Last week I finished the first draft of a new short script entitled “Beautiful // The Janssen Twins.” Yes, the // is part of the title and, actually, a symbolic element of the script. It’s an idea I’ve been knocking around for a long time. Something Chris Smith (co-writer of “The Bet”) has been fascinated with as well. And when I sent him my draft, his response was that it was “remarkable and touching.” He’s too nice. By the end of the weekend, I’ll have a 2nd draft done which will address Chris’ comments and some things I knew needed noodling. After that…

My hope is that I haven’t written something beyond a budget I can muster. It seems doable, but I never know. I pretty much used up all my favors on “The Bet,” so there’ll be no freebies this time. So, well, here’s hoping it can get made.

I haven’t said anything about the plot, have I? Well, intentionally so. The ‘tubes have not been my ally lately. Once the thing’s been registered and copyrighted, maybe I’ll share a little more, but I can say this: In my interview with ShortEnd Magazine, I said that I didn’t see my style really changing much, that with “The Bet” I had made a film I wanted to see, that I thought matched my “vision” – this one, at least on paper, does that, too. It’s dark, it’s controversial, but, as Chris said, it’s touching. A combination I find fascinating.

Go to beautiful.rubbersquare.com for the tease and, as always, there’s the (spam-laden) forum. Or follow me on Twitter or join the Facebook fan page.