Several people have asked me what this movie is about.  To answer this question, I wrote down the seven questions journalists ask when writing a story.  I don't claim to know anything about journalism, but it seems like a reasonable technique.  I therefore wrote a fictional interview with a journalist who didn't know anything about this project.

Q. Where is the story set? 

Outside Boston (Burlington, MA and Cambridge, MA).  Most of the film is set in an office off HWY 128, although we a planning some nice exteriors of Cambridge. 

Q. When is the story set? 

 11-12 September 2008.  The weekend before the default of Lehman Brothers. 

Q. Who is the story about?

Vince.  A quant.  As the world experiences the financial crisis, Vince grapples with his own internal crisis.

Q. What is your story about (literally)?

Imagine interviewing the man who just fucked your fiancee.

Q. How is the story told? 

In the simplest, most economical fashion.  My background is Applied Mathematics, where economy of expression, or elegance, is valued.   The short film (approx. 15 minutes) will be shot on DV.

  

Q. Why did you write this story? 

Several reasons.  At first, I simply wanted the experience of writing a screenplay. I've always loved movies, and I felt that I could write a watchable movie given the chance.  As the writing process continued, I began to understand a deeper reason: to ignite an internal revolution in my own thinking.  At root, this story is about internal revolution.  All revolutions require sparks, an external spark.  This revolution is sparked my Vince's counterpart, his doppelganger, Mark, the man who he is interviewing, the man who is sleeping with his fiancee.

Film Synopsis

"A Better Fate" is an absurd comedy about a man whose life collapses in the space of a 24 hour period.  Vince is a quant who’s having a bad day.   He broker just called and wants 80 large by Friday.  And his fiancée is sleeping with another guy—the guy Vince is about to interview.