As nuclear tensions reach the breaking point, two women with an extraordinary vision join forces to stop a belligerent President from starting World War III.

SYNOPSIS:

ROCKETLAND

Tone & Style:

Sweeping high stakes political thriller about stopping a nuclear war between the United States and North Korea. In the current political climate of cowardice and subservience to a vengeful President, this story is a fantasy. But in a better America where Cabinet members and Congressional leaders uphold their Constitutional duties and do the right thing, it would be real. There is still hope that America will come to its senses. Because that's what we need right now. Hope and heroes. And ROCKETLAND provides both in abundance.

The sharp political tension of ZERO DAY, the artful stratagems of THE DIPLOMAT, the black comedy of DR. STRANGELOVE, the female-driven courage of WONDER WOMAN, the behind the scenes intrigue of CONCLAVE and the enduring legacy of SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE combine in a highly cinematic and inspiring story of two visionary women with rock and roll souls who wage a passionate battle for peace as the fate of the world hangs by a thread.

Story Overview:

The Doomsday Clock ticks five seconds to midnight. Angry threats, vicious tweets and brazen provocations have brought North Korea and the United States to the brink of nuclear war. World leaders desperately urge restraint, but Kim Jong-un and President Jackson Tower are itching to fight. One false step and the world goes up in flames.

Main Characters:

Amberlin Doyle – Secretary-General of the United Nations and former President of Ireland, age 50. Fiery, passionate and a ruthless negotiator with a fondness for Irish whisky. Best friends with Sybil Magnussen since their wild days at Oxford thirty years ago. Loves Duran Duran and does “The Reflex” better than they do.

Dr. Sybil Magnussen – Global humanitarian and visionary, age 50. Director of the Magnussen Institute for Peace in Stockholm, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize and Most Admired Woman in the World five years running. Sophie and Adam’s mother and Ken Strong’s wife. Loves her music, gets high now and then and revered as a saint in a world full of sinners.

Sophie Strong – Beautiful, athletic, fun-loving daughter of Sybil and Ken and senior at the Stockholm International School, age 18. Lives with her Mom in Stockholm, plans to go to Stanford and becomes a key player in Doyle and Sybil’s visionary peace effort to pull the US and North Korea back from the brink of nuclear war.

Adam Strong – Junior at Stanford, wonder boy at Strong Inc., creator of several cutting edge apps and Sophie’s brother, age 20. Flips the script on Tower’s deepfake videos designed to undermine the peace process and humiliate Doyle and his Mom.

Ken Strong – Powerful Chairman of Strong Inc., the global high tech giant based in Silicon Valley, age 50. Marshals his vast resources to help launch Sybil and Doyle’s People For Peace movement and greenlights Adam’s brilliant plan to undermine Tower with devastating deepfake videos of his own.

Jackson Tower – Belligerent, egotistical and hateful President of the United States, age 70, whose warlike speeches and vicious tweets have repeatedly threatened North Korea with annihilation and brought the world to the brink of nuclear war.

Kim Jong-un – Supreme Leader of North Korea, age 42. Confident, aggressive and determined to gain global respect through the development of nuclear missiles capable of hitting the United States. The third Kim to rule North Korea since the start of the Cold War, he feels immense pressure to surpass his father and grandfather’s legacies.

Kim Yo-jong – Kim’s beautiful sister and most trusted advisor, age 38. Shrewd and cunning with a unique ability to curb her brother’s most aggressive instincts, she plays a pivotal role in creating a breakthrough for Doyle & Sybil’s Rocketland Peace Proposal to take flight.

Secretary of Defense – Stalwart member of Tower’s cabinet, age 60, who sees through Tower’s attempts to upend the peace process and personally destroy Sybil and Doyle. His bold and courageous actions help save the day as a defiant Tower tries to launch World War III.

Oh Se-hoon – Wise and empathetic President of South Korea, age 65, who gives Doyle and Sybil valuable insights into Kim’s character and psychological need to surpass the legacies of his father Kim Jong-il and his grandfather Kim Il-sung without appearing weak.

Captain Rhee – Insightful and determined Seoul Police Captain, age 40, who protects Sybil and Doyle in South Korea and helps rescue Sophie from a brazen kidnapping attempt ordered by Tower and the CIA to derail the peace process and pin it on North Korea.

CIA Director – Tower’s henchman and golf partner, age 55, responsible for deepfake videos designed to humiliate Sybil and Doyle as well as Sophie’s kidnapping in Seoul. Sows the wind and reaps the whirlwind, ending his woefully benighted career.

SYNOPSIS

After a terrifying montage of a nuclear war between North Korea and the United States engulfing the entire world, we open in Stockholm where Sophie Strong, star of the Stockholm International School’s women’s basketball team, launches a logo 3 like her idol Caitlin Clark to win the game at the buzzer. As Sophie arrives home on her Vespa, she finds a letter from Stanford accepting her into the freshman class and screams in excitement.

Across town, Dr. Sybil Magnussen – the world’s top humanitarian and peace activist, finishes a Zoom call with an African leader, sees a triumphant text from Sophie and smiles with pride. But after a celebration dinner of lobster and pizza, the mood darkens over the impending threat of nuclear war between the US and North Korea. Sophie fears she’ll never make it to Stanford before the world blows up and urges Sybil to do something about it. “People listen to you, Mom! If you can’t stop this shit, nobody can!”

Sybil takes the plea to heart. Nestled in her den, she vapes some hash, Spotifys The Moody Blues “Question,” closes her eyes and floats with the music. As the song hits a tympanic crescendo, Sybil’s eyes pop open, her visionary powers kick in and she draws a sketch of an open hand with the words “$5 For Peace,” “People For Peace” and the title “ROCKETLAND.”

Sybil and Sophie zoom with son Adam and husband Ken in Silicon Valley, who think the campaign is a great idea. Adam offers to develop a graphic presentation and Ken pledges the full support of Strong Inc. Feeling encouraged, Sybil and Sophie fly to New York to present it to her best friend Amberlin Doyle, the Secretary-General of the UN, to see how far they can take it.

Sybil and Doyle share a joyous reunion at the UN, regaling Sophie with stories of their wild days at Oxford. Doyle is thrilled by the Rocketland peace plan and wants Sybil to present it to the entire General Assembly. “There’s not a moment to lose before the fuckers blow us all to hell.”

At the White House, President Tower is livid. “Who the fuck does this bitch think she is, stickin’ her ass in this thing? If I wanna nuke Rocketman, I’ll nuke him!” The SecDef, SecState and Chief of Staff urge him to listen to what Sybil has to say, but Tower is adamant. He tells US Ambassador Sally Harris to walk out if Sybil even hints at criticizing him.

Sybil’s address to the UN is the most watched speech in history and she hits it out of the park. With Adam’s graphics running on huge TV screens flanking the stage, Sybil lays out the crisis and when she blames both sides for fanning the flames, Sally Harris starts to walk out. A furious Doyle bolts from the dais, storms down the aisle and in the greatest moment in UN history, grabs Harris and shoves he back in her seat. "Siddown!"

Order is restored and Sybil pitches her big idea: a global movement called People For Peace, where every person in the world can contribute $5 on the website to help North Korea become a self-sustaining, prosperous and peaceful country. Every donor will get a colorful People For Peace button they can proudly wear to show they gave their share. Sybil freely admits it’s an effort to buy peace and asks those who can contribute more to do so, saying it’s the best investment they could possibly make. “But peace is a two-way street, and North Korea must meet us halfway. Doyle and I stand ready to go to Pyongyang to discuss the deal and wait for their response with open arms. Let’s show North Korea that the world wants peace and means business. In the immortal words of John Lennon, all we are saying is give peace a chance.”

The speech is a huge success and money starts pouring in. Several of the world’s richest people donate $10 billion each and dozens of celebrities each donate $10 million. Within hours, over $300 billion is donated as the electronic billboard in Times Square spins in a blur. Fox News is outraged, calling it bribery and extortion. But the people of the world are electrified, marching in support in hundreds of cities and towns. Tower is furious, claiming Sybil and Doyle boozed and whored their way through Oxford and when he calls them “Flower Child” and “Drunk Doyle,” his base laps it up. One Washington insider says Tower has vowed revenge and won’t stop until they’re destroyed.

A special Saturday Night Live is broadcast around the world featuring several famous hosts and alums; a hilarious skit with Kate McKinnon and Cicely Strong playing “Flower Child” and “Drunk Doyle” at Oxford; a rockin’ performance of “The Reflex” by Duran Duran, Sybil and Doyle; and to top it off, the Friends For Peace band featuring Paul McCartney, Stevie Wonder, Ringo Starr, Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, Billie Eilish, Bruce Springsteen, John Legend, Bruno Mars and Bono performing a stunning medley of “Let It Be,” “Imagine” and “Bridge Over Troubled Water” that ranks as one of the greatest moments in music history. As donations soar past the $1.5 trillion mark, North Korea invites Sybil and Doyle to Pyongyang.

Sybil, Doyle and Sophie fly to Palo Alto on Doyle’s UN plane and share a joyous reunion with Adam and Ken. The Peace Fund has already passed $2 trillion and after dinner, Adam gives Sophie a rubber wristband with a GPS tracker. Sophie doubts she’ll need it, but Adam insists. “There’s people out there who don’t like the peace plan, and this way I’ll always know where you are.” Ken urges Sybil to be careful as well, but Sybil’s unconcerned. “The last thing Kim wants is for any harm to come to us.”

As the UN plane heads across the Pacific, a video of Tower and the CIA Director playing golf airs on all the networks. They appear to have a lengthy conversation on the putting green and in the golf cart, but no audio is heard.

Sybil, Doyle and Sophie arrive in Seoul, a vibrant city of 10 million and settle in at the Four Seasons penthouse suite to prepare for their meeting with Kim Jong-un. Doyle and Sybil are old hands at diplomacy, but the stakes have never been this high. Back at the White House, a furious Tower orders the 7th Fleet to Korea and sends squadrons of fighters and bombers off the North Korean coast to provoke an incident he hopes will trigger a nuclear war. But the SecDef tells the Admiral to slow walk the fleet and to ignore any orders from Tower to engage so the peace talks can proceed without interference.

Sybil and Doyle leave Sophie at the hotel, meet with South Korean President Oh and when they ask if Kim can be reasoned with, Oh gives them valuable insights into Kim’s psyche and his deep need to surpass the legacies of his father Kim Jong-il and his grandfather Kim Il-sung. He might be receptive to the peace plan, but only if it strengthens North Korea without making him appear weak.

Doyle and Sybil fly to Pyongyang, the reclusive North Korean capital of 3 million people, arrive at the Stalinesque Presidential Palace and are taken to a meeting room, where Kim and his sister Yo-jong enter with translators. Sybil takes the lead, saying world has embraced the People For Peace campaign and the fund has already eclipsed $2 trillion to enable North Korea to become a peaceful, prosperous and self-sustaining country. She tells Kim he has already done what his father and grandfather could only have dreamed of: he’s won the war without firing a shot. “All we ask is that you accept our proposal so North Korea can become a paradise.”

Sybil opens her laptop and presents Adam’s beautifully designed brochure titled “Rocketland: A Vision For A New North Korea.” As Sybil clicks through the proposal, each picture is dazzling. “Gleaming new cities, lush fertile fields, massive new factories, state of the art hospitals, bountiful harvests, happy, well-fed people…huge new stadiums for sports and entertainment ...The Pyongyang Olympics in 2032…and the centerpiece: five Hwasong missiles standing proudly on display in Pyongyang’s Great Square. The Supreme Leader holding the Nobel Peace Prize…The Supreme Leader named Time’s Man of the Year…The Supreme Leader smiling and waving to his people like a living god.” The Kims are deeply impressed. Yo-jong asks Sybil to send the proposal to her phone, which Sybil does instantly.

Doyle takes over and drops the other shoe. To get the money, North Korea will have to cease its nuclear, chemical and biological weapons programs and turn over all stockpiles to the UN for safe removal and destruction. Kim can keep his standing army, but the rest will have to go. The dismantling will be supervised by UN inspectors and the facilities will never be allowed to start up again. She will bring in thousands of UN Peacekeepers to facilitate things and act as human shields against any attack by the United States. Once Kim agrees to these requirements without conditions, Rocketland money will instantly start flowing and will continue to flow for decades to make North Korea a peaceful paradise and the envy of the world.

Kim is enraged and calls it surrender. Doyle pushes back hard and tells him what will happen. “Nuclear war will explode. You will launch your missiles and while some may hit their targets, North Korea will be wiped off the map. All 26 million of your people, including your beautiful sister and children, will die horrible deaths. There will be no victory parades, only silence. Your father and grandfather will be ashamed of you for destroying everything they worked so hard to build. They will not welcome you into heaven and will never speak to you again.” Kim storms out as “In The Air Tonight” kicks in.

Back in Seoul, Sophie opens the door expecting room service and is grabbed by two men wearing ski masks and ballcaps who inject her with a tranquilizer and haul her off. Sybil and Doyle arrive and see Sophie’s phone – but not Sophie. “She never goes anywhere without her phone!” Doyle calls President Oh and within minutes, Police Captain Rhee and four young cops arrive. Sybil calls Adam and as he and Rhee sync their devices, Adam hacks the hotel security cams and sees Sophie loaded into a van and driven away. Adam tracks Sophie’s GPS to Seoul’s dingy warehouse district, zooms down and sees the van.

Sybil, Doyle, Rhee and the cops race up and block the van as a TV news truck arrives out of nowhere to film the scene. The cops break into the van and as they pull out a bound and gagged Sophie, Rhee shines a flashlight inside and finds a conspicuous North Korean flag and propaganda magazine.

As Sybil and the cops comfort Sophie, Doyle and Rhee break down the crime. Rhee says it was staged. The flag and magazine were obvious plants and the TV news truck showed up as if on cue. Doyle asks who would do such a thing and Rhee gives the answer. “Someone who wants to scare you off, destroy the peace talks and blame it on North Korea” as "In The Air" fades out.

As Sophie’s kidnapping shocks the world, Yo-jong texts Sybil saying they didn’t do it and is glad Sophie is safe. But Tower is adamant, saying he has proof. Minutes later, a video crashes the net showing Sybil, Doyle and Kim watching and smiling as a missile launches from the North Korean countryside. Tower and Fox News call Sybil and Doyle traitors and demand they be locked up. But the Pentagon pushes back hard, saying there was no missile launch and the video is fake. Doyle sternly tells the press, “We demand that whoever is behind these vile and despicable acts stop trying to undermine the peace talks. We will not be intimidated, and I assure you, your day of reckoning will come.”

That night, Yo-jong gently encourages Kim to return to the table, saying they have won the war and have every right to declare victory, take the money and help their people. Kim remains skeptical, calling it a pack of lies. But as Yo-jong replays the Rocketland presentation on her laptop with all the beautiful pictures of economic growth and prosperity and says their father and grandfather would approve, Kim grows thoughtful.

Kim visits the grand mausoleums of Kim Jong-il and Kim Il-sung, silently seeking their advice. And as dawn breaks, he stands at the base of their towering bronze statues, imagining his own statue in the middle, revered as a living god and every bit their equal.

Back in Palo Alto, Adam begs his father to let him hit back hard at Tower. They need to fight fire with fire, and Ken agrees.

Sybil gets a welcome text from Yo-jong inviting them back to Pyongyang for further talks – and to please bring Sophie. The three arrive at the meeting room and Yo-jong takes the lead, reviewing the key points of the Rocketland proposal as Kim listens closely. The funds to be exclusively controlled by the UN, the dismantling of the weapons programs by UN inspectors, Peacekeepers acting as deterrents against attack as well as clearing the DMZ and the timely withdrawal of US forces from South Korea.

Everything seems to be in order until Yo-jong announces their plan to hold a huge military parade with dozens of missiles and a million soldiers proclaiming victory over the United States. Sybil and Doyle are aghast. “That would be totally against the spirit of the peace agreement!” But Kim is adamant. “I will have my parade!”

As he slams the table and starts to leave, Sophie bolts to her feet. “Siddown!” Kim glares angrily as everyone stares in shock. “My Mom and Doyle busted their ass to bring you this deal, so sit down and stop acting like a child!” “I could have you shot for that!” “Go ahead! If this deal falls through, we’ll all be dead anyway! You, me, Yo-jong, everyone! There won’t be any Rocketland! There won’t be any parades! Just a bunch of mushroom clouds and a ton of dead kids like me who never had a chance! It’s the best deal you’re ever gonna get, and if you walk away now, Tower wins! So take the deal and tell him to go fuck himself!” Yo-jong agrees and gently leads Kim back to the table.

Sybil’s visionary powers kick in as she describes a very different kind of parade, like a Hollywood epic from the ‘50s. “A million soldiers and civilians…the Supreme Leader on the reviewing stand like a proud benevolent father…a fanfare of trumpets as five rockets roll in pointing towards the sky…People of North Korea: I give you Rocketland!...A huge banner unfurls reading Rocketland! A Vision For a New North Korea!…Thousands of children pour into the square tossing flowers…People singing and dancing to the new Rocketland song as fireworks explode…A celebration of joy and happiness like North Korea has never seen before.”

Suddenly a scandalous video rocks the internet: the Tower-CIA golf clip, now with crystal clear audio thanks to Adam’s deepfake skills. Tower tells CIA to snatch Sophie in Seoul and make it look like North Korea did it, calls Sybil the C-word and muses about fucking Doyle and grabbing her pussy. “I get hard just thinkin’ about it.” The public is outraged. Even Fox News says he’s toast. As Tower’s approval ratings plummet and thousands march on the White House demanding his impeachment, the SecDef quietly takes steps to neutralize him.

As Sybil, Doyle and Kim jointly announce the Rocketland Peace Agreement from Seoul and Pyongyang, millions of people in cities around the world erupt in celebration, waving their People For Peace buttons and dancing in the streets.

A vengeful Tower storms into the Situation Room with the officer in charge of the nuclear briefcase, determined to strike North Korea and get his war. But when he opens the case, the launch codes are missing and the key card’s been disabled. As Tower furiously tries to get it to work, the SecDef enters and glares. “Stand down, you son of a bitch.”

Two-thirds of the Cabinet stand in the Oval Office invoking the 25th Amendment as Tower scowls from behind the Resolute Desk. "The House has voted to impeach, and rather than wait for the Senate to convict you, which is an absolute certainty, we’ve decided to let you save whatever’s left of your dignity.” The SecDef slides Tower’s resignation letter across the desk and tosses him a pen. “Hurry up. Chopper’s waiting.”

Oslo, Norway. Four months later. The Nobel Peace Prize is awarded to Sybil Magnussen, Amberlin Doyle, Kim Jong-un and Kim Yo-jong as the audience stands in a thunderous ovation.

We move ahead eight months to Palo Alto where Sophie, now finishing freshman year, enjoys an outdoor dinner with Sybil, Ken and Adam. The Magnussen Institute has opened a second office at Stanford so Sybil can be closer to her family, which is great news for everyone. Suddenly Sybil’s phone chirps and a smiling Yo-jong appears wearing a Rocketland ballcap. Rocketland’s first birthday party is tomorrow and she wants to be sure they’re coming. Doyle pops in beside Yo-jong and as “I’m Just A Singer In A Rock & Roll Band” backs a montage of the economic programs already underway, Doyle fills them in on the breathtaking progress and signs off saying the entire Friends For Peace band from SNL is flying in for a show. “We’re gonna party like it’s 2099!”

Sybil, Doyle, Kim, Yo-jong, Sophie, Adam and Ken stand in Pyongyang’s Great Square admiring the five towering Hwasong missiles pointing skywards with a huge Rocketland banner behind them, just like in Sybil’s Hollywood vision. Suddenly hundreds of children race in and form a huge circle around the Rocketland heroes, singing a joyful song and showering them with flowers.

We pull up into the sky as the Great Square recedes from view. The Korean peninsula appears and as we keep moving further and further away, we hold on Earth, floating like a bright blue marble in space as John Lennon’s “Imagine” plays through.

COMMERCIAL APPEAL

Compelling Themes: The imminent threat of nuclear war. A belligerent, hostile President who acts like a mob boss, ridicules every-one and always seeks conflict. Subservient advisors terrified of his wrath until they finally grow a pair and stand up to the bully. A visionary peace campaign that electrifies the planet and puts the power into the hands of the world’s people.

Female-Led Cast: Dynamic, inspiring women in lead roles. Stunning bravery and courage as they work together to shape a bold plan to avert nuclear war and make North Korea a peaceful, prosperous and self-sustaining country. Vibrant supporting characters and famous figures from around the world driving the story to incredible heights.

Cinematic Settings & Songs: Stockholm, New York, the United Nations, Silicon Valley, Seoul, Pyongyang and key capitals around the world provide the backdrops as the thrilling action unfolds. Iconic rock songs adding depth and dimension to the characters, plus an incredible concert on Saturday Night Live performed by the greatest artists of our time.

MARKETING POTENTIAL

Given the disastrous state of politics both here and abroad, ROCKETLAND is a fantasy. But within fantasy often lies the foundation of hope for a better world. Audiences everywhere are hungry for hope. For leaders with imagination and vision to take us on a new path, to offer us a better way, to reject warmongers and wannabe dictators bent on hatred and division and lead us into a more peaceful future. And who better to do that than the visionary women of this story, who audiences around the world will root for and cheer?

Imagine Congressmen and Cabinet Members not being cowards anymore. Imagine the UN being relevant again. Imagine the better angels of our nature actually winning for once? As Bobby Kennedy said, “Some men see things as they are and ask ‘Why?’ I dream of things that never were and ask, ‘Why not?’”

The movie business has never shied away from controversy. But the tide now seems to be turning. We can hide in our shells and hope the disease infecting our world will miraculously go away and all will be well again. But that is the biggest fantasy of all. We must fight the disease and those who spread it with all the tools at our disposal, which means telling powerful stories that challenge the way things are and provide a compelling vision of things that can one day be.