What we’re looking for are stories where murder and crime are involved, but revolving around strong characters with a grounded realism. The deeper the characters investigate the crime, the more should be revealed about them and their plight. Additionally, big credit given to a marketable hook or twist on the standard “someone finds a body” start to these kinds of stories. Impress us with an interesting crime/mystery that hasn’t been done before.
HBO and the BBC are obviously good at this sort of thing, so look to them for examples. Comp titles include: The Night Of, The Sinner, Escape at Dannemora, Fargo, Collateral, Happy Valley, Seven Seconds, Too Old to Die Young, Prime Suspect, London Spy, Top of the Lake, and The Outsider (minus the supernatural elements)
When submitting, please include your SCRIPT, a SYNOPSIS and most importantly, a thoroughly developed LOGLINE. We want to know your concept and hook within the logline. We will narrow our selection from these elements, so you’ll want to impress and grab us with them.
Union and non-union writers accepted. Scripts from anywhere in the world will be considered but must be in English language.
NOTE: An “ISA-verified producer” means it is a respected industry professional/company with means to fund projects that suit their mandate. They wish to remain private and have entrusted the ISA to vet and find content from our deep pool of talent.