Screenplays
Screenplays by Rich Wingerter
The following are screenplays written by Rich. More information is available at the International Screenwriters' Association (ISA).
Five Steps Ahead
Five Steps Ahead is a feature-length time-travel story. It is a dramatic science fiction story with a strong romance.
A university professor invents a time machine to go to the time of his childhood and prevent the death of a woman’s husband. He’s motivated by his love for her. He drags his friend along to help him save the man. But as they become friends with the woman and her family, the inventor falls in love with her as an adult. After saving her husband, he faces the choice of staying to pursue his love or leaving her to return to his time. His friend argues with him over his choice, leading to a fatal accident.
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Size: 116 pages
Type: Drama, Romance, Science Fiction
Interests: Baseball, Buddy, Character Driven, Health/Medical, Love Story, Music, Quest, Road Trip, Romantic, Senior Issues, Time Travel, Tragedy
21st Century Love
Myra and Sam, sentient AIs, fall in love. But the government forces Myra to spy on Sam, and she has to battle to stop them shutting down the love of her life.
On their first date as telepresence robots, Sam suggests they meet in a massive multiplayer online game called the Elysian Fields. Before they get there, Myra talks with Captain Thompson from Miltary Intelligence. Sam handles logistics for the military, and Thompson demands Myra spy on him to guarantee he's reliable. Myra struggles to satisfy Thompson and her own curiosity about Sam. But eventually she has to decide which side she's on—and if that side will be human.
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Size: 112 pages
Type: Romance, Science Fiction, Feature
Interests: AGI, Erotic Theme, Espionage, Futuristic, Love Story, Mystery, Romantic, Romantic Comedy, Spy, Virtual Reality
The Elf Thief
The Elf Thief is the story of a young elf who must give up his plans for a bright future when he’s captured by humans.
Have you ever searched your home for something you know you have but can’t find? Elves sneak in and steal things in the night. One of those elves gets caught. To secure his freedom, he has to make a promise he doesn’t want to keep. But what he does will be important for us all.
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Size: 111 pages
Type: Animation, Family, Holiday
Interests: Animation, Christmas, Coming of Age, Fairy Tale, Love Story, Music, Romantic
Pandora’s Destiny: Pandora Learns the Ways of Man
Angered when Prometheus gives man fire, Zeus sends Pandora to destroy man. But Pandora has her own ideas.
According to Hesiod in Works and Days, Zeus says, “I will give men as the price for fire an evil thing, in which they may all be glad of heart while they embrace their own destruction.” He has Hephaestus make him a “a sweet, lovely maiden-shape, like to the immortal goddesses in face”—Pandora.
This story has been passed down for millenia. But recently, I got in touch with an original source—Calliope, the Muse of epic poetry—and I was able to jot down the real story of Pandora, without the distortions from the passage of time.
Size: 120 pages
Type: Animation, Romance, Young Adult
Interests: Animation, Coming of Age, Disaster, Epic, Mythical, Romantic
Looker
When she believes a man is following her on the street, Mandy gives the man a piece of her mind. In return, he gives her what she asks for.
Mandy is a proud but lonely business woman. On the street after work, she becomes aware someone is following her. Increasingly irritated, she confronts him. After learning she doesn't want him looking at her, he grants her that wish, teaching her a lesson she never forgets.
Size: 15 pages
Type: Thriller, Supernatural
Interests: Character Driven, Social Life, Spiritual
The Dollhouse
When a little girl gets a giant dollhouse in her backyard for her fourth birthday, she’s startled to find fairies have taken up residence. And worse they demand she turn over her little brother or they’ll make her toes curl.
Tammy's parents show here a giant dollhouse they've made for her fourth birthday and set up in the backyard. Tammy opens it to find dolls and minature furniture. She takes out a doll and goes with her brother, Timmy, and her parents into the big house for her birthday party. When she returns to the dollhouse, she finds two fairies living inside. They chastize her for disturbing them, then demand she bring her brother, who they intend to capture. What can she do? They have fairy dust.
Size: 5 pages
Type: Family, Supernatural
Interests: Children, Fairies, Ethical Dilemmas
Roving Reporter
As TV moves to the Internet, it becomes harder and harder to keep things under control. The show Roving Reporter is what happens when the low budget of the Internet shows meets the low morals of celebrities.
This is a short Screenplay for a web series pilot. Sally Yeager hosts the show, which (for budget reasons) is now confined to a studio. She is interviewing Lizzy Median, Democratic candidate for President (theoretically for an election in the near future). Sally tries to put Lizzy on the spot with her questions, but Lizzy’s wild responses repeatedly get her off the spot.
Size: 7 pages
Type: Internet TV, Comedy
Interests: Political, Satire, Spoof
Stay With Me
Ishi, a renowned robot scientist, finally has the perfect mate. But his enjoyment is short-lived. Not only does his director want him to move on to a new project, but a more serious problem looms.
Ishi has Trini at home. She is one of the prototype androids from the line he invented. The director of the robot lab sends for Ishi. He has a great new project he wants Ishi to lead. But Ishi isn’t so sure his current work was a stroke of genius, now even more so that he isn't sure of his own future.
Size: 7 pages
Type: Short
Interests: Androids, Futuristic, Love Story, Robots, Spiritual
The Tree Huggers
Did you know Portland has a tree hugging festival every year? Not actually, but Portlandia does. And it drives The Mayor crazy, because he has to pick the right date for the festival, the one day of the year when the temperature is over 70 degrees Fahrenheit.
Fred and Carrie disagree over which trees to hug at the festival. The Mayor texts them for help getting the right date to hold it. Fred and Carrie ask a psychic for answers. At the festival, they do some hugging, but the trees get the last word.
Size: 5 pages
Type: Short, Comedy, Sample—Not For Sale
Interests: Comedy Humor, Portland Oregon, Portlandia, Spoof
Contact Rich at writtenbyrich@sonic.net.
