Valentine owns all the rights to his screenplays, stories and characters. Most have never been shopped.
In this book form they do not require “solicitation”. You may even read ACT I without purchasing the eBook. Valentine is willing to hip pocket your agent/agency to facilitate packaging.
For commissioned first drafts, Valentine has had great success (re)writing ACT I until his client likes it before writing the rest of the screenplay. Establishing the tone and characters on the page in ACT I allows the character choices and story points to be more fully realized in the scene play. It’s faster, cheaper and easier, and avoids the frustration, delay and expense of clumsy Frankensteined rewrites. Knowing how and where (s)he is going, the confident writer is then free to create imaginative settings, natural dialogue and compelling actions at a stimulating pace with fewer story problems.
305-535-3000
COLLAPSE
Screenplay eBook
– genre: topical disaster action, ages: 14 to 80, pages: 120 –
The actors in this all-star cast disaster film will only have to shoot 3 to 10 days, all within a short driving distance of their LA homes. It’s an easy paycheck covering an issue they support in an entertaining movie with great box office potential.
The wide-demographic all-star cast broadens the story’s impact, maximizes audience reach, and ensures box office receipts. Filling certain demographics early will require filling other demographics later in the casting process. There is a wide latitude of age, race and type for every role, but the specific demographic filled by the available bankable stars cast early will require supporting role demographics to conform, like the age of a lead’s wife, or the race of a lead’s brother. It will requiring some juggling in packaging and give the casting director a variable puzzle to solve.
Although it’s a wild entertaining ride, Collapse is also an involving drama with an all walks of life cast going through heart pounding, heart warming and heart breaking moments. It’s presented in a believable, not sensational manner, to create an authentic connection, and affect the viewer in the gut. With real implications for viewers’ lives, the timely subject matter will likely stimulate quite a bit of public discussion.
Although it stands alone, Collapse is set up to be the first in a franchise or series. This first script covers only the first 24 hours of the collapse of our society, so viewers will be anxious for what’s to come in the sequels covering the days and months that follow, especially since the scenario played out in this story is not only possible but likely.
The sequel, franchise or series would continue our cast’s escape from LA on Jack’s huge luxury sailing yacht to Dust’s well-built commune above a cove on the Northern California coast. Land and sea and mountains and coastline will provide rich sources of material. Exciting survival and defense, dramatic regrets and hopes, ingenious resourcefulness and pragmatism, exposure of strengths and weaknesses, amorous liaisons and new friendships, all will challenge disparate desperate characters learning to get along.
ROMANTIC SCHEMER
Screenplay eBook
– genre: romantic comedy, ages: 12 to 80, pages: 90 –
Romantic Schemer is an enticing romantic comedy concept for actors from 20 to 50 looking for something different than the standard rom-com formula. It is conducive to any geographic location(s) here or abroad.
Romantic Schemer is set up as the first of a franchise or series.
The franchise or series could pick up the leads/couple 2, 5, 10, etc years later, as their schedules permit filming.
The couple will comically conspire to present themselves as a variety of characters in a variety of costumes and situations ripe with entertaining possibilities: as a couple, brother-sister, niece-uncle, boss-assistant, business partners, mutual antagonists and so on. The material is endless and portends a long and lucrative run.
A series would allow the leads to age naturally with each episode.
The couple could have a son and daughter who could follow in their footsteps to expand the demographic and elongate the run.
Supporting cast members could be fresh each sequel or episode since a repeating supporting cast is not required, while that option is available.
The theater where Rick stages his plays is another rich option for additional material, or for a nestled or frame story, to spin off. This first screenplay does not exploit the theater.
The completed micro budgeted Romantic Schemer movie may serve as a filmed storyboard of the screenplay draft presented for the director or producer to visualize potential variations of the story. The current screenplay/movie has the distinction of having only two actors in the entire film.
ANGEL’S PLAYGROUND
Screenplay eBook
– genre: dramatic adventure comedy, ages: 16-80, pages: 120 –
These three leading roles are precisely the kinds of rare characterizations stars long for, especially a tour de force role for a 45-to-65 year old actress. The primary roles, or the secondary and/or guest appearance roles, could be filled by distinct types to widen or target demographic appeal.
Las Vegas, or LA, offers a comfortable nearby location from which to base the production. The Las Vegas setting provides numerous cross promotional and product placement opportunities.
Angel’s Playground is set up as the first of a franchise or series.
Viewers will want to see how things pan out for the desperate trio we’re all rooting for, either all in one sequel or over several.
Have them go through more trials and tribulations together on the last leg of their journey to Las Vegas; have them separate to pursue the pressing plans that motivate their disastrous shortcuts; and have their paths cross again forcing them to rely on each other to complete their respective business and fulfill their respective dreams as their comical interactions again test and advance their unlikely, endearing friendships.
Their shortcuts always turn out to be long cuts, and a repeating or new character is always in the mix as their lesson teaching guardian Angel.
– genre: topical romantic thriller with action, ages: 18 to 49, pages: 112 –
Set in LA this screen property is perfect for young talent looking for their first movie breakthrough.
It’s also an easy commute, with minimal disruption in their lives, and allows their agents and managers to keep track of their work while allowing the ingenues to continue to audition and train.
Played is not conducive to a sequel, franchise or series.
ALL’S NOT FAIR IN LOVE AND WAR
Screenplay eBook
– genre: dramatic action suspense romance, ages: 21 to 60, pages: 100 –
The primary attraction of this screen property is the strong female character at its center and the options she is presented with.
The tension between her romantic and professional choices will captivate female viewers, while the players’ strategies will satisfy male viewers who will be further drawn in by a sexy female lead who’s characterization will expose them to the inside workings of a capable modern women.
The completed micro budgeted All’s Not Fair movie may serve as a filmed storyboard of the screenplay draft presented for the director or producer to visualize potential variations of the story.
All’s Not Fair is possibly conducive to a sequel, franchise or series. The terrorist subject matter could be changed to some other criminal element.
– genre: intriguing high concept journey, ages: 10 to 80, pages: 100 –
This subject matter has mainstream, worldwide appeal. The original Planet of The Apes and Close Encounters have nothing on this story. It’s masterfully written and a real crowd pleaser with compelling characters and great supporting nobodies including a crowd at the end that reacts as one character to several big reveals.
The first of a trilogy, unEARTHED has sequels that take us to even more intriguing revelations as four fascinating disciplines are brilliantly and uniquely connected. Based in fact and verifiable, the controversial material will undoubtedly stir up plenty of pre want to see, great word of mouth, and departing want for more.
The movie increasingly draws the viewer in but saves the big reveals for the very end which will leave audiences excitedly discussing the spooky plausibility of what they just saw and hungry for the many more reveals and further explanations contained in the two sequels.
This high concept movie will want to be experienced, and will have to be watched to be in the loop. A simultaneous massive worldwide release on all mediums will avoid spoilers and maximize the full social effect.
ESPERANCE
a novel from antiquity for screen adaption
– genre: sweeping historical drama, ages: 18 to 80 –
It is the age of the writing that informs this story, its characters, the dialogue, and style, all so appropriately befitting its 1885-1900 Chicago period settings. These sensibilities would be almost impossible to reproduce today by even the most accomplished writer, and will be of irreplaceable benefit to the director. I recommend the adaption plagiarize as much as possible to maintain the style that endeared the purchase of this unique property.
The sweep of the story, the authenticity of the characterizations, and the realism of the dialogue make for enticing roles. Mrs. Bonne, the beneficent lady at its center, offers an older eminent actress the opportunity for a tour de force performance in two important roles as both the affluent Mrs. Bonne and her elderly widowed mother.
All rights are available for this unadapted 270 page manuscript written by an undiscoverable author perhaps around 1930. My search yielded no evidence of the existence of the author or title or a copyright for the work. The author’s name is probably a nom de plume, a custom of the time which usually contained parts of the author’s real name. A comprehensive title search is in order.
I was given the original Esperance manuscript by a friend who committed a planned suicide several years ago in Australia. He found it in the 1970s below the bottom drawer in a chest of drawers he purchased at an estate sale in Texas not long before our enduring friendship began. He showed it to me back then, and again a decade later when he gave it to me after selling his successful business in hopes that I may make a movie of it someday. After a few mobile decades we’d both long forgotten about it. When he died I remembered and looked for it, and found a xerox copy but not the original. A couple of years after he died, I rediscovered the copy amongst the screenplays I was polishing for the ValentineScreenplays.com website, and decided to help Esperance find an audience after all these years, as a book and perhaps a movie too.