A grieving tourism commissioner and a physicist on probation rescue a relic of the Manhattan Project from the world’s largest landfill.

Narrator: Sean Ballantyne
Blanche: Hannah Ehman
Brendan: Shawn Devlin
Pearl: Elizabeth Rose Morriss

Get to know the writer:

What is your screenplay about?

The Demon Core of Fresh Kills is the story of a grieving tourism commissioner and a physicist on probation, who discover the reason for their failures and frustrations in life are tied to a supernatural relic of the Manhattan Project, which they have to rescue from Fresh Kills Landfill in Staten Island.

What genres does your screenplay fall under?

It's science fiction, in the form of an alternate history of the borough of Staten Island in New York City. It's told as a mockumentary.

Why are you making this movie? And why should someone cut you a healthy check to help you make it?

I'm making The Demon Core of Fresh Kills for two main reasons. The first is to make sense of history. This sounds abstract, but it's not. We were all born on a moving train. Is the train running well? Some say it's running as well as could be expected. Others say the train needs maintenance. Others say the train has to stop and let everyone off. No one listens to that last group. And this train we're on, is it going too fast? Too slow? Is it headed for a crash?

This is what I mean by making sense of history. This is hard to do, because people have very strong opinions, and they spend as much energy trying to recruit you to their side as they do trying to understand what happened. One way to start to make sense of history is to take a step back into the fantastical. It may not answer every question. But it may help. That seems as worthy of investment as a timeshare or Papa John's franchise.

I'm also making the film to enrich the mythology that underpins the often-disheartening visible world. A lot of the world, even New York, really doesn't look like much. But the story behind and underneath a place is a source of majesty, pride and inspiration for the people who live in it. I don't have the money to build something beautiful. But I can spin a yarn. Staten Island has a history jam-packed with incredible stories, I'm trying to weave them into something of cosmic significance. That has to help property values.

What movie have you seen the most times in your life?

It doesn't burnish my credentials as an auteur, but probably The Empire Strikes Back. I have kids. My son loves the scene where the guts come spilling out of the snow-kangaroo. And he's fascinated by the scene where Darth Vader tells Luke that he's his dad. And I can't stand the high voices in kids' shows, so it's our go-to. We watched it tonight while I was cooking.

How long have you been working on this screenplay?

It was ten months from first written notes to the final draft. But the first glimmers, about the Manhattan Project, started more than twenty years ago. And about twelve years ago, I swore to myself I would do something about Fresh Kills someday. In terms of ideas, there were a lot of players on the sideline all suited up just waiting to have their numbers called.

How many stories have you written?

I've been at this for a while, so I don't know how many stories. But I've written eleven novels, four feature screenplays, and two short films.

What motivated you to write this screenplay?

The Fresh Kills Landfill, which sits at the center of the mystery the film unfolds, is the largest man-made object on earth. It sits inside of one of the richest, largest cities on earth. But it's rarely spoken of. It's hard to talk about. And one day, I found a narrative path into the landfill. It came out of left field. But it worked. Not long after, I found characters who could not only blaze that trail, but take the whole world with them.

What obstacles did you face to finish this screenplay?

Time was an issue. I was working a full-time job at a financial leviathan, with two young kids at home. It was a lot of notes jotted into a notebook, and snatches of dialogue tapped into my phone.

One draft stalled out at 51 pages - too long to be a short and too short to be a feature. I had to think about the ending. I had to go back and do some more research. I had to ask some questions about who these characters are.

Apart from writing, what else are you passionate about?

I have a family - two young kids. That, the writing and the filmmaking doesn't leave much passion for much else.

What influenced you to enter the festival? What were your feelings on the initial feedback you received?

The Demon Core of Fresh Kills starts with a pretty far-out concept. And the treatment is unconventional. My main concern was that it wouldn't make sense. So I knew I wanted a science-fiction audience, who could roll with the more fantastical elements. And so this recognition is extremely meaningful. The notes were good, and illuminated some possibilities I hadn't considered.