An Aberdeen based novelist and screenwriter has two screenplays optioned by the international film production company, Stronghold.

Chris Watt’s psychological thriller, Freight, is in development with the film production company. 

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He was thrilled to have the two scripts optioned: “The pandemic took a lot from all of us, but it also gave me time and to have two feature screenplays optioned and in development with some very talented people has been not only exciting, but an incredible boost to a career I’ve been working on for 20 years now.

“The momentum from having those scripts optioned has opened up opportunities to me that mean 2021 and beyond is looking very promising indeed.”

The thriller, Freight, delves into the depths of extreme human psyche. An actress and a stranger find themselves trapped in a freight elevator when the lift malfunctions. With their calls for help unanswered, the two can only rely on each other, but their trust is shattered upon discovering they are not strangers at all.

Follow Up, also written by Chris Watt, is in early development, and was optioned by Stronghold after making the British Independent Film Festival Gold List.

This is a screenwriting contest that runs alongside the prestigious festival in London.

Follow Up is about a musician on his journey back into the industry he used to love, after success and fortune caused him to retreat into isolation.

Chris Watt’s previous screenplay, Manifest was produced and released in 2015 by Charlatan Films. He also made a name for himself as a writer with his novels Peer Pressure and On Lines.

Stronghold, the international film production company, has offices in Glasgow, London, Los Angeles, and Calgary. They have produced five movies which were shot in Scotland. Recent credits include Tomorrow executive produced by Martin Scorsese and starring Stephen Fry, James Cosmo and Joss Stone.