Rise of the Prophecy
GENRE
THRILLER
Core Theme
FINDING HOME.
TIME PERIOD
2000s
COMPARABLE TITLES
UNLIKE ANYTHING ELSE. A LITTLE BIT OF LOST AND GILLIGAN'S ISLAND. WORLD-BUILDING LIKE GAME OF THRONES.
CHARACTER LIST
ZAZA. MALE. 40S. DETERMINED. CALM.
YASMINE. FEMALE. 40S. WIFE.
KOSMIES. MALE. UNKNOWN AGE. ALLY.
DUBAKU. MALE. 40S.
JABARI. MALE. 40S.
XOLANI. FEMALE. TEENAGER
Logline
When a man is shipwrecked by an island, he soon finds out from a prophecy that himself, an albino baby, or a teenage girl will become the savior of the world while the other two are killed by that savior.
Genre
Fantasy,Adventure,Action,Epic
Target Audiences
Age: 18-34,35-54,13-17,7-12
Target Gender: Universal
Setting
Island
Based on a True Story
No
Starting Description
On a ship’s cruise in the Atlantic, Zaza gets drunk and thinks he hallucinates a being swimming behind the ship. The ship hits an invisible wall, sending Zaza overboard. There is a deity in the water that offers his help and awakens Zaza’s kundalini. Zaza becomes king of Misteik Island.
Ending Description
Zaza meets the creator of the world, with them are a newborn albino girl named Anaya and a teenage girl with a spider mark on her chest named Xolani. Shen says that one of the three will save the world, but kill the other two.
Pitch Adaptation
My name is Antoine Bonner I would like to share my fantasy TV pilot, RISE OF THE PROPHECY. On a ship’s cruise in the Atlantic, Zaza gets drunk and thinks he hallucinates a being swimming behind the ship. The ship hits an invisible barrier that’s hiding Misteik Island, sending Zaza overboard. There is a deity in the water that offers his help and awakens Zaza’s kundalini (the source of his new prescient powers), and makes him his acolyte (servant of a deity). With the help from his new powers, he becomes king of Misteik Island by killing the previous ruler. There is an agency that hides evidence of acolytes and deities. Two such agents, Kidlat and Iri, try to breach the invisible wall that wrecked the cruise-ship to find out what happened. While checking his future on the Astral World, Zaza meets the creator of the world, a deity named Shen. With them are a newborn albino girl named Anaya and a teenage girl with a spider mark on her chest named Xolani. Shen informs them that they’re all just chess pieces in a game for humanity’s survival, and that one of the three will save the world, but kill the other two.
WGA Number
The author has not yet written this
Mature Audience Themes
The author has not yet written this
Plot - Other Elements
Coming of Age,Twist
Plot - Premise
Quest
Main Character Details
Name: Zaza
Age: 20's
Gender: Other
Role: Protagonist
Key Traits: Adventurous,Engaging
Additional Character Details
The author has not yet written this
Additional Character Details
The author has not yet written this
Additional Character Details
The author has not yet written this
Supplemental Materials
Information not completed
Genre
SUSPENSE, THRILLER, DRAMA, RELIGION, POLITICS, FANTASY
Brief
When Zaza falls overboard on a cruise ship sinking in the Atlantic near an island, he becomes a godlike being with supernatural powers, worshipped by the island’s natives—but Zaza just wants to get home. Meanwhile other characters explore other issues on and surrounding the mysterious island that sinks nearby ships.
Overall Rating
FAIR
Narrative Elements
Authors Writing Style: FAIR
Characterization: FAIR
Commerciality: FAIR
Franchise Potential: FAIR
Pace: FAIR
Premise: FAIR
Structure: FAIR
Theme: FAIR
Accuracy of Book Profile
It is accurate.
Draw of Story
The opening shows a cruise ship sinking as one characters gets thrown overboard and meets a water man in the sea, then appears in a white void where the protagonist speaks to a deity, and then from there the protagonist appears on the island. Although a little confusing and odd, it’s an intriguing opening that immediately establishes the premise and primary setting of the mysterious island.
Possible Drawbacks
The story quickly becomes extremely confusing as dozens of characters are introduced in the first act and the events rapidly become impossible to understand due to the writer’s use of made-up words and unusual character names. Approximately one quarter of the way into the script, it becomes extremely difficult to understand anything that’s happening, or why. This can be avoided by cutting way back on the characters, ensuring characters speak differently and can be distinguished on the page, and also by remembering that the reader has no knowledge of the story and only knows what is put on the page before them. Less is more with all things writing, so a revised pilot which takes a much simpler approach, introducing much less characters, plotlines, and exposition will receive much more interest within the industry.
Use of Special Effects
THE STORY RELIES HEAVILY ON SPECIAL EFFECTS
Primary Hook of Story
The hook is the exotic setting and cast of strange, colorful characters as they attempt to understand what’s happening on this mysterious island.
Fanbase Potential
Although exceptionally imaginative and fascinating for this reason, complete with a great, exotic setting, this script is currently a little too unusual to attract a large fanbase. The writer would do well to revise the script with a global audience in mind by taking some familiar elements from popular, similar shows and using them to allow viewers of this show to “get it” more quickly before the show begins to really take off into its own vision as the season progresses.
Awards Potential
It’s a little too “genre” and unusual to interest the awards community. However, with great writing and structure, anything is possible.
Envisioned Budget
LARGE BUDGET
Similar Films/TV Series
LOST. GILLIGAN’S ISLAND. GAME OF THRONES.
What’s New About the Story
What could be done to make it more unique? Original is the world-building and many of its elements, such as creatures, religion, politics, character names and cultures.
Lead Characters
Currently the characters don’t stand out too much from one another and are difficult to distinguish. However, they are all colorful, imaginative characters unique to this world.
Uniqueness of Story
If not, what can be improved? This is not quite a rare gem. It showcases fascinating world-building and imagination, but it requires improvement across every element in order to become a rare gem.
Possible Formats
TV
Analyst Recommendation
WORK IN PROGRESS
Justification
It needs more work in every area and is not yet at a level of writing or storytelling quality to interest producers.
Tips for Improvement
A total rewrite that cuts way back on the characters, settings, and plotlines in favor of a more focused pilot introducing mostly major characters and plotlines that is also much easier to understand as someone with no knowledge of the story or its world.
Brief
When Zaza falls overboard on a cruise ship sinking in the Atlantic near an island, he becomes a godlike being with supernatural powers, worshipped by the island’s natives—but Zaza just wants to get home.
What We Liked
RISE OF THE PROPHECY is a TV pilot unlike any other. It contains just about every genre and tone possible within its 59 pages, from action and adventure to suspense, comedy, and family drama. This means it has something for everyone and therefore could have a wide audience. It is exceptionally imaginative and could fare well either as a prestige cable drama, such as on HBO, a network show, or even a cinematic limited series.
This could work very well as a TV series, too as it hints at a bigger conflict beyond the pilot and the mysterious-island setting offers huge potential as a primary setting to explore across many seasons.
Key points:
1) Wildly imaginative and unlike anything else out there.
2) Contains many genres and tones—has something for everyone.
3) Easily adaptable for long-form series, limited series, or feature film.
4) Fun, immersive, exotic setting.
5) Colorful cast of characters.
Synopsis
Married couple YASMINE and ZAZA are on a cruise as Zaza gets seasick. They spot a strange pink glow in the ocean, followed by a human head. The ship hits something, knocking Zaza overboard. In the water, a water man with yellow/green eyes, purple hair, and a yellow diamond in his forehead asks Zaza if he needs help. Meanwhile in a small village on an island, JABARI (male, 40s) and DUBAKU (male, 40s) converse when the island shakes: Jabari’s wife, MASIKA, is about to give birth. Dubaku’s daughter XOLANI (15) hugs Dubaku. Masika gives birth to an albino baby. Jabari’s tells her that they will keep it a secret.
IVORY (male, 20s) in the Atra Surveillance Room watches the news as it shows an “alien” sinking the cruise ship. A voice (labeled KEN) tells Ivory that he is deleting the news clips and wiping the humans’ memories of “anything deity or acolyte related.” Zaza wakes in a white void where KOSMIES tells Zaza that Kosmies is Zaza’s kundalini. Zaza possesses cosmic knowledge now and will be able to tell the ten-year future of every person alive as long as Zaza knows the person’s name. KID and IRI, who work for Atra, are sent into a simulation where Iri kills humans and is told by Kid not to do that in reality. Zaza is dropped onto Misteik Island where he witnesses the natives murdering the white people who made it to the shore from the sinking ship. Zaza is herded into a cell and stabbed in the neck. He collapses.
Zaza wakes in the white void. Kosmies says that as the acolyte of presence Zaza has the ability to see possible futures, like the one he just saw. Jabari’s wife attempts to kill the albino baby for fear of god. Jabari saves the baby. Jabari attempts to escape and becomes a god to the natives. Kid and Iri go out on an invisible boat to the place in the sea where all the boats are disappearing. They find the location and decide to investigate. Jabari hides the baby in the jungle and is attacked by a hairy winged beast. The creature slashes Xolani’s face (she followed Jabari here). They escape. Zaza becomes King Zaza of the island, which surprises Yasmine. He needs to get off the island but keeps dying when he tries. He thinks the albino baby might be the key so he is looking for it. Xolani fights off a creature called a klelik. SHEN and AKUMA declare themselves “enemies for eternity” in this “game for humanity’s survival.”