THE STAGE 32 LOGLINES

Post your loglines. Get and give feedback.

HOUSE SHARE
By Damian Colomb

GENRE: Horror
LOGLINE:

When a group of roommates finds disturbing footage of one of them undergoing psychiatric evaluations, they uncover a terrifying truth: they’ve been part of his experiment all along.

SYNOPSIS:

John, Bill, Manon, and Savannah, four roommates in their twenties, live in the same house.

In this house, there is both the cheerful atmosphere of a shared living space for young adults and, at the same time, a heavy ambiance that can bring fear at any moment. Each of the roommates has their own story and must deal with it in their own way.

John has a heavy past. His brother died, his mother couldn't cope and became senile, and John had to put in extra effort to overcome these challenges. Despite the lively atmosphere of the house, he confronts horrible nightmares due to his traumatic history.

He completed his studies in accounting a few years ago, but his true passion is cooking. He is trained by a renowned chef who has high hopes for him.

Unfortunately, he has to take care of his mother, who suffers from dementia and resides in a psychiatric hospital. To cover the expenses, he works at a cinema. One day, the psychiatric hospital informs him that the bills have increased. Unable to finance it all, he accepts the proposition of his childhood friend Sean, who works in a large financial audit firm, to become his accountant and right-hand man. John and Sean maintain a toxic relationship, each vying for dominance over the other.

John must find the necessary resources to both confront his inner demons and find a solution to his everyday problems. He is torn between his desire to pursue his passion in life and the responsibility of taking care of his mother, with whom he struggles to resolve his issues.

He lives with Manon, a French student trying to find her place in a foreign country. She, too, feels lost in a world she is discovering, and despite being thousands of kilometers away from where she was born, she cannot escape the problems that were once hers. In this house, at night, she also experiences nightmares in which she finds herself alone, prey to her demons.

John and Manon become friends over time, each trying to help the other through difficult moments.

Savannah is the oldest among them; she often acts as the mother figure in the group, always laughing and in good spirits. She is in love with Amanda, a woman who is always on the move and never seems to be around. Although she works remotely, she feels bored in her everyday life. She wishes Amanda were present, but all she feels is loneliness. She dreams of distant Asian countries like Vietnam and Japan, always thinking about taking the plunge but lacking the courage to do so.

The three of them experience challenging moments in their young adult lives, but also share beautiful moments of camaraderie in their shared living arrangement. Savannah is the one who loves to eat and always brings good cheer, while Manon provides a fresh perspective from a different country. John, on the other hand, remains the reassuring and charismatic figure, but he is also caught between Manon's attempts to help and Sean's toxic support.

The fourth roommate is Bill, the most discreet of them all. Bill is a student pursuing a Ph.D. in sociology. In utmost secrecy, he decides to film an experiment for his studies. He intends to consult various psychoanalysts to see if they can diagnose any mental illnesses. As the videos progress and he shares them on social media, it becomes evident that all the psychoanalysts reach the same conclusion: Bill is dangerous to himself and society. We only get to know Bill through the eyes of his roommates and the videos of his experiment that he posts online.

Bill's behavior becomes increasingly peculiar, marked by unsettling mood swings. Savannah overhears Sean engaging in a dialogue while he is alone in the house. During an evening at a bar, Manon witnesses Sean turning into an extremely violent person. Sean suddenly appears in the house, catching everyone off guard. His speeches become more excessive and incoherent, and his mood is unpredictable, and so on.

John, Manon, and Savannah remain oblivious to the warning signs of Bill's strange behavior until the day John accidentally discovers the videos of Bill's experiment. Intrigued, he alerts Manon and Savannah, but it's already too late. Bill's mood swings reach a point of no return, and he becomes violent towards his own roommates.

HOUSE SHARE

View screenplay
Tasha Lewis

Rated this logline

Abdusamad Shafiev

Rated this logline

register for stage 32 Register / Log In