How to Expose Possible Vampires (And Not Get Killed in the Process)

The project received "Consider" ratings from WeScreenplay and Selling Your Screenplay, and it is currently in the Top 20% from Coverfly.

Horror comedies are a very fun genre, and they can actually perform better than regular horror movies, simply because there are a lot of people who aren’t just that fond of horror but can enjoy it if it includes comedy. And if is the kind of comedy that can be thought-provoking, all the better.

How to Expose Possible Vampires (And Not Get Killed in the Process) is that kind of a movie. On its surface, it follows a schizophrenic girl chasing a man she is convinced is a vampire, and that in itself can be a very amusing, even subversive idea. However, the script goes deeper than that and tackles two serious subjects such as mental health and our fear of predators.

For over a decade or so, I’ve been dealing with heavy anxiety problems. I’ve found ways to calm them by now, but, back in the day, it was very difficult for me to deal with these intrusive thoughts. I was particularly struggling with an obsessive-compulsive disorder, and I knew that many of the ideas that such a condition caused me were completely absurd, yet I couldn’t stop washing my hands or putting a book in a certain position because I had an overwhelming fear that if I didn’t, something bad could happen. And it was a very difficult situation because I could see how this problem affected or worried my parents, and I was conflicted with myself about it. Again, you realize that your ideas or fears might be, well, nonsense… but there is this tiny, yet powerful part of you that doesn’t stop questioning “Well, but what if that’s true? What if this or that happens?” and you have no choice but to keep doing those rituals trying to prevent whatever terrible scenario you’re fearing.

And I realize that obsessive-compulsive disorder and schizophrenia are two very different things, but the idea is the same. What if this crazy thing I’m thinking is true? What if it is, but nobody believes me? That, then, became the driving force of this project, alongside my love for classic horror stories. Again, nowadays we might think that vampires or werewolves are silly things… but there was a time when people actually thought they were real and were genuinely afraid of them, right? And what if they were right? What if vampires are real, but we all have become just so skeptical that we no longer believe in them? What then? Well, the answer to that is in this story. As we follow our protagonist, Edith Tusk, we come to understand her point of view, while still doubting her mental health, until is all solved in a powerful and fun (if bloody) climax that solves the question of “What if our nonsense thoughts are right?”. And it does that in an unexpectedly sweet way. As subversive as the idea itself might be, we never forget that Edith is just a young woman who just wants to be believed so she can feel normal.

Now, since this is a story about a young woman fearing that a man might hurt her or her friends but is unable to express it as she doesn’t think anyone will believe her, the script acquired an unexpected value as a metaphor for our fear towards predators – a subject that is rather relevant to this time and age, and that will more likely help its audience connect even more with it. So… a horror comedy that pays homage to the genre while exploring two complex subjects (and that can be made for a microbudget). What else do you need?