Hell & Back
Restricted (Penn State Only)
- Author:
- Raynor, Kyle
- Area of Honors:
- Film Production
- Degree:
- Bachelor of Arts
- Document Type:
- Thesis
- Thesis Supervisors:
- Rod Bingaman, Thesis Supervisor
Maura Shea, Thesis Honors Advisor - Keywords:
- Sam
Seb
Arthur
Jules
Yaya
John
R.J - Abstract:
- Hell & Back is a fantasy epic following the citizens of a dystopian society that use music to fight the encroaching forces of Hell. Amongst the chaotic sphere of power and influence, SAM searches for revenge against the demon that took her brother’s life. I chose a fantasy epic for my thesis first and foremost to challenge myself. Not only is this my first feature-length script, but it was also the first time I chose to pursue a truly high-concept idea. I entered with two primary goals: first, to understand the difficulties and nuances of writing feature-length over short form content. Second: to develop a world that feels full of intoxicating personalities and high-octane dreams. At the end of this journey, I feel as though I have succeeded (in my own way) at both. I learned that writing sometimes is putting your head down and pushing through, even if you don’t believe in what you’re saying yet. As they say, writing is rewriting, and I have plenty of that to do. Additionally, I learned to contend with the stress and self-doubt of feature writing through discipline and trust in the process, using films like Scott Pilgrim v. The World (2010), Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) and the Dune series as my guiding beacons throughout my process. Overall, I leave the thesis writing process feeling proud of the work I have accomplished and immensely improved as a screenwriter. I’ve been dreaming of this idea since I was in high school, and to see this idea come to life for the first time is nothing short of pure magic. The skills I’ve learned and honed will contribute to both my professional and personal life for years to come, all while birthing my very first and deeply personal feature-length screenplay.