COVERAGE ON “THE JOSEPHUS CONSPIRACY” by the Chicago Screenplay Awards 2020

The title The Josephus Conspiracy inherently promises intrigue and action, and this script delivers on both fronts. This is a narrative that spans the globe and has a diverse cast of colorful characters. This is certainly a script that demands audience attention to keep up with all the twists and turns of the plot, but it manages to be a plot-focused story without sacrificing interesting characters with great motivations and original personalities.

Ultimately it is the concept and the mystery at the heart of this story that makes it so compelling. Uncovering this conspiracy with life or death stakes really makes the pages fly by, and the various settings act as a palette cleanser, keeping things fresh. It’s a difficult balance to strike between dripping out information and stringing an audience along with mysterious elements. The script largely does this successfully, but the start could use some clarification. Even just spending time in a character’s perspective and mindset for a scene would alleviate a lot of the directionless feeling I experienced early on. On the whole, this is a wildly inventive idea with a characters and plot points that feel real and original. The pacing is sharp and the scope epic. With all these elements at play, I couldn’t help have a good time with The Josephus Conspiracy.