ALTA CALIFORNIA
A young mixed blood, determined to avenge his mother’s brutal death, is thrust into a battle of survival and identity as he navigates through the oppressive and inhumane colonizers of California's “Mission Era.” California Assembly Bill 1821, authored by Assemblyman James Ramos of California and signed into law by Governor Newsom, mandates that, beginning January 1, 2025, all schools in California are required to teach the historical truth about the “Mission Era” and the gold rush and its effect upon California’s native peoples.
In the second segment, we experience Paco’s life-change after he is "captured" by the “heathen” Chumash. Are these his people? In a powerful and haunting scene, Paco “meets” the ghost of his murdered mother. He leaves the Chumash having found a purpose: to help his people in this evolving world.
In the third segment, Paco attempts to complete that task. Can he help rehabilitate the mission Indians into their previous tribal ways? Can he help his people prepare for the coming of the white man from the East? But his vision of a future for his people, which is supported by Neve, runs up against the radically different plan of the thoroughly determined and uncompromising Serra.
“Alta California” is a multiple national and international film festival award winner (70 + “award winnings” as of this writing) including Los Angeles Film and Script, Richmond International, Lonely Seal; WeScreenplay Diverse Voices; Accolade Global (Native American/Aboriginal Peoples); Wiki Screenplay, Beverley Hills Film Festival (finalist), and many more in the USA and overseas. It is a second rounder in ISA Fast Track Fellowship, 2023, and semi-finalist in Scriptmatix Fellowship, 2023. Quarterfinalist in LA Diversity Film Festival, 2023. It is a top rated unproduced historical screenplay by MovieBytes. Critics have compared it to The Revenant. It is in the top 3% on Coverfly.
"There is meaning here. There were themes having to do with racism and faith and the nature of both. The script also seemed to be saying something about humanity and this was well integrated into the piece and arose out of it organically." (Nicholl Fellowship critique)
California is currently coming to terms with its treatment of its indigenous peoples. As Scriptmatix notes: “ . . this film raises important questions about the causes on the demise of the indigenous people, and their original relationships between these people and the new rulers. All of these aspects are immersed in a dramatic and tense atmosphere in which our protagonist needs to find his home and identity.” (2023).
Diego Boneta (Paco)
Javier Bardem/ Antonio Banderas (Neve)
Dances with Woves
Apocalypto
I love to explore and write, in serious and comic forms, stories of those who, through choice or happenstance, find themselves strangers in a strange land (or even in their own land).
Cult Movies (First Place) [2025]
Telluride Indie (First Place) [2025]
Show More
ScriptLinks
Post Your Script Here!HOW TO SURVIVE A NARCISSIST
While dealing with the aftermath of a vindictive breakup, a tenacious woman provides the audience an instructional guide to narcissists in order to make sense of exactly what happened to keep her bonded to one for seven years.
PINE MOUNTAIN DEVIL
When her small town's peaceful mountain preserve is threatened by a luxury resort, an eco-conscious park ranger must unravel the truth behind a series of brutal deaths that may be linked to an ancient, vengeful force tasked with protecting the land.
THE ALMOST BRIDE
In an attempt to preserve her parents' marriage, a former skating prodigy enlists a risk-adverse publishing executive to pose as her fiancé, but when their elaborate charade spirals out of control, can she fix her own relationship missteps to land a happy ending for everyone?
STAR NAMES PREFERRED
When a wannabe actress obsessed with an A-list celebrity discovers the star's true character, she concocts a devious plan of revenge to steal the star's career and life, embarking on a crime spree all in the name of fame.
Xanadu Shores - First 14 pages
Four friends become enmeshed in a gold heist turned kidnapping chased by a capricious Federal agent and his comely accomplice by land, air and sea, culminating explosively on Xanadu Shores.
THE BEAUTY OF THE RODEO
A former rodeo queen returns home after thirty years, but her attempt to fit back in is further complicated by the arrival of the daughter she secretly placed for adoption.
NIGHT OF THE LIVING DECORATIONS
When a disgruntled spirit brings all the neighborhood decorations to life on Halloween, a timid fifth grader must devise a plan to capture it by midnight in order to save her family and friends from becoming decorations themselves forever.
LAST SHOPPER STANDING
A bitterly divorcing couple competes in a deadly game of survival on Christmas Eve when a disgruntled big-box store manager locks them inside with five other players and stages a twisted competition as punishment for their consumer misdeeds.
THE LAST PLACE
A woman delves into the forest of her own mind to solve an impossible mystery when her family disappears during a stop at a highway rest area.
THE SCRIPT, A CELTIC TALE
A mysterious young, Irish girl, who refuses to name herself, insists a Los Angeles literary agent read her work—both their lives depend on it! Despite Aiden’s repeated attempts to destroy the script, it returns, together with a host of Celtic demons and a sign, in Gaelic, “The Past Does Not Die.
