Introducing... Doomscroller!

On 15 June 2023, probably in the wee hours, I jotted down a story idea in the Notes application on my mobile. This was after I'd read a post on Twitter - when I was still on what would become the dumpster fire known as X - that asked why masters such as Scorsese and Spielberg only made ‘period pieces’ these days. The answer posited was that the smartphone had made it increasingly difficult to generate drama/tension with everybody being connected all the time. That's a discussion in and of itself but what it did do was sponsor an idea… 

The first line of my note to myself was: “If mobile phones in movies are a problem lean into it.”

From there the high concept horror film Doomscroller was born with the tagline:

“Being glued to your phone has never been so deadly.”

I'm going to be a little obtuse here as it's a relatively new project in development. However, it's one that seems to be gaining some traction.

That tagline turned into the One Liner:

“When six strangers, all with a dark online secret, wake up in a deserted house with a mobile phone glued to their hand a malevolent voice tells them that if the battery hits zero percent the phone will explode.”

I describe it as Se7en meets The Menu; the latter film giving me the inspiration for the second act turning point. Yes, this is a long way removed from Saw!

I did my usual development process, namely a detailed beat sheet before attempting a draft, and something a little unusual. I pitched it to my director Tim Dean who I normally work with on thrillers and political stories. I wasn't sure if horror was his thing so I was somewhat surprised and delighted when he loved it.

Then another surprise. The first draft came out quickly and relatively easy. Including the third act. I could see it so clearly. I was especially happy about the ending as I've worked on scripts before where I was constantly rewriting the third act and it's agony.

It's now up to fourth draft stage and yes, there is a proof of concept short taking a strand out of the feature and making it a self-contained story.

As producer Jaimee Peasley came on board to work with us, I sent off the short script initially to gauge her reaction. She loved it too and became instrumental in applying for a funding grant. We ultimately weren't successful even though the funding body apparently loved the short script. However, it was a great exercise for the three of us to work together as a creative team and introduce ourselves as such to Screenwest.

Meanwhile, on the feature front incredible things were happening that I can't talk about in detail at the moment. A memorable pitch of the concept that led to another pitch meeting. A meeting before Christmas that I pushed hard for to confirm whether the execution on the page met the promise of the concept. That 90 minute meeting validated my belief we had something very promising.

Now I wait for notes before the next rewrite. And some other things to fall into place.

I'm really excited about this one. It has commercial potential and a killer concept, pun fully intended.

Stay tuned!

The abuse of digital technology will no longer be tolerated. You have been warned #doomscroller