I
would like to introduce you to my screenplay, Marcus
and Faith…
• Painkiller addict shock-comic believes
an aspiring dancer will change his life for the better. But
what he encounters is far more disturbing and dangerous than
he ever expected. Not even his painkillers can prepare him
for this journey.
The script won first prize in the Thriller section
of the Pacific
Northwest Screenwriters Contest.
Competition judges included Daniel Yost, the screenwriter of Drugstore
Cowboy, starring Matt Dillon.
In addition to placing as a quarter-finalist and
semi-finalist in other contests, my screenplay was reviewed by
Phil Gladwin,
a screenwriter and script editor for both the BBC and ITV. Here’s
what he had to say:
“Recently I read his script, Marcus and Faith,
and found it a compelling investigation into evil. The story
seldom falters, the dialogue is strong, potent, and vividly
alive and, despite the dark subject and the unflinching tone,
the piece glows with hope and a yearning for the warmth of
the human heart that manages to bring some kind of redemption
into a very bleak world.
Over the last 12 years I have worked as a
story editor in development and production in the UK. Benjamin
writes to such a high standard that, were he in the UK, it
would be no problem to find him serious interest among the
production companies I know. "
The script was similarly applauded by international
screenwriting contest, PAGE.
Here’s what the studio reader had to say:
“Your dialogues are strong. You have the
tough patois down pat. The villains are chilling and their
language reflects their dark personas. Shades of Shane Black
here. I loved the way you handled your villains. Chilling.
Great name too. He feels like an original creation. You know
the genre you are writing in and clearly are intimately familiar
with this dark, crime-ridden world. Your script is noirish
and bleak yet carries a streak of romanticism, a feeling of
hope and a struggle for love. Almost as if you crossed an
Andrew Vacchs’ novel with a Tarantino/Shane Black film. Your
writing style is lean and crisp and very readable.”
And recently the script was reviewed by LA Reader
-- Scott Parisien. Here's what he had to say:
“Marcus and Faith" is a dark, chaotic
and wicked glimpse into the underground world of drugs, obsession,
sex trades and the lengths to which we would all go in order
to be in the arms of the one we love. Sometimes scary, sometimes
sickening, and at all times emotionally engaging, the story
of Marcus and Faith is one that definitely leaves an impression.
From the first page, your style, voice and definite talent
to write jumps off the page. The story pulled me in and engaged
me and started to take me to dark places, that even though
I didn’t want to go there. It was very reminiscent of 8mm,
and very much set up a world you could feel in the base of
your teeth. Very dark and very real as it is very explicit,
very graphic and at some moments hard to keep reading. If
someone were to ask me, what is the script like… I would have
to say something like Hostel meets Leaving Las Vegas…that
said, the writing is strong."
Click
here to meet the characters / cast...
Click
here to read my pitch...
Marcus and Faith is uncompromisingly seedy,
seductive and full of tension. But beneath this grim surface is
a moral center – a compassionate portrait of people struggling
to survive life’s dangerous cocktail. Modern society mixes violence
with sex, complacency with discomfort, beauty with repulsiveness,
and graphic violence with gentle family values. The trick is not
to drown and not to escape life, but to find life. Marcus and
Faith helped each other pursue this ideal, and their story serves
as a tribute to redemption despite grim odds.
I wanted to write a screenplay that would touch
the hearts of young adults and transfer from generations to generations.
Thanks for taking the time to consider my script,
and I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Benjamin Ray
brscreenwriter@gmail.com
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As a stand-up comedian,
I caught the screenwriting fever and never looked back.
Unlike the current generation of screenwriters who learned
their craft from film school, I am self-taught and honed
in my skills from my days on stage, while juggling three
shifts and a family. Consequently, I developed an audacious
fusion of controversial pop culture and exciting cinema
that promises to push the envelope of modern dramatic thrillers.
Recently sold one of my short script -- "Bring On The
Pain -- to Resolve Films. Check out the short film at www.resolvefilms.com
More details about my bio can be found in two interviews I gave --
Interviewed by
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