Script File

Ballad of a Poor Man

After being coerced into killing his father to repay a generational debt, Ji‑Hoon is pulled into the Yakuza and reshaped into a weapon. As he navigates a world of manipulation, violence, and impossible choices, he forms fragile connections with others trapped in the same system. But when loyalty turns fatal, Ji‑Hoon’s final act becomes the spark for someone else to expose the truth he died with.

  • DeAngelo McBride
    Writer
  • Project Type:
    Screenplay
  • Genres:
    Crime, Drama, Crime Drama, Neo-Noir, Psychological Thriller
  • Number of Pages:
    114
  • Language:
    English
  • First-time Screenwriter:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Writer Biography - DeAngelo McBride

DeAngelo McBride, a sixteen-year-old writer and game developer from Muskegon, Michigan, graduated early from Nashville School of the Arts. Despite his young age, he has already made impressive strides in his creative journey, working across vivid storytelling and immersive game design.

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Writer Statement

I started writing Ballad of a Poor Man after watching Oldboy, directed by Bong Joon-ho. That movie got me thinking about how violence isn’t just something people suddenly do, it’s often shaped by the struggles and pain they’ve been carrying for a long time. I thought about people I’ve known who felt stuck, trapped by things they didn’t choose whether it was debts, expectations, or a past they couldn’t escape. Ji-Hoon came from that feeling. He’s a guy pushed so far by the system around him that he starts to lose himself.

Shigehara and the organization represent that system, the cold force quietly breaking people down. Toshiko, on the other hand, is the person who refuses to let someone just disappear, someone who fights against being erased. Through them, I wanted to explore how power and loyalty can trap people, and how even in violent, harsh worlds, small moments of human connection still matter.

This story is my way of showing how broken systems shape the lives of people caught inside them, how they’re more than just statistics or criminals, but people with stories and struggles.

I plan to continue her story in a sequel that follows her life after Ji‑Hoon’s death, exploring what survival looks like for someone who refuses to disappear.