THE STAGE 32 LOGLINES

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SOVEREIGN
By Shanika Freeman

GENRE: Crime, Drama
LOGLINE:

Logline: After witnessing the murder of her student, a teacher uncovers a drug trafficking
scheme linked to state officials, and must work with a local detective to take down a corrupt
mayor while maintaining balance in the harsh streets of Baltimore.

SYNOPSIS:

CHARACTERS

Celeste Khon– 30s Our main protagonist. Military bred but not rigid in the slightest. She's

spontaneous, adventurous and determined.

Ronald 'Ronnie' Alverez - 17. Intelligent, Creative and a class clown. He is 'from the wrong

side of the tracks', but has hopes to get out of the barrel.

Jonathan Everette - Mid 30s Our other lead. Divorced, but hardly falls into the moody

detective category. Everette is a vibrant, headstrong, by the book detective who has seen too

many deaths in his years on the force.

Ben Hastings - 50s Our Antagonist. An investor who also traffics drugs and weapons. Clever

and charismatic. He is the man behind the curtain running the show. In his eyes, if something is

broken beyond repair, it is insane to try to fix it. He has a vision of what Baltimore should

become, and he is going to see that come to life.

Mayor Hicks - 50s Our misguided mayor. She's no victim, however, she is dishonest as they

come. She tries to cater to the public while hiding her addiction.

Officer McCall - 30s He is a family man, despite his ‘extra curricular’ activities. He is young and

is trying to provide and survive the night.

COLIN HAYES - 20s Rookie Reporter eager for a story. He’s too curious for his own good.

Christopher Tate - 20s Ex-Felon. Cold and cunning but has the community at his feet with the

help of a local lawyer.

SUMMARY

We follow CELESTE KHON, veteran and teacher as she searches for RONNIE’s killer.

DETECTIVE JONATHAN EVERETTE investigates the case and quickly arrests a suspect.

However, the suspect still maintains his innocence.

Meanwhile, MAYOR HICKS talks to the press and assures the citizens of Baltimore that the

violence will soon end. She sends out more police officers and sets up a task force. One police

officer in the task force, OFFICER McCall, is a single father. To help provide for his son, he

takes cash from dealers. The mayor continues to make promises while also hiding her own drug

addiction, which is being fueled by BEN HASTINGS, a local investor. Ben provides Hicks with

drugs in exchange to a blinds eye while he smuggles guns and drugs into the city.

Celeste refuses to believe Ronnie was killed because of gang violence. She starts talking to the

regulars in the neighbourhood and finds out that Ronnie may have witnessed an officer planting

a gun and drugs on a suspect that is now serving 10 years. With this new information, Jonathan

talks to his superior, who suggests keeping quiet. If this gets out, it can overturn a lot of

convictions.

On the East side of Baltimore, Officer McCall collect hundreds of dollars by racketeering,

robbing, and arresting suspects while maintaining credibility with citizens by arresting low tier

gang members.

Ben gets word of Jonathan’s evidence, and he hatches a plan to intimidate, discredit him and

take away his custody of his son.

Jonathan reaches a boiling point and agrees to work with Celeste to find the truth.

When Ronald’s mother’s house is set on fire, Celeste decides to take matters into her own

hands, risking not only her life but the trust and integrity of Jonathan and his department. She

records a video, documenting her findings and sends it to a local news station. A fresh reporter,

COLLIN HAYES, runs the story. The justice movement begins. But when the streets are

cleared, and the news stories stop, the real problems begin. Cases are now being overturned

and the victim’s families are dealing with unanswered questions. Celeste is now in the middle of

a broken city and televised movement she isn’t ready to lead.

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