Almost Plausible

Things get spooky when we tell scary stories about candy corn around a campfire. In the woods. At night. Despite Emily and Thomas bringing beer and making s'mores, Shep hates the entire experience—the reason why is revealed when he tells his story. But surely there's nothing lurking in the woods, right? References and Transcript Subscribe to the show: Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Podcasts...

We take a brief departure from movie plots on this episode, and instead come up with a kid's book (or "children's novel" as Shep keeps calling it). Join Raccoon, Bear, Dog, and an ever-growing cast of characters as they try to help Raccoon on his quest to get to the moon. It's a heartwarming tale of loneliness, friendship, and a junk yard. References and Transcript Subscribe to...

This week our film is a period piece set in the 1970s... Er, wait, that's not right. It's set in the 1890s. James spends a decade in prison for a crime he didn't commit. To pass the time in his cell, he draws on the wall with chalk. To his surprise, he's able to enter his drawings and live out his dreams. Upon his release, James struggles to reintegrate with society and tries despe...

Charlie is comfortable with his life just the way it is. But a chance encounter with a vendor of homemade bath products at a farmers' market turns Charlie's old, familiar life on its head. It's a return to magical reality in our episode about shampoo, and we follow Charlie as he struggles to get back the life he lost—with a few important changes. References and Transcript Subscribe to...

Things get deep and philosophical on this episode... About string. Useful stuff, string, and in the story world we create, nearly everyone is connected to someone else via a string of fate that's invisible to everyone but you and your soul mate. So what happens when a woman whose string was severed against her will meets a guy whose string is still intact? References and Transcript Subscribe t...

We shake things up a bit this week by taking a slight departure from our regular format. We still come up with a movie, but on this week's episode we come up with a sequel to the 1996 film Space Jam. We know what you're thinking: Isn't there already a Space Jam sequel? There is, but it's terrible, so we set out to come up with something better. We're pretty sure we succeeded. R...

It's a darkly hilarious week when our Post-it Note movie takes a turn even we didn't see coming. Our main character wants to add a little levity to the world with a secret-message scavenger hunt, but a series of accidental deaths cause authorities to suspect him of being a serial killer. Just when it seems like things couldn't be any crazier, a real serial killer confronts our protagon...

This is just a quick announcement to let you know about an upcoming change to Almost Plausible's release schedule. The tl;dr (tl;dl?) is that we're switching from releasing an episode every week to releasing one every other week. This will allow the show to grow, become better, and continue to bring you more of the entertainment you enjoy. Thanks for listening! Subscribe to the show: Apple...

Harkening back to the style of some of our older episodes, we take a looser definition of "Mac & Cheese" this week. The movie plot we create is a coming of age story about a couple of kids trying to work through things that even adults struggle with. The ending is bittersweet for our two main characters, and it's possible we work through some things ourselves. References and Transc...

If you could buy a contact lens that permanently repaired your vision, allowed you to see more colors, and gave you excellent night vision, would you buy it? What if the contact lenses were made from living tissue that eventually fused with your eyeballs? Still interested? This week, we "focus" on contact lenses that can do just that! The only trouble is, they're made with... Let's...

Let's say it's the 1980s and you're new in town. To meet your neighbors and make some friends, you decide to host a Tupperware party. But some ditzy wannabes roll up to your crib, tell you that you're invading their turf, and demand that you cut it out. What would you do? If you're anything like the main character of our story this week, you take a chill pill, befriend a biker...

Imagine you and a stranger are suddenly teleported to a deserted island together, where you're stuck for an entire year. Do you think you could survive? Do you think you might fall in love? What if the two of you weren't on the island alone—what if there was a magical washing machine on the island with you? This week's episode focuses on a washing machine, and despite a bit of a rough...

Can a couple's relationship survive when a dark secret is revealed? That's what we explore in this week's episode about a padlock. After a young woman's love goes unrequited, she takes what seems to her like a sensible step to lock down the man she loves. It works, but when he learns the truth about how their idyllic lives together got started, he begins to question their entire re...

What do Indiana Jones, Winston Churchill, Al Capone, and a cat toy have in common? Previously the answer was, "nothing," but listen to this week's episode and you'll see how we manage to tie them all together. Joining us is special guest Peter J. Wacks, who brings more Hollywood experience than any of us can claim, as well as a few good puns. References and Transcript Peter's L...

Independence Day in the U.S. is right around the corner, so we're celebrating with a Fourth of July classic: Fireworks! On this episode, we create some teenage characters who live where fireworks are illegal, but that doesn't stop them from trying to get their hands on some. Things go hilariously wrong, and it's up to our quick-witted high schoolers to figure out how to set it all righ...

According to Urban Dictionary, the irrational fear of zippers is called jumaphobia. It seems like a pretty rare phobia, but maybe after listening to this week's episode there'll be at least a few more cases. We promise it's not too scary! Maybe more unnerving? Either way, it's definitely entertaining. References and Transcript Subscribe to the show: Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Po...

What do stolen diamonds, a shady pawn shop, and a bowling pin have in common? They're all part of the story we came up with on this week's show. When a couple of brothers learn their grand plan has been derailed, they quickly discover a trap has been laid for them. And somehow there's a bowling pin at center of it all. References and Transcript Subscribe to the show: Apple Podcasts Spo...

This week on Almost Plausible we welcome our first guest host, Daniel Hess! Daniel chose "brick" for the subject of the episode, and the pitches were about as varied as possible. We must have ended up choosing the right one, though, because we never found ourselves up against the wall while coming up with a story. We enjoyed having Daniel on the show, and by the end we came up with a movie...

Whiteboards. They’re big, they’re flat, the pens smell weird, but more than anything they're hard. A hard surface, yes, but also hard to write a movie about. Like, really hard. This week's episode was almost a complete failure, but after a pretty in-depth false start, we managed to backtrack and find a new, much more successful path. But hey, that's writing! You can't be too precio...

Memorial Day is next week, and for many people that means getting out in the backyard and grilling up something tasty. Whether you like steaks, veggies, or burgers and hot dogs (or all of the above!), there's nothing quite like the delicious, smoky flavor the BBQ grill imparts to your food. So with that in mind, the theme this week is BBQ Grill, and we assure this episode is grilled to perfect...

Our pitches this week are anything but garden variety as we come up with a movie where a garden hose plays a big role. A couple of our ideas are all wet, but luckily the three of us are flexible. Thanks to Emily's decisiveness, we quickly choose one idea, which turns out to practically write itself. The story is built on tropes, but constantly subverts expectations, and in the end our hero ove...

Who doesn't love the smell of warm, freshly baked bread? We certainly do, which is why this week we're cooking up a story about a bread maker. Among several ideas for movies about bread based businesses, we come up with a tasty business venture of our own. We battle furiously to set ourselves apart from both common expectations and movies that already exist. And along the way we learn that...

On this week's episode, we shine a light on a group of people living in the dark in more ways than one. They have only a single beacon to illuminate their world, and our story begins as their source of light is in peril. An unexpected answer is brought to light by a small faction, and it's up to them to help their compatriots see the light of day. References and Transcript Subscribe to the...

This week, you may ask, "What's Cooking?" Well, "Today's Special" is nothing short of a "Big Night" for us when we come up with an "Off the Menu" story about a paper clip. There will be no "Waiting..." as we choose a pitch faster than we ever have. It's a fairly simple premise, but as we get "In the Weeds" we end up with a lot of "Spi...

We had to think outside the box this week, as we came up with ideas for a movie about a lunch box. There was some initial concern about lunch boxes being a container, and despite the issues we've faced with containers in the past, we manage to come up with an assortment of interesting ideas. If this movie were to be made, we think the box office numbers would probably be pretty good. So grab a...