An Aspiring Rapper Fulfills His Dream Of Becoming A Hip-Hop Hero…20 Years Later.

1. An Aspiring Rapper Fulfills His Dream Of
Becoming A Hip-Hop Hero…20Years Later.

2. WHERE WE STAND
Screenplay
Shot List
Storyboard
Director
Music Supervisor
Script Clearance Report
Title Report & Opinion
Cast & Crew
Location Scouting
E&O Insurance

3. KEYS TO MAKING A SUCCESSFUL
MICRO-BUDGET FILM
• A Script that works with Budgetary Restraints
• Strategic Locations
• Built-in Audience(s)
• Networking/Film festivals
• VOD (Video On Demand) Distribution
The majority of the scenes in this feature were written to take place in easy-to-control
atmospheres; a barbershop, a recording studio and several private residences. These
locations should make it easier for lighting, sound and blocking. Furthermore, there were no
car chases, VFX or any anything else written into the script that would add to the production
time and take away from the budget. The use of major stars isn’t necessary to tell this story.
However, it would be idea to use talented actors that, through their work ethic, have built
followings of fans on social media that will be excited about the release of this film. Because
of the story’s subject matter, the filmmaker plans to work with social media influencers that
do movie reviews/breakdowns to give the film additional promotion. The script will also be
entered into screenwriting competitions and promoted at festivals in the New York City area
such as the Hip-Hop Film Festival and the Harlem Film Festival. Through the use of an indie
distributor, the final product will be available to the public on VOD platforms such as
Amazon, iTunes,TubiTV and more.

4. ABOUT THE FILMMAKER
In the script, a fictitious record company aligns itself with a brewing company and cross-promotes
an alcoholic beverage, an idea that satirizes the 1990s era of Hip-hop when some of the biggest-
selling and most influential Rap artists, including Notorious B.I.G., Tupac Shakur, Ice Cube, the Geto
Boyz and Wu-Tang Clan, were enlisted to endorse St. Ides, a popular brand of malt liquor. The story
also spoofs the 1996 acquisition of Universal Music Group by the Seagram liquor company for the
purpose of creating a fictionalized account of the relationship between Hip-hop culture, Corporate
America and the prison-industrial complex.
The filmmaker uses his own experiences as a rapper to bring some of the characters in this story to
life. In the opening scene, an “Anti-Drug Rap” that he penned in the mid-1980s while in the 4th
grade is recited by one of the story’s key characters. In another part of the story, the protagonist
recites the lyrics of “I’m Your Nikes” from the former rapper’s 2001 Rap album, Modern Day Sins.
“The Line-Up,” another one of the writer’s records which features popular 90s-era rappers Styles P,
Scram Jones, Tragedy Khadafi and Kool G Rap, will also appear on the film’s soundtrack.
Micah “CEO Sid” Overby is a NY Emmy® Award-nominated filmmaker and
the author of Act Like A Label, Think Like A Manager. With this screenplay, the
former Hip-hop artist/record producer has created a story that is loosely
based on real life events as well as his own personal experiences.
The premise of the film’s plot is established in a scene that parodies The
Secret Meeting That Changed Rap Music and Destroyed a Generation, a
widely-believed Hip-hop conspiracy theory.

5. NOTABLE NAMES CONNECTED
TO THIS PROJECT
Styles P Scram Jones
Tragedy Khadafi Kool G Rap
Rashad Bilal & Troy Millings
EarnYour Leisure Podcast

6. In the 1990s, Money Grip gets inspired to write dope rhymes in his spare time between hanging out with his
girlfriend, Shante, and sweeping floors at the barbershop after seeing a local rap star/community activist, The
Professor,perform at an Anti-Drug Rally in the park.
While being chased by police for a crime he didn’t commit, Money Grip loses his Book of Rhymes. He and his
best friend,Ty Da Barber, post lost-and-found flyers all over the neighborhood in hopes that someone will
return it to him. A few days later, The Professor returns the notebook to the barbershop and offers to take
Money Grip under his wing.Twink, a shifty talent scout for Prisonic Records who happens to be in the
barbershop at the same time, sees an opportunity to recruit Money Grip to Prisonic records to help his boss,
Max Katzke, carry out a diabolical scheme.
After being offered a chance to sign with Prisonic Records, Money Grip has a miscommunication with Shante
that leads to the couple breaking up just days before she is to decide whether to accept an offer from an out-of-
state university or attend the local college and, against her advice, Money Grip signs a record deal with
Prisonic Records. It isn’t long before he realizes he may have made a mistake but, by the time he comes to his
senses and tries to apologize to Shante, she is gone.To make matters worse, he also loses his record deal.
Twenty years later, Money Grip is still aspiring to be a Hip-hop MC but is viewed by many in the
neighborhood as a “washed-up” rapper.When he is presented with an opportunity to mentor Paypa Klip, a
rapper half his age that attends the local college, he initially takes it to benefit himself. He begins to cultivate a
relationship with his new protégé but things take a turn when Paypa Klip gets in trouble with the law and his
mother, Shante, shows up to bail him out. Money Grip then learns that Paypa Klip is his son.
Together,Money Grip and Shante (with a little help from The Professor and Ty Da Barber) use their skills to get
Paypa Klip out of trouble and, in the process, Money Grip becomes a Hip-hop hero when he discovers that Max
Katzke owns private prisons and exposes the record exec’s heinous plan to use rap music to keep them filled.
SYNOPSIS

7. MARKET ANALYSIS
Although Hip-hop comedy films are often marketed to niche audiences, they generally have high crossover
potential and are often commercially successful. Here are some examples of Niche Market Hip-Hop comedy
films and their box office returns:
• With a budget of $2.5 million, House Party (New Line Cinema) grossed $26.4 million.
• With a budget of $6 million, CB4 (Universal Pictures) grossed $17,959,778.
• With a budget of $15 million, Malibu’s MostWanted (Warner Bros.) grossed $34 million.
• With a estimated budget of $3 million, Krush Grove (Warner Bros.) grossed $11,052,713.
• Disorderlies (Warner Bros.) grossed $10,348, 437.
Filmmakers traditionally depend on theatrical releases to determine their film’s successes. However,
depending solely on theatrical releases can stifle the full earning potential of a Niche Market Film because,
typically, Niche Market Films don’t reach as many theaters as Mass Market Films.VOD platforms allow Niche
Market Films to have a broader reach which, in turn, gives them a better chance at success.With social media
marketing, filmmakers have proven that films can be successful without having theatrical releases. Examples of
films that were just as if not more successful on VOD are as follows:
• The Interview (Sony) grossed $15 million on VOD after a $12.3 million theatrical run.
• Snowpiercer (RADiUS-TWC) grossed $6.45 million on VOD and $4.5 million in theaters.
• The One I Love (RADiUS-TWC) grossed $737,039 on VOD and $309,000 in theaters.
• Fed Up (RADiUS-TWC) grossed $1,328,330 on VOD and $1.5 million in theaters.
• The Unknown Know (RADiUS-TWC) grossed $1 million on VOD and $270,000 in theaters.
• Escape From Tomorrow (Producers Distribution Agency) grossed $120,560 on VOD and $139,334 in
theaters.
• Arbitrage (Lionsgate) grossed $14 million on VOD and $8 million in theaters.