In the world of the feature film The Impact, humanity, in all its guises, is on a countdown to oblivion.
In real life – eek! – we’re on a countdown to something life-affirming: the world premiere of a film that has been a community endeavour and labour of love for many – the brainchild of Chris Jones and the Create50 team.
After two years of a pandemic and associated restrictions, the premiere of this crowd-created film about an earth-annihilating meteor is welcome.
There is still much to do to ensure that the premiere is the success all involved would like it to be. Tickets will sell out, so tell family, friends and everyone else about this opportunity to support independent British filmmaking.
You can book tickets here – https://impact50film.com/
The Ordinary World
Most of the time, writers write in isolation – unless they belong to a writing group or are on a course. We go about our daily lives, working, raising a family, and write behind the scenes.
Writing can languish in drawers or computer folders. Reasons for this are many: waiting to be redrafted, stalled writing, brain demons scuppering your efforts and confidence, uncertainty about where to send work, or life’s events and trials.
Entry fees for screenplay competitions preclude many people from entering. There might be a monetary reward for the winner – especially with major competitions – but the chance of winning is significantly reduced by numbers of writers entering. Where you win in one competition, you don’t place in another with the same script.
Unless you’re a writer/director, there will be a lot of screenplays waiting for something to happen.
Call to Adventure
Chris Jones – and the London Screenwriters festival – has always championed and encouraged writers on their writing adventures. The record-breaking 50 Kisses was the first feature film project in 2014 – again, a collaborative process between writers and filmmakers.
Chris Jones… ‘For us ’50 Kisses’ is just the beginning, we are committed to creating real opportunities for writers and filmmakers to get their work platformed. Perhaps the best result though is the huge amount of new collaborations the project has created, with writers and filmmakers now working together after meeting within the 50 Kisses process.’
You can see the film here: https://50kissesfilm.com
In 2015, the next Create50 project – The Impact – was launched.
‘As we look into the face of death with certainty, who would we choose to be in those last few hours?’
A meteor strike. Hours left to live. An exciting idea to stimulate creativity. The entry fee for scripts was £5.00, which was the cheapest I’d seen, and the benefits to writers were many:
- Online community.
- Three opportunities to redraft and upload each script.
- 50 writers’ scripts to be chosen.
- Scripts available to filmmakers in the second stage of the competition.
- The films could eventually form The Impact
Meeting the Mentor(s)
Thousands of screenwriters joined the online community and wrote and uploaded scripts. The expectation was that, in entering scripts, writers would also read three other writers’ scripts and offer constructive feedback. Some writers were experienced, others less so – this didn’t matter. Everyone had something to contribute to the collaborative forum. Many mentors were willing to support, advise and cheer on one another.
It was, as KT Parker, a fellow writer, said – ‘It’s Film School For A Fiver!’
At this film school we could give/be given constructive advice about;
- formatting
- writing in a visual, cinematic way
- concept
- screenwriting software
- proofreading
And so much more.
I enjoyed reading the scripts so much that I read and gave feedback to – well, I can’t remember the exact number – over a thousand. I saw scripts develop and improve from the first draft upload, and I certainly benefited from the feedback that others gave my scripts.
It truly was a rewarding, collaborative process.
At the end of the scriptwriting process, even if someone’s script wasn’t selected for the filmmaking stage, they still had scripts that could have a life outside of The Impact. There are people whose scripts did not advance, but they filmed the scripts and entered them into festivals. Successfully.
Some writers whose scripts were selected did not have interest from a producer/director so they went on a journey to make the film themselves.
Writers answering the call to adventure and boldly going where they would not normally go.
(Chris Jones, Director of the London Screenwriters Festival)
As happens in all good screenplays, the journey to finalising The Impact has been one of peaks and troughs – and we’re not yet at the end of this journey.
Do you want to win two tickets to see The Impact and can get to London on 31st May 2022? If so, answer this question in the ‘leave a comment’ box.
A dinosaur leg has recently been found. What is the name of the fossil site and where is it?
The first to answer wins. Good luck!
Milethia Thomas
Screenwriter and Director
5 thoughts on “Countdown to The Impact feature film on 31st May by Milethia Thomas”
Hell’s Creek site in North Dakota. I’ve actually been there! It was very cool indeed.
Tanis fossil site in the US State of North Dakota.
Hell Creek STOP Tanis STOP North Dakota STOP Thescelosaurus STOP Rest in peace STOP
And we have a winner! @Rebecca Robinson! We will be in touch.
CJ
Well done Rebecca, see you there!