Popular Theory
A 12-year-old girl genius invents a popularity chemical for the state science fair and flips the high school hierarchy on its head. Erwin is a genius, far smarter than any of her high school classmates. But Erwin's genius has come at a price: isolation. She is determined to win the State Science Fair. After racking her brain for an idea, it finally came to her: a popularity chemical. Erwin teams up with fellow outcast and chemistry guru, Winston. Their experiment is a great success and the two seem like a shoo-in for the science fair grand prize. Until Erwin uses the chemical on herself behind Winston's back.
Age recommendation: 10+
Ali Scher , a child at heart, Ali Scher has always found ways to infuse whimsy and fantasy into her work and life. Realizing that her true passion was telling unique and quality stories for children, Ali wrote and directed "The Maiden and the Princess", as her thesis film for USC School of Cinematic Arts. The short film won the DGA Jury Award for Best Female Filmmaker, the USC Faculty Award for Best Director and a Student Emmy.
Ali has since directed numerous commercials, cocreated/written/directed a satirical web series called "CandyLand", and directed a series of web shorts for DreamworksTV. In 2016 Ali directed an adaptation of Megan McCafferty’s popular teen novel, "Jessica Darling's It List" -- now playing on Netflix. In recent years Ali has written a backdoor pilot about April O’Neil (Ninja Turtles) for Nickelodeon, and a music video featuring Dove Cameron as part of the Descendant’s franchise for Disney Channel.
Filmography:
Valik/Selected: Christmas at the Asylum (2009), Like Mother, Like Death (2009), The Maiden and the Princess (2011), The Trials and Tribulations of Sir Patrick Chesterfield II (2012), Jessica Darling's It List (2016), Popular Theory (2023)
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