In a not-so-distant future where parenthood is strictly controlled, a couple’s mysterious seven-day assessment for the right to have a child unravels into a nightmare, forcing them to question the very foundations of society.
This is the premise for THE ASSESSMENT – winner of Shore Scripts’ 2016 Feature Contest, written by Mrs&Mr Thomas. After winning the Shore Scripts Feature Contest, the script was picked up by our Feature Contest judge, Oscar-nominated producer Stephen Woolley, who developed the project with FILM4.
Winning writers Mrs&Mr Thomas shared their journey at a recent event for members of the Shore Script community – how starting at a kitchen table, writing scene after scene ended with a 7 figure deal with Amazon and a film starring A-List actors Alicia Vikander and Elizabeth Olson.
How It All Started
A wife-and-husband writing team, Mrs&Mr Thomas met over 20 years ago while working in education television. After about six months, they got their first job together and struck up a good working relationship. Flash forward a few years later, and they became a couple and started making a few small films together. “We tried to make things in our flat, making our own comedy skits, filming whatever. We loved making things – writing, filming it, showing it to our friends.”
As they approached 30 in 2013, they decided they wanted to make a feature film and wrote an entire micro-budget feature. The feature was filmed in 2 weeks and cost approximately 8,000 pounds from start to finish. While the feature was never picked up, the process of writing and creating the film was invaluable for the writing duo.
“Making a microbudget feature was a light bulb moment. There’s so much more to know about writing…We also learned a big tip having made the microbudget feature – drama doesn’t sell without a big name. We needed to write in a genre.”
As their infant daughter began to grow, they decided to write another feature – this time over the summer. The idea for THE ASSESSMENT came from their own experiences as new parents. “Everything in life is so planned and thought through. I put together a fan with an 8-page instruction manual, and that’s more than you get for raising a baby.” They compared that, in sort of a tongue-and-cheek manner, with the lack of instruction for raising children. “We asked ourselves – why do they let you take a child home from the hospital without any sort of test?”
As they began to put pen to paper, they used the pending Shore Scripts Feature Contest deadline as a natural opportunity to jump-start the writing for the script and to keep them focused and on track. “We are going to hit that deadline, whatever we do,” they said. “We put our daughter to bed and workshopped the scenes at our kitchen table.”
They wrote for 6 weeks, day in and day out, often writing after putting their daughter to bed. “We submitted it 90 seconds before the deadline, thinking it would be nice to get some notes.”
Winning the Feature Contest
Both Mrs&Mr Thomas were surprised to win the Feature Contest. “We didn’t believe it,” they said. “We broke out some champagne.” After winning the contest in October, two of the Judges from the panel reached out to them with an interest in the script. “It happened very fast – in a matter of a few weeks. We met the producer in January, and we signed the deal in February.”
The producer, Shore Script Feature Contest Judge Stephen Woolley, also helped them secure an agent that helped them navigate the various parts of making the deal. “I always thought once you had representation, you were in. I tried before to open that door and it never happened, and all of a sudden they want to meet you and work with you!”
After signing on with Woolley, they brought the script to the big funding bodies, which is typical in the UK. “We very quickly got rejected from one of them. Normally producers like to find one of them to get development funding. But the producers said they would fund the development of the film and maybe they’ll come in later.”
Mrs&Mr Thomas credit Woolley with having the vision and commitment to the film to bring it to fruition (even during two major world events – Brexit and COVID – both of which had a significant impact on the film industry!
“Producers are often unsung, but they are incredibly important. It’s a funny part of the industry that people don’t understand that producers are the ones who make it happen.”
Assembling the Team
After signing on with Woolley, they began to assemble other critical members of the team. Director Fleur Fortune came on, along with other creatives. This was Fleur’s directorial debut with feature films, although she had quite a portfolio within the music industry. “The sensibility of the Director is key. She was 100% committed to it from the beginning and she wanted to bring the best version of this story. We enjoyed the opportunity to lean into the creativity from a producer, who has been in the film industry for some time, and Fleuer, who brings an incredible ascetic.”
As the team grew (eventually Film4 came on as well), the input, creativity, and ideas really flowed. “You start out writing on your own and it’s all yours, and when you sign on to play with a bigger team, you get the opportunity to lean into the creativity of others.”
The writing duo found that one of the biggest surprises about the creative process was the return to the original treatment. Mrs&Mr Thomas rewrote the treatment nearly a dozen times, which included testing approximately 15 different versions of how the film might end. “We assumed that you write the script, take it to a producer, and then you re-write the script. But that didn’t happen – we brought it back to the treatment stage. Going back to that document – we refined it over and over again to test our new endings. We spent a long time reworking the treatment before we reworked the script.”
Going back to the treatment was surprisingly useful – it allowed them to make changes to the storyline in a small form.
“It’s much easier to change the script if it’s changed in small form in the treatment and you can see the impact of those changes rather than in a 100 page document.”
Similarly, the creative process allowed them to dig more deeply into the characters and their backstory. The producers initially flagged that the husband and wife characters needed better jobs – originally Aryam was an architect and Mia was a counselor. When Fleur joined, she suggested Aryam should have a creative space where he makes things, and the idea quickly emerged for him to create digital animals in a world where all of the animals are extinct.
In the end, MrsandMr Thomas believed that in welcoming the notes, feedback, and input of the creative team, it ultimately made their film that much stronger, providing the best possible script for the actors to bring to life on screen.
Advice to Screenwriters
Having a huge film under their belts now, Mrs&Mr Thomas have several thoughts and advice for writers –
First – write because you love it. “Ultimately, what we’ve realized over the last few years, you should write because you love it not because you want to make oodles of money from it because it’s not realistic to think you’ll write one movie and pivot to being a full-time movie writer.”
Second – understand that building a portfolio takes time. “Recognize that sewing the seeds now might pay off in a couple years time. They might be stepping stones – learning how to get into a new genre, for example.”
Third – be gentle with yourself. “Look after yourself. You hear about the Aaron Sorkin’s of the world, but you don’t hear about the people who write a film and do other things, like teach at the university. Or the writers who write a bunch of scripts that never make it into production. The only thing that’s in your control is how you feel about your writing, and your love for it.”
Learn More
Want to learn more about The Assessment and Mrs&Mr Thomas? See our interview with them here and watch the trailer here.
And don’t forget to enter this year’s Feature Contest! Our Feature Contest is for screenwriters of all genres who are ready to gain representation, sell their screenplay, and get hired on writing assignments! The Grand Prize Winner will receive a $5,000 cash prize, mentorship, script circulation to our industry roster, guaranteed meetings, and more!
