Chicago Screenplay Awards Questionnaire

Who are you and where are you from? 

Sam Smith, from Gulf Breeze, FL

Where and when did you come up with the idea for your screenplay?

CHiMERA was borne out of my own experiences returning from college after three years of social anxiety, art school burnout, and horrible living situations.

Can you take us through your screenwriting process? 

I generally get an idea and work to develop it in the back of my mind while working on other projects or gaming (my favorites are Bloodborne, Legend of Zelda, Persona 5, Monster Hunter, etc).

What made you want to become a screenwriter?

My passion is storytelling.

Who are your biggest filmmaking influences? 

Gaming is actually my biggest filmmaking influence.. I don’t watch a lot of movies, but I think my biggest influences have been Disney’s Atlantis, Sega’s Sonic Heroes, FromSoftware’s Bloodborne, and Nintendo’s Legend of Zelda series.

Have you ever been obsessed with a movie or TV show? If so, which one? 

Nope.

What’s your favorite moment in cinema history? 

None.

Who’s your favorite character in cinema history? 

I really liked Milo from Atlantis. He was the earliest character I can remember liking. He wasn’t the typical “nerd” stereotype. I also like Hange Zoe from Attack on Titan. She steals the spotlight in that show.

If you could talk to anyone from any era, who would it be and what would you ask them?

No one comes to mind.