Tongal and Wattpad join with SyFy to develop pilot for viral hit powered by user input
Online creator network Tongal has joined forces with Wattpad, a global multiplatform entertainment company for original stories, to launch ‘Story to Screen – A Digital Pilot Project’ with the SyFy network.
SyFy, Tongal and Wattpad team up for user generated content series
The project aims to adapt Wattpad’s viral hit sci-fi thriller, 'Expiration Date' for the screen. The joint venture kicks off today (10 July) on the Tongal platform with a call for filmmakers to pitch how they would bring Expiration Date to life as a digital series at SyFy.com. The partnership is part of the SyFy Wire Fan Creators initiative launching this month.
“The partnership between Tongal and Wattpad flips the script on Hollywood by changing the how and who of content creation through our open platforms for talent," said Tongal co-founder and president, James DeJulio. "These new global communities are made up of diverse and passionate creators, and now they're actually developing the shows they want to watch. I’m thrilled that SyFy.com has opened the door for this innovative, by the fans, for the fans shift."
Creators are invited to submit a treatment that captures what 'Expiration Date' could look like as a digital series on SyFy.com, highlighting the action, thrill and mystery of the fictional world filled with betrayal. Three finalists will then receive funding to produce a proof of concept in the form of a series trailer, with Tongal, SyFy and Wattpad awarding one grand prize winner additional funding to create a digital pilot episode with the potential to go on to develop the entire series.
“Our creative alliance with Tongal and Wattpad is a natural extension of our SyFy Wire Fan Creators initiative,” noted Alexandra Shapiro, executive vice president of marketing and digital for SyFy and USA Network. “It really marks the next phase of SyFy’s ‘It’s a Fan Thing’ positioning and celebrates, nurtures and supports the makers, artists and creators at the heart of genre fandom.
"In addition to Expiration Date, Tongal will continue to work with SyFy to develop digital content that inspires and ignites fans and brings together the creator community.”
'Expiration Date' was one of the most popular sci-fi stories on Wattpad in 2016 and 2017, with more than 16m reads to date. Mikaela Bender’s sci-fi thriller takes place in a world where the date of one’s death is known by the mysterious ‘Society.’ Centered on 19-year-old orphan Iris Levine, the story imagines a society in which citizens are marked with their “Expiration Date” – the day they are supposed to die – at birth.
When Iris’s expiration date arrives, a mysterious man saves her from imminent death. Having survived her expiration date, Iris is now the Society’s biggest threat.
