2008 Grantees

Was Thomas Edison the world’s greatest inventor, or a clever thief with a pioneering acumen for marketing? Alva focuses on the most tumultuous period of Edison’s life: the race to make the first mass-produced light bulb and the power wars that followed.


Alex Lyras, Screenwriter


Michael Dorian, Screenwriter

 ALVA endeavors to demythologize “The Wizard of Menlo Park” by exploring the lesser-seen sides of Thomas Edison: from opportunistic businessman and audacious self-promoter, to unrelenting slave-driver and devious competitor. Tesla, Westinghouse, Vanderbilt and JP Morgan are merely a few of the larger than life characters Edison battles on his self-engineered rise to global wealth and fame.

Budget: TBD

Genre: Biopic

Status: Seeking a producer

 Contact:
Alex Lyras (soulsart@earthlink.net)
Michael Dorian (mdorian@bestweb.net)

In 1942, actress Hedy Lamarr, along with composer George Antheil, patented frequency hopping, an invention which became the forerunner to most wireless communication today.


Gretchen Somerfeld, Producer/Screenwriter


Amy Redford, Director


David Baxter, Producer


Rose Ganguzza, Executive Producer

Jose Rivera, Screenwriter

Marco Mehlitz, Producer

 From the first moment I read FACE VALUE, I knew that I wanted it to be my next directing venture. I am honored to be part of this project, and look forward to helping realize its unique universe, as well as the extraordinary character of Hedy Lamarr.

Genre: Drama

Budget: $10 million

Status: Close to full financing, Pre-Production begins in Fall 2009

Contact:
Gretchen Somerfeld (mosaicmp@aol.com)

The astonishing story of the Wright Brothers, aviation pioneers and American originals.


Joshua Astrachan, Producer


Lucy Barzun Donnelly, Producer


Gill Holland, Producer


Tim Kirkman, Director/Screenwriter

As a native North Carolinian, I’d heard the story of the Wright Brothers since childhood, but often wondered what happened after December 17, 1903. Their untold story holds secrets and lies that nearly erased them from the history books – and promises to make an unforgettable film.

Genre: Historical Drama/Biopic

Budget: $21 million

Status: Revising Production Script

Contact:
Joshua Astrachan (ja@locomotivefilm.com)

As Marie Curie is nominated for a Nobel Prize, her affair with a married man creates a scandal that ruins her reputation, causes her to flee France, and becomes the main obstacle to the very prize which will prove her a scientist in her own right, independent of her late husband.


Anil Baral, Producer

Kathryn Maughan,
Screenwriter

Marie Curie was the groundbreaking first woman to earn a Nobel Prize. But less known are her trials: gender discrimination, xenophobia, and her affair with a married man, which, complicated by radiation exposure, nearly took her life. Marie’s letters, unsealed in the 1990s, inspired this love story with surprisingly contemporary themes.

Genre: Biopic

Budget: $18 million

Status: Screenplay completed April 14, 2009. Seeking Producer/Financier and ready to go to director and cast

Contact:
Anil Baral (Anilbaral@sbcglobal.net)
Kathryn Maughan (Kathmandu917@yahoo.com)

Based on the true story of a 16-year-old Boy Scout in Michigan who, in 1995, attempted to build the core of a nuclear reactor in his backyard shed and was shut down by the federal government.


Greg Harrison, Director/Screenwriter

Danielle Renfrew, Producer

THE RADIOACTIVE BOY SCOUT is a story about an outsider with a unique vision who transcends his dysfunctional family in an attempt to achieve his dream of becoming a great scientist. Brian’s optimism is so infectious it is hard not to wish that he pull his projects off, even in the face of increasing danger. But even more poignant is his hope that his inventions might somehow repair his broken family, particularly the relationship with his father.

Genre: Comedy/Drama

Budget: Under $4 million

Status: Casting. Seeking production financing

Contact:
Greg Harrison, Director (greg@map-point.com)