John Munn – The Morrisfield Misfits and the Sword of Fate

We had a chance to meet up with John Munn who has three screenplays officials selected as part of the Utah Film Festival to discuss his screenplay The Morrisfield Misfits and the Sword of Fate. The screenplay is about when three students in their early teens, snowed in at their boarding school, are thrown into an epic quest spanning two worlds. The year is 1939 and the kids will find themselves facing evil magic users, diabolical traps, suspicious gangsters and power-hungry Nazis!

What was the inspiration for The Morrisfield Misfits and the Sword of Fate?

My grandfather, H. Warner Munn, was a published fantasy author who enjoyed writing about Arthurian Legend.

I loved his stories and wanted to write one of my own.  I also am a huge fan of “Raiders of the Lost Ark” and “Harry Potter.”  I asked myself if I could take a story that had the feel of all of those and turn them  into the first screenplay of what could be a trilogy of my own.

How long did it take you to write The Morrisfield Misfits and the Sword of Fate?

The first draft of this screenplay was written in less than two weeks.  I wrote the first draft in such a way that I left the characters in a cliffhanger each time I stopped. Because of that, I couldn’t wait to get back to the story and take it further and further along its quest.

What was the biggest challenge in writing this screenplay?

Making sure that the events  that take place in “our world” during the 1930s are historically accurate.  Who were the major players in the mafia in New York and how did they relate to one another?  Details about the Nazis and their operations.  What was happening during the creation, and day to day maintenance, of the subway system.   It was a lot of moving pieces that had to be as substantial as the “fantasy world” that the story bounces back and forth between.

What was your favorite scene to write?

The final battle between the heroes and Morgan.  To see the kids overcoming their personal obstacles and succeed where the adults had not.  It was a blast to write such an epic scene in a grand adventure and I can’t wait to do it again!

What was your favorite character to create?

Merlin’s brother – Marvin.  He has a wonderful, loving nature about him and a never-ending curiosity about the “other world” that the kids come from.  And, underneath it all, the fact that he might be keeping some secrets of his own very close to his vest.

How/When do you plan to make it into a film?

I am hoping it gets optioned someday by someone who loves the story and characters as much as I do.  I know it won’t be the same script after another professional has taken it to heart, but I am very excited for the collaboration and the changes that their ideas will bring to it!

What do you have next in the works?

I am trying to find a Manager as I work on my next two screenplays.  Someone who doesn’t mind taking on a “baby writer,” but would help nurture my career in a way that I could help get my work produced as well as helping others through spec work, rewrites and/or in a writer’s room. My upcoming screenplay work includes a werewolf story that starts in the middle ages and spans to today and another which is a very personal script about my father that has a “Big Chill” feel to it in both its sense of drama and humor.

How can we learn more about you and your projects?

Thank you for asking!  You can always get updates through both my Coverfly.com and NetworkISA.org profiles as well as my Instagram account.  Another one of my goals this year is to develop a website and newsletter to have a quick way to get info!

How can we find you on social media?

https://www.facebook.com/JohnMunnJr

https://www.instagram.com/johnmunnjr/

https://www.networkisa.org/profile/john-munn

https://writers.coverfly.com/profile/writer-2663cdc72-151244