"MAYA" Feature Screenplay

Still reeling from her father’s tragic death, Maya Johnson plans to travel to the Philippines with her daughter, Lilibeth, to fulfill his final wish: to be buried beside her mother. But, Maya’s suppressed childhood trauma begins to resurface—visions of something ancient, something monstrous.

Before Maya can escape her past, it comes for her. Lilibeth is abducted by a malevolent force tied to the Aswang, bloodthirsty creatures from Filipino folklore. Maya is pulled back into the nightmare she once was, the enchanted village of Barrio Latikan, and discovers that Lilibeth’s blood is the final key to resurrecting the Aswang clan’s feared queen.

Forming a tenuous alliance with a powerful shaman and his gifted nephew, Maya battles through a nightmarish world to save her daughter. In a final act of sacrifice, Maya gives her life to stop the ritual, only to be resurrected by Lilibeth in a desperate blood ritual.

Back in Chicago, the mother and daughter try to resume their lives. But something is wrong. Lilibeth begins to manifest dark, uncontrollable power and bloodlust, hinting at the sinister legacy within her. Lilibeth, in mutated Aswang form, murders a stranger and attempts suicide.

The injured Lilibeth lies in the hospital bed, where Maya discovers another girl in the next room who eerily resembles her daughter with similar injuries. She is in disbelief and runs to the bathroom, where her reflection in the mirror morphs into a mutated Aswang creature. Maya’s nightmare is far from over. It is just the beginning.