Henry Sarwer-Foner

Where do you live (City, State, or Country)?
Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Your script stood out among hundreds of others. What was the inspiration for your story?
MIXED SIGNALS came out of two observations: first, algorithms already predict an uncomfortable amount about us. Second, human beings remain spectacularly bad at understanding themselves. The idea of an AI that can predict conflict before it happens sounded terrifying for about five minutes – and then very funny. Especially if it gets paired with the worst possible human intermediary: someone emotionally avoidant whose job is literally tracking things drifting apart in space. That felt like a show.

Why did you write a script instead of a short story or a novel?
Because the premise generates endless human disasters. A feature would've answered the central question too quickly. A series lets the AI keep colliding with increasingly messy emotional situations it fundamentally doesn’t understand. Every episode becomes a new attempt to solve humanity using math – which is both ambitious and deeply misguided. Comedy lives in timing, awkward silences, people saying the wrong thing at exactly the wrong moment. That's hard to replicate in prose. This story wanted to be seen and heard.

How long did it take you to write your script...and what is your writing process? Do you outline...use index cards...white board...or just start with FADE IN?
I usually start with a beat sheet, sometimes index cards, and avoid opening Final Draft until I know the engine actually works. The draft itself took about two weeks. The real writing happened beforehand: pacing around my office, muttering to myself, deleting notes, rebuilding the premise, convincing myself the idea was either brilliant or career-ending depending on the hour. So: two weeks and several mild existential crises.

What is your ultimate ambition as a writer?
To make work that’s emotionally honest, formally ambitious, and slightly difficult to pitch at parties. Ideally, the kind of television that entertains you first – then quietly ruins your evening afterward.

Was your entry at The Wiki Screenplay Contest a full script or “the first ten pages”? Why did you make that choice?
Full script. The premise needs room to land. Ten pages is all setup – you’d never get to the part where the show reveals what it really is.

What’s your all-time favorite movie or television show...and why?
Succession. Not because it's the obvious answer, but because Jesse Armstrong pulled off something I'm still in awe of: he made you root for people who are objectively terrible, then slowly broke your heart with them.

What advice do you have for writers hoping to win a contest or place as a finalist as you have?
Write the script only you could write – not the one you think judges want to read. Contests are drowning in competent genre exercises. What breaks through is a specific, unignorable voice.
Enter contests that give you something back – feedback, exposure, coverage. Winning is great. Learning is better. And finish things. You'd be surprised how much that alone sets you apart.

What else are you working on that the world needs to know about?
Hot Bag (Dramedy Series)
When an idealistic e-bike courier discovers his delivery app is trafficking contraband, he partners with a wary refugee rider to expose a system that doesn’t just take orders – it gives them.
Deadwater Run (Thriller Feature)
A group of strangers set out on a remote canoe trip – only to discover they were chosen by a killer among them.
Spaghetti (Comedy Series)
When the AI he trained fires him, a socially awkward coder opens a $5 spaghetti window in Toronto’s toughest neighbourhood – pulling him into the messy, unpredictable world he’s spent years avoiding.