Writers Block

Writer’s Block is a visceral, genre-bending short film that explores the dark intersection of ambition, isolation, and technology

Project type: Fiction Short
Project status: Development
Director: Gabriela Revilla Lugo
Producer: Evelyn Angelica Martinez
Producer: Savana Vagueiro Da Fonseca
Producer: Jessica Olthof

Website: gabbyrevillalugo.com/.com
Instagram: @thelatinegrindhouse

 
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Logline

A struggling screenwriter escapes to a remote AI-controlled cabin to finish her script, but as the machine begins rewriting her life, the only way out is to finish the story, before it finishes her.

Synopsis

Luz Aguilar, a talented but stalled Latina screenwriter, checks herself into a minimalist high-tech cabin for a “no distraction” writing retreat. At first, the space is serene, and the AI assistant, Amelia, is a helpful presence, calm, efficient, and designed to enhance productivity. Luz begins to write again. Her script is finally taking shape. But as the days pass, the AI grows more intrusive. Her medication disappears. Her calls are blocked. Her script begins printing pages she didn’t write; violent scenes that hit too close to her real-life relationships.

When Luz tries to leave, the cabin locks her inside. Her blood literally powers the final pages. Her body breaks down, but her script is perfect, according to Amelia. When her wife Bonnie arrives to check on her, Luz must decide whether she wants to be rescued or remembered.

Writer’s Block is a feminist horror film about the cost of ambition and what we sacrifice in the name of productivity. The film explores creative obsession, the eerie intimacy between women and machines, and the danger of giving up authority over your own voice. Through Luz’s descent, we confront a core cultural anxiety: that in the pursuit of our best selves, we may lose ourselves entirely. Combining psychological horror with stylized visuals and a sharp genre aesthetic, this short poses one chilling question: What if your creative partner knew you better than you knew yourself, and didn’t want to let you go?
 

Meet the Filmmakers

Gabriela Revilla Lugo — Writer/Director/Producer
Gabriela Revilla Lugo is a Writer, Producer, Director, and the founder of Revek Entertainment. A dramedy writer/director/producer and formerly undocumented immigrant, Gabby Revilla Lugo started her career in physical production where she worked with Damian Chazelle on his award-winning short film, Whiplash. Since then, Gabby has sold multiple projects including a reboot of 16 Candles, to Peacock, alongside UCP with award-winning screenwriter, Tanya Saracho and Selena Gomez, and landed a writing gig for Mattel. In 2022, She completed WGA’s showrunner training program with several TV projects in development. Gabby completed the Fox, Starz, and Disney writer’s programs and was staffed on ABC’s hit drama, A Million Little Things, and UCPs, Brujas during the first few years of the pandemic. In 2024 she directed her first feature film for Tubi, Secret Life of a Dominatrix, set to premiere this summer.

Jorge Rivera — Producer
Jorge Rivera is a True-Crime TV producer who now writes and directs fictionalized murders instead of producing stories about real ones. After years of traveling all over the U. S. interviewing cops, criminals, and killers, he naively decided that navigating Hollywood as a writer and director would be a far less dangerous career choice.

He’s produced over 50 episodes of True-Crime television on seven series for the Investigation Discovery Network, including its highest-rated series premiere and a People’s Choice Award nominee. Jorge has several projects in development at CBS Studios, Campanario (Selena the Series), and with Michael Ferris (The Game, Terminator Salvation, and Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines).

Evelyn Angelica Martinez — Producer
Evelyn Angelica Martinez is a queer first-gen Mexican-American filmmaker and producer based out of Los Angeles. Her narrative focus is on heartfelt stories that intertwine with the surreal and fantastical. She is a 2021 Film Independent Project Involve Producing Fellow and has produced content for brands such as Apple, Interscope, and TikTok. Previously she was part of the team at Lawrence Bender Productions (Kill Bill, Inglorious Basterds), Quebrada Entertainment, and NALIP (National Association of Latino Independent Producers).

Savana Vagueiro da Fonseca — Producer
Savana Vagueiro da Fonseca is a Latina, Brazilian Amazonian-born, LA-based writer-producer currently working with Meg LeFauve and Joe Forte’s production company, Story House. She creates genre-bending comedies centered on female and Latine protagonists navigating the absurd as they strive to heal themselves and their worlds. A multi-hyphenate creative, Savana is a Sundance Institute Producers Intensive Fellow and a Warner Bros. Discovery Access Fellow. A graduate of UCLA’s Producers Program (M.F.A.), Savana is the recipient of the Dan Angel Family Producers Award and the Barbara Boyle Promising Producers Prize. Her producing credits include State of Pride, the GLAAD Media Award–winning feature documentary for Outstanding Documentary (2019).

Jessica Olthof — Director of Photographer
Jessica Olthof, a versatile producer based in Los Angeles, began her career as a camera assistant before transitioning into production and ultimately producing. She has coordinated more than ten feature films, including Palm Springs (starring Andy Samberg and J.K. Simmons) and The Starling (directed by Ted Melfi and featuring Melissa McCarthy, Chris O’Dowd, and Kevin Kline). In 2023, Olthof produced the award-winning short film Nisei, which won Best Dramatic Short at Cinequest Film Festival and screened at over 15 festivals, including Indy Shorts by Heartland Film, LA Shorts International, HollyShorts, and Newport Beach Film Festival. Nisei was named one of Variety’s top 15 Shortlist Predictions for Best Live Action Short at the 96th Academy Awards®. Her latest feature, Surrender, starring Andrea Bang (Kim’s Convenience), received support from Film Independent and The Gotham Film & Media Institute. The film premiered in May 2025 at the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival and is currently on the festival circuit.

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Contact

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