Portfolio

john varkados = writer + filmmaker

This page will map out all the diverse works I have completed so you have an idea of the kind of writer and projects I gravitate towards...

Longform

Dog tags

Poignant Drama Feature | Original Screenplay

Logline = A female Marine sent to a medical holding facility is unfairly kept there by her powerful father’s influence and she struggles to find the strength to fight him.

Beckett!

Political Comedy - Drama | Original One-Hour Pilot

Logline = While rectifying the actions of an impetuous political candidate, an under-appreciated campaign manager considers her own ambitions.

The Bible belt

Drama - Crime Thriller | Original One-Hour Pilot

Logline = Two best friends navigate the complexities of their dysfunctional families: an apathetic ex-drug addict discovers her younger sister is falling into substance abuse, while her perceptive best friend, seeking spiritual guidance, is drawn into a controversial church with a dubious past.

How TV Viewers Have Been Provoked on U.S. Politics and Lessons for Future Screenwriters

Published Thesis at the Savannah College of Art and Design

This thesis examines the television shows which are set in a world of American politics, which constructed solid audiences and measurable results. Citing trends as "television at its finest" and "successful" in its own right, the thesis uses the legacies of "politically charged television shows" in order to dissect how television can create a piece of "powerful and thought-provoking, hit TV" that transcends the time period in which it is reacting to.

Nunchi (눈치)

Coming-of-Age Comedy - Drama | Original 30-Minute Pilot

Logline = In the shadow of his mother's declining health, an adopted teenager grapples with identity, rebellion, and the absurdities of adolescence in a close-knit Irish-Catholic family, leading him down a path from Fiddler on the Roof to the stark reality of Parris Island.

working manuscripts

The Hymns of Harvest

Fantasy Drama | Conceptual (Part 1 of an Original Trilogy)

Logline = In a world plunged into chaos after the extinction of dragons, a loyal dog secretly leads her human companions on a race to find twelve children destined to resurrect magic and save humanity.

Hollywood v. The Cloud

Non-Fiction Book Proposal

Logline = In the wake of historic strikes and AI's ascent, 'Hollywood v. The Cloud' dissects the challenges facing aspiring and independent filmmakers, offering a roadmap for navigating the evolving landscape of authenticity, creativity, and distribution.

Shorts

An American Sunset

Telly + Webby Award Winning Drama

Swipe Right

Sci-Fi Drama

And Now I see

Virtual Reality Script

Benevolent

Horror Narrative Podcast

Live Stream and In Person

Dystopian Thriller