Dr. John Reizer
I have had several writers contact me over the years, wanting to know specifically how I turned my self-published novel, The Target List, into a feature film.
It’s a crazy series of events that transpired, for sure, but this is how everything amazingly fell into place.
MJ Palo, the co-screenwriter of Target List, thinks the background story behind the Target List movie would make a great movie on its own, and I can’t disagree.
In the summer of 2019, I self-published a novel I’d written titled The Target List. Several of my relatives, friends, and patients read the novel and told me that they thought the story had cinematic potential.
Written in 2019
In late July of 2019, I told my wife that I was going to devote some time and energy to exploring how to turn The Target List story into a movie. She asked me how I planned to do that, and I explained I had no idea. Truth be told, I really had no clue how to proceed.
I didn’t care about fame or money. I had done well as a practicing doctor and was comfortable in life. But I wanted to reach lots of people with this story because I believed its underlying message (Big Pharma’s Nobody’s Friend) was vitally important for people to learn and process.
I began searching the Internet for information about pitching a movie to producers. I learned quickly that, according to most authorities on the subject, it was a nearly impossible endeavor for an unknown writer to turn a self-published book into a film.
After a week of searching the Internet, I decided to do something I had told myself I would never do: pay a company to listen to my movie idea.
The fee was $350.00. I was frustrated and decided, what the hell, let me give it a try.
The company was called Voyage Media, and it was based in Los Angeles. I paid the fee, and they scheduled a 30-minute conversation with a Hollywood movie producer. In the meantime, Voyage asked me to submit a logline and synopsis for the story which I did. Two weeks later, I got a call from a guy named Robert Mitas.
Robert Mitas actually worked extensively with the famous actor Michael Douglas. This guy spoke with me for well over an hour about my novel. I remember at the time his kid or someone young was in the background watching the Little League World Series. I told him I had played in the Little League World Series in 1975, and he was very interested in my experience with that event.
Robert made several suggestions regarding my story before passing me the names of several up-and-coming screenwriters he thought I might try to contact. I thanked him for speaking with me for so long and immediately began researching the contacts he suggested.
After digging up more specific information on how to contact these screenwriters, I sent them my novel.
The one who eventually agreed to read the story was MJ Palo. At the time, I didn’t know her real name or any of the works she’d completed, and I didn’t know she had a PhD and was a molecular biologist.
MJ and I worked on writing the Target List script for many months. I met her in person in Reno, NV, a day before we began shooting the pilot film for The Target List movie in April 2021.
After the pilot film aired on Amazon Prime in August 2021, I became deathly ill and was placed on a ventilator for three weeks, followed by a 90-day hospital stay.
After recovering from that ordeal, I learned that Mad Wife Productions decided to make the feature film. I signed the contract shortly after being released from the hospital, and Target List went into pre-production shortly thereafter.
After casting, Target List began filming in April 2022 and was released worldwide one year later.
John Reizer is a medically disabled and retired chiropractor, author of science fiction thrillers, and the co-screenwriter of the movie Target List, which was released worldwide in 2023 by Mad Wife Productions.
John is a former associate professor of clinical sciences at Sherman College of Chiropractic.
John is an emerging screenwriter and producer based in Inman, South Carolina, bringing a fresh perspective to the entertainment industry. While primarily an accomplished novella writer, John is actively developing his screenwriting skills, eager to translate compelling narratives into feature and short film formats.
His creative vision spans diverse genres, including action, comedy, crime, science fiction, and thriller/ suspense. Passionate about the craft of filmmaking, storytelling, marketing, and screenwriting, John is dedicated to expanding his expertise and collaborating with other professionals. He is open to connecting with like-minded creators and exploring opportunities that align with his evolving journey in cinematic storytelling.
Target List – A Feature Film
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About Target List
After announcing a ground-breaking cancer cure, five members of the research team are targeted by an assassin hired by big pharma. When two researchers escape the attack, they soon find themselves framed for the crime and on the killer’s target list.
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