Between Heaven and Hell

Original screenplay by Chris Shugart

(previous title: "The Lounge")


Genre:

Fantasy/Comedy


Logline:

An unpopular teenage girl has her life turned upside down by the spirit of a 1950’s Hollywood starlet, and suddenly loses her lowly status among high school society


Synopsis:

Libby is an insignificant nobody who attends a private prep school. When she becomes the victim of a classroom accident, it results in a quasi-mystical near-death experience. Libby finds herself in an otherworldy cocktail lounge that seems to cater to wayward souls and displaced spirits. When she wakes up in the hospital, she believes she must have been dreaming. Thinking that everything is now OK, Libby is unprepared for what follows. She discovers that someone has followed her back from beyond. Stella Starr, one-time “B” movie actress has returned to the world of the living, now in a ghostly state.


Since Libby is the only one who can see or hear Stella, this inevitably leads to many awkward moments and embarrassing situations. Stella is intent on following Libby everywhere, trying to help her with the various problems of teenage life. For Stella it’s a new, but vicarious sort of existence. For Libby it’s annoying.


Stella remains determined to change Libby’s humdrum life. She gradually wins Libby over, creating situations that ultimately improve her popularity. Libby becomes an overnight sensation, suddenly thrust into the high society of the school’s elite popular crowd. When a female rival threatens to put an end to Libby’s new social standing, Libby struggles between using Stella’s help again, or standing her ground on her own. And Stella has yet to confront a significant moment in her past, which may determine the future for both of them.


 

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