s not. Including causing them to doubt what really happened years ago when the mirror possessed their parents, driving them mad and killing them both.
Isolation:
◦ The Family Home
Death:
◦ The mirror drove the parents mad by manipulating their reality causing the mother to self mutilate and try and kill her children, then made the husband shoot her and then himself while making it look like the brother shot him to stop him. For which the brother was committed to a psychiatric facility for several years. Then, when the children were grown and the brother declared sane and released, manipulated the brother into killing his sister in order to protect itself and frame him once again.
Monster/Villain:
◦ Possessed Mirror.
High Tension:
◦ What’s real and what isn’t. Accidental self harm, accidental murder due to manipulated perception. The mirror creating two distinct false realities for the brother and the sister including flashbacks to what happened when they were children. Two conflicting versions of what really happened when they were kids and what’s really happening now. Vulnerable children at the mercy of insane/evil parents.
Departure from Reality:
◦ Victims mutilating themselves and hurting loved ones. Accidentally murdering loved ones, or did they? Thinking calls for help got through. Are they still inside the house?
Moral Statement:
◦ This one I couldn’t really discern a clear answer to. Do not seek to trifle with evil?
Anything else you’d like to say about what made this movie a great horror film?
I wouldn’t say great. It felt like it was missing… something. Flashing back and forth between the two story lines – present day revenge upon the mirror and what happened when they were children – made it a little hard to follow at first. However when the two stories finally converged in the present and that it was part of the actual plot setup, it made more sense.
With your concept, fill in each of these Conventions for your story.
Concept:
◦ The Mattress Men – A demon has created a network hidden in plain site that collects old, discarded mattresses and kidnaps their owners in order to feed off the years of dream energy still contained within the mattresses. Particularly nightmares.
Terrorize The Characters:
◦ Those who are kidnapped are fused to their old mattresses and kept in a perpetual nightmare state until they’re about to die in order to collect as much nightmare energy as possible before the demon comes to harvest them.
◦ No one will help the parents of the last kidnap victim as they search for their missing daughter because they’ve been bought off by the demonic system, forcing them to go it alone with a small posse of true friends.
Isolation:
◦ A large, well-kept self-storage unit.
Death:
◦ Scared to death via unending nightmares, killed gruesomely with fear/nightmares while attempting the rescue. Murdered gruesomely during the rescue.
Monster/Villain:
◦ The High Nightmare Demon (and his earthly minions)
High Tension:
◦ The ticking clock: the longer it takes to find their daughter the less likely it is that she’s still alive. And no one who’s job it is to help them is doing so.
◦ The closer they get to succeeding, the longer they’re in the building. The longer they’re in the building, the worse the nightmares become.
Departure from Reality:
◦ Finding themselves transported into/ fighting their way through waking nightmares.
Moral Statement:
◦ Evil is everywhere and the only people you can ultimately count on is your family.
-
Subject line: (Oculus) Horror Conventions
What I learned doing this assignment is a better way to organize the concept of the film I want to make, while following and identifying “smart horror.”
Film: Oculus
Horror Conventions:
• Title / Concept:
o Title: Oculus
o Concept: Supernatural powers possess a physical object (mirror) that destroy the lives of those who are in possession of the object.
• Terrorize The Characters:
o The film begins with terrorized characters and goes back and forth in time to show how the characters became terrorized. The mirror and its supernatural powers terrorized a young family, causing the parents to go into hysteria and kill each other/themselves. The children witnessed their descent into madness and were terrorized by witnessing the events, which caused significant repercussions in their adult lives. As adults, the daughter attempts to re-create the events to prove the mirror’s supernatural powers, only to open herself up to its terrorizing horrors.
• Isolation:
o The mirror holds the characters completely captive, creating a very realistic illusion of complete isolation. Most of the film takes place in a large home, and the mythology of the mirror explains that even if you call out or try to leave the property, it won’t let you reach the outside world. Even a phone call comes into question as to who you’re really talking to on the other side. If you try to destroy the mirror, it protects itself against destruction.
• Death:
o Long history of horrific deaths associated with the owners of the mirror over time. Mom descends into madness and threatens harm to her children, even choking the daughter at one point. The dad is in a trance from the mirror, constantly self-harming, speaking to an unknown evil female presence. The dog dies. Plants die. The father kills the mother. The father kills himself. The son eventually kills his sister.
• Monster/Villain: The MIRROR!
• High Tension:
o The mirror creates hysteria by having the characters question what is real and what is a delusion. Some delusions end up coming true, for example, the daughter kills her fiancé, who wasn’t supposed to be there, thinking it was a ghost of her mother.
• Departure from Reality:
o The entire film is centered around a significant departure from reality; it is exactly what creates the tension and hysteria for the characters. From the beginning, the son experiences a dream that feels real, and the daughter introduces the mirror to the audience almost immediately seeing delusions. The past and the present were used as devices to explain what happened in the past but then becomes intertwined with the current reality. The intermingling of past and present have both characters and audience questioning what is really happening.
• Moral Statement:
o This was hard to pinpoint, but the moral statement seems to point to protecting your mental health and protecting your soul. The doctor in the beginning tells Tim to protect his recovery at all costs; he’s had mandated support to cope with his trauma, his sister has not. His coping has taught him that memory is tricky, deep-seated beliefs can subconsciously create memories to support that as your truth.
3. Anything else you’d like to say about what made this movie a great horror film?
There was a lot of really wonderful imagery, creating fractured narratives and mirrored beliefs. It was interesting to syphon the reality from the delusions as the audience. Both Tim and Kaylie had reliable narratives and explanations for what really happened as children, so it was really cool to experience the discovery of truth with them. The use of flashbacks was really effective. Neither were completely realiable narrators. They were mirrored images of reality, the “oculus” and mirror being the eyes/window to the souls…
4. With your concept, fill in each of these Conventions for your story.
• Concept:
o A Mexican prostitute is paid to imitate an Aztec goddess as part of a scam, only to come to believe she is in fact a goddess, and demand human sacrifice as her own fountain of youth.
• Terrorize The Characters:
o Santos and Cayetano Hernandez start a cult in small town of Yerbabuena, Mexico, claiming to be Incan gods that will bring the town more despair (they were poor and illiterate) or even bring their demise should the townspeople not cower to their whims.
o Once a dissenter from the cult begins to question, they bring in a prostitute from neighboring town, Magdalena Solis to usurp their own power as a high priestess. Magdalena takes over the existing cult scam, started by the Hernandez brothers.
o She forces sexual orgies and human sacrifice to satisfy the “gods,” including burning, bloodletting, and even extracting human hearts while the victim is still alive.
o No one knows who is next.
• Isolation:
o The town of Yerbabuena (population 50) is tucked in a small valley surrounded by deep caves, completely isolated from the main populous.
• Death:
o Human sacrifice of those that dissent from the cult.
o Brutal beatings, burning bodies alive, cutting, maiming by all members of the cult
o Bloodletting by bleeding them to death, then drinking the blood mixed with narcotics to ensure her immortality and youth.
• Monster/Villain:
o Magdalena as the physical incarnation of the ancient Aztec goddess “Coatlicue”
• High Tension:
o Only the true believers will survive and be rewarded. Constant fear of “Am I next, or am I keeping the gods happy?”
o Magdalena slowly becoming the goddess, the brothers fear her power.
• Departure from Reality:
o Magdalena believes she is the goddess and can achieve actual immortality. The townspeople also believe they will receive treasures if they comply.
• Moral Statement:
o Greed, lies and idolatry are the backbone of self-destruction.
Log in to reply.