The Untold Tale of Morgan Berkeley
Morgan Berkeley, surgeon and anatomist in 1829 feels he is on his way to eternal greatness. He believes his life's worth is having his photo on the wall of the hospital and making a discovery in the field of anatomy. But when a much faster (in a time before anesthetics where speed was the primary skill) and much younger surgeon moves into his hospital, the fear begins to seep into his mind. The fear that he'll be forgotten in time. He let's the fear take over as he attempts to improve his speed whilst performing on corpses. But his rage blinds him and he accidentally cuts himself -- a tiny yet fatal cut. Instead of saving his life by removing the limb and stopping the disease spreading across his body, he chooses to hide it. Thus, bringing the timeline for his quest for glory up sooner. But his illness quickly affects his mind. He becomes dazed and hallucinates. So much so that he loses his job as a surgeon, and thus must focus on glory in anatomy. But even this is becoming more difficult as he needs money for the subjects to work on. And the gravediggers don't care about his money woes. He opts to steal them himself, which clashes with the rules of the gravediggers. They're a gang of thugs and thieves. They've created a territory for themselves and they don't care who he was, they will find him and punish him. Berkeley runs. He flees. He escapes. But his illness is too great and they are too much for him. They threaten him at a dead end. Saying they will use his body like he has used so many unearthed subjects prior. Berkeley decides he'd rather plunge into the rocky Thames, ruining his body, but sending him into eternal rest.
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Simon X. FrederickWriter
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Project Type:Screenplay
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Genres:Drama, Historical, Horror, Thriller
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Number of Pages:112
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Country of Origin:United Kingdom
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Language:English
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First-time Screenwriter:No
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Student Project:No
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Page Turner Award
September 17, 2021
Screenwriting Finalist -
The Best Screenplay
September 28, 2021
Finalist
Simon X. Frederick
A screenwriter who has been working in film & TV production and development for about 5 years. Pushing and pulling his way into professional screenwriting.
I moved to London in 2015 after realising my master's in Biomechanics was more likely to be a fabulously bland piece of art on the wall, rather than get me a job. I didn't realise that all it takes to get started in the film industry is adoration for film, addiction to the pursuit and a drive to progress without having any money for 5 years. Thankfully, I had all those traits and a friend coaxed me down to London to pursue the dream job career. It took me until working in development, improving my knowledge of craft and business, that I accidentally became enamoured with screenwriting. Now I can’t think of any other career path, no matter how long it will take.
I am fascinated by so much of the world that I cannot pin a specific area I want to specialise in. So far I've written in fantasy, sci-fi, historical and contemporary worlds. I've written drama, comedy, thrillers and crime. I'd say the through-line for all is I am interested in the psychology of an individual and how society influences us. Each of my projects also has a unique tone and a cinematic and stylish design.