ChronoScript

If you do a 'baby Hitler' story for this... I'm going to...

The Challenge

Time travel has fascinated storytellers for centuries—whether as a precise, science-driven concept or a mysterious force that bends reality. Your task is to write a screenplay or play where the manipulation of time is a central element.

Your approach is up to you:

• Hard Science – Think meticulously researched theories, paradoxes, and rules. (Like Primer, a film famous for its intricate time mechanics.)

• Unexplained & Mysterious – Time bends, loops, or jumps without a clear explanation. The story focuses on the impact, not the mechanics.

• Comedic & Absurd – Maybe time travel is as easy as drinking expired milk, or maybe time travelers keep running into their past selves at the worst possible moments.

• Action & Adventure – The time machine is just a tool; the real story is in the chase, the escape, or the mission (think Back to the Future or Tenet).

Guidelines

• Set the Rules (or Break Them) – If time travel follows strict rules, make them clear. If it’s chaotic and unpredictable, lean into that.

• Character Perspective Matters – Is your character a scientist in control of time? A random person caught in a time loop? A traveler stranded in the wrong century?

• Consequences & Paradoxes – What happens when time is altered? Does your character risk erasing themselves, looping forever, or breaking reality?

• Play with Structure – Could the story itself mimic time travel? Maybe scenes are out of order, or a character’s dialogue is happening in two timelines at once.

Questions to Consider

• How does time travel affect your characters on a personal level?

• Are there rules to time travel, or is it chaotic and unpredictable?

• Does the story revolve around fixing something in time, or dealing with its unintended consequences?

• Does time travel create a paradox, an alternate reality, or something else entirely?

Model Works & Inspiration

Primer (2004, Film) – A complex, realistic take on time travel with strict scientific rules.

Back to the Future (1985, Film) – A fun, adventurous story where time travel is both a problem and a solution.

Futurama: “Roswell That Ends Well” (TV Episode) – A hilarious time-travel accident involving a microwave and the destruction of history.

Tenet (2020, Film) – A mind-bending thriller where time travel works in reverse, creating unique action sequences.

The Butterfly Effect (2004, Film) – A dark look at how small changes in time can have massive consequences.