CAST LIST:

Narrator: Shawn Devlin
Woman: Hannah Ehman
Mboni: Geoff Mays

Get to know the writer:

1. What is your screenplay about?

This screenplay explores first contact between a human teenager and a powerful non-human being who has been displaced across time and worlds. Through a quiet, intimate encounter in the tech enthusiast boy’s bedroom, it examines trust, identity, memory and the emotional cost of survival across different realities.

2. What genres does your screenplay fall under?

Speculative fantasy, drama and mystery, with elements of coming-of-age and science fiction.

3. Why should this screenplay be made into a movie?

The story presents an emotionally grounded take on first contact, focusing discovery rather than spectacle alone. It also offers strong roles for diverse characters and explores themes of power, belonging and intergenerational knowledge in a fresh way.

4. How would you describe this script in two words?

Intimate first-contact

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

For the past couple of years, Star Trek: The Next Generation has been my bedtime rewatch. Before that, it was Carl Sagan’s Cosmos. Going further back than that starts to blur, though I did go through an intense Harry Potter phase in my teenage years. I seem to have a tendency to dive deeply into a world for years at a time, and then make a clean break.

6. How long have you been working on this screenplay?

I’ve been developing this story on and off for several years, refining both the world-building and the emotional core as the characters became clearer to me.

7. How many stories have you written?

I’ve written numerous short stories and scripts, with this screenplay forming part of a larger body of work exploring identity, evolving technology and human connection. It won a competition organized by the first Tanzanian woman director to have her work featured on Netflix.

8. What motivated you to write this screenplay?

I wanted to explore what first contact might look like if it happened quietly, in a private space between people who don’t yet fully understand themselves. Inspired by my experience of living across different cultures and languages, the story reflects an awareness of how we oscillate between fascination and distrust toward what we label as “other.” Rather than focusing on invasion or conflict, I was drawn to themes of recognition, trust and the shift from the emotional weight of feeling lost to the openness and lightness of the state of rediscovery.

9. What obstacles did you face to finish this screenplay?

The biggest challenge was balancing revealing a larger world without overwhelming the intimacy of the scene. I wanted the mystery to feel earned rather than explained.

10. Apart from writing, what else are you passionate about?

Music. Particularly creating calm, introspective songs, as well as exploring how sound, silence and atmosphere shape emotional experience.

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

I was drawn to the festival’s egalitarianism and focus on performance readings. Hearing the script performed was deeply affirming. It confirmed that the dialogue and emotional beats translated well when spoken aloud.