# THE BAKER — Project Intelligence File

**Compiled:** 2026-04-28  
**Source:** Gmail (cultscale@gmail.com), Aya Blouchi  
**Workspace:** `/home/mnm/workspaces/the-baker/`

---

## 1. PROJECT OVERVIEW

| Field | Detail |
|-------|--------|
| **Title** | THE BAKER |
| **Type** | Feature Film |
| **Genre** | Epic Crime Thriller |
| **Format** | Live-action |
| **Status** | In development, heading to Cannes (May 2026) |
| **Draft** | Draft Six — March 2026 |
| **Language** | English (with Arabic dialogue noted in italics) |

### Logline
An aging drug lord makes one last, desperate move to secure his family’s future… but redemption comes at a price.

### Tagline
NO LEGACY STAINED BY BLOOD IS WORTH HONOURING.

---

## 2. CREATIVE TEAM

| Role | Name | Background |
|------|------|------------|
| **Writer / Producer** | Ronny Jon Paul Mouawad | Actor (All Saints, Rake, Underbelly, Three Thousand Years of Longing); Writer/Director/Producer; Produced doc *Enough! Lebanon’s Darkest Hour* |
| **Co-Writer / Director** | Nicholas Lathouris | 50+ year career; Co-writer / dramaturg on *Mad Max: Fury Road* & *Furiosa*; AFI / AACTA nominated |
| **Exec Producer / PR** | Tracey Mair | Campaigns for *The Power of the Dog*, *Lion*, *I Am Woman*, etc. |
| **Production Co** | Imaginary Friend Pictures |

### Contact Details
- **Ronny Mouawad**
  - Email: ronnymouawad@gmail.com
  - Mobile: +61 410 434 484
  - Company: Imaginary Friend Pictures (ronny@ifpictures.com)
- **Tracey Mair**
  - Email: traceym@tmpublicity.com
  - Mobile: +61 419 221 493

---

## 3. STORY SUMMARY

**Setting:** Australia (Sydney) + Lebanon (flashbacks / present day)

**Premise:**
Fredric Barakat built his family’s wealth on an empire of illicit drugs. Now, as his health declines and violence tightens its grip, he seeks to dismantle the empire before it destroys his legacy. But the past won’t let go so easily.

**Plot Arc:**
- Fifty years ago, Fredric fled Lebanon after militants murdered his wife.
- In Australia he rebuilt his life, married Magda, built wealth.
- At granddaughter Isabella’s first Holy Communion, Fredric vows to shut down the drug empire before he loses everything.
- His son Billy is reckless; second wife Magda is ruthless.
- Isabella is kidnapped by a rival gang; Billy kills a young Syrian gang member.
- Fredric must negotiate with enemies, bargaining away parts of his empire.
- Magda sees compromise as weakness and orchestrates brutal revenge.
- Fredric travels to Lebanon and encounters General Fadi Melhem — the same man responsible for his wife’s death, now a presidential candidate controlling the global drug trade.
- Fredric hires assassins to eliminate him.
- Betrayals escalate. Billy’s blind trust leads to his downfall.
- Long-buried secret: Vincent Karam (Fredric’s protégé) learns Fredric is his biological father.
- Fredric dies before redemption, leaving a shattered legacy.

**Thematic Touchstones:**
- *Suburra* (corruption)
- *Heat* (tense intimacy)
- *Incendies* (tragic fatalism)
- *The Godfather* (operatic scale)
- *A Prophet* / *Gomorrah* (international crime thriller benchmarks)

---

## 4. KEY CHARACTERS

| Character | Role | Notes |
|-----------|------|-------|
| **Fredric Barakat** | Protagonist / aging drug lord | Maronite Catholic immigrant from Lebanon; built empire in Australia |
| **Magda Barakat** | Fredric’s second wife | Ruthless; orchestrates revenge |
| **Nancy** | Fredric’s daughter | Fusses over family |
| **Joseph ‘Joey’ Tannous** | Nancy’s husband | |
| **Isabella Tannous** | Granddaughter | Kidnapped by rival gang; first communion is inciting incident |
| **Billy Barakat** | Fredric’s son | Reckless, spirals out of control |
| **Vincent Karam** | Fredric’s protégé | Learns Fredric is his biological father |
| **Raymond Karam** | Fredric’s friend from Lebanon | Escaped with him on the boat |
| **Theresa Karam** | | |
| **Aida Barakat** | | Showing signs of pregnancy by end |
| **General Fadi ‘The General’ Melhem** | Antagonist | Responsible for Fredric’s first wife’s murder; now Lebanese presidential candidate / global drug boss |
| **Steven Khalil** | Haute couture designer | Fits Isabella for communion |
| **Miki** | Fredric’s associate | |
| **Wassim Al Shami** | Middle Eastern crime boss | Slain in vengeance killing (headlines) |

### Wish-List Cast (from deck)
- Tony Shalhoub → Fredric “The Baker” Barakat
- Eric Bana → William “Billy” Barakat
- Hiam Abbass → Magdaline Barakat
- Daniella Rahme → Aida Barakat
- Nadine Labaki → Theresa Karam
- Bassam Youssef → Monsignor

---

## 5. VISUAL & TONE REFERENCES

- **The Great Beauty** — opulence vs emptiness (Billy’s club)
- **Baroque & Phoenician influences** — Barakat estate design
- **Chiaroscuro lighting** — depth + texture, psychology-driven
- **Cinéma-vérité** — for authenticity in celebration scenes
- **Montage / cross-cutting** — tension & revelation

---

## 6. PRODUCTION DETAILS

### Budget (from deck)
| Source | Amount |
|--------|--------|
| MENA & Rest of World Sales | $15m AUD |
| Screen Australia | |
| Screen NSW | |
| ANZ Distributor | |
| Private Investors | |
| Gap Finance (cash-flowing Australia 40% Producer Offset) | |

**Total indicated budget line:** $15m AUD (~$10m USD implied)

### Structure
- **A Story for Today:** Set in a world of greed, power, and fractured legacies.
- **Diaspora angle:** Lebanon has <6M citizens; diaspora >14M worldwide. Targets Lebanese communities globally.

---

## 7. SCRIPT METADATA

| Field | Detail |
|-------|--------|
| **File** | `THE_BAKER_2026_MARCH.pdf` |
| **Draft** | Draft Six — March 2026 |
| **Pages** | ~134 pages (script text ends on page 134) |
| **Scenes** | 167 scenes |
| **Writers** | Ronny Jon Paul Mouawad & Nicholas Lathouris |

### Opening
- **Scene 1:** EXT. LEBANON. PORT OF BYBLOS — PREDAWN
  - Fishing caique *Eleftheria* surges through white peaks
  - Lebanese Civil War imagery: gunfire, explosions, Dassault Mirage
  - Fredric Barakat (young, in dishevelled bridegroom suit) watches his wife murdered
  - Crucifix pendant slips into the sea
  - Raymond Karam looks ahead to freedom

### Closing
- **Scene 167:** EXT. LEBANON. THE SLOPES OF THE VALLEY — DAY
  - Cemetery. Magda as matriarch, cloaked in black brocade silk.
  - Two elaborate caskets (father & son) descend.
  - Bishop gives blessing; village baker pulls bell rope.
  - Israeli fighter jet sweeps across the sky; rolling thunder of never-ending war.
  - **THE END**

---

## 8. ASSETS IN WORKSPACE

```
the-baker/
├── emails/
│   ├── 2026-04-25_01_THE_BAKER_Feature_film.txt   (Aya → Maroun, deck request)
│   └── 2026-04-25_02_Fwd_THE_BAKER.txt             (Aya → Maroun, forwarded script)
├── assets/
│   ├── scripts/
│   │   └── THE_BAKER_2026_MARCH.pdf               (~1.3 MB, Draft Six screenplay)
│   └── decks/
│       └── THE_BAKER_Deck.pdf                      (~14.6 MB, pitch deck)
└── notes/
    ├── PROJECT_INFO.md                            (this file)
    ├── THE_BAKER_script_extracted.txt             (full screenplay text)
    └── THE_BAKER_deck_extracted.txt               (full pitch deck text)
```

---

## 9. COMMUNICATION LOG

| Date | Actor | Action |
|------|-------|--------|
| 2026-03-23 | Ronny Mouawad | Sent Draft Six to Aya Blouchi |
| 2026-04-25 06:11 | Aya Blouchi | Forwarded pitch deck to Maroun NAJM (Cultscale) requesting distribution estimates for MENA / global |
| 2026-04-25 08:31 | Aya Blouchi | Forwarded script (Draft Six) to Maroun NAJM |
| 2026-04-28 | — | Assets pulled and catalogued in workspace |

### Outstanding
- Maroun NAJM has **not yet replied** to Aya (thread shows no reply).
- Deck is noted as “currently being revised.”
- Film is heading to **Cannes in a few weeks** (May 2026).
- Estimated distribution input from Cultscale is requested to benchmark potential partners.

---

## 10. DISTRIBUTION TALKING POINTS (for Cultscale use)

- Diaspora film with built-in Lebanese / Maronite Catholic audience globally
- Crime thriller format has strong streamer appeal (Netflix, Amazon, Apple TV+ MENA)
- Tony Shalhoub/Eric Bana wish-list signals international potential
- Co-writer Nicholas Lathouris has *Mad Max* franchise pedigree (high commercial credibility)
- Budget ~$10–15M AUD places it in mid-tier international indie range
- MENA sales rights are open; global sales strategy still forming
- Cannes 2026 launch likely means seeking pre-sales / gap financing / distribution partners

---

## 11. CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE

Per the pitch deck:
> This document contains confidential and proprietary information intended solely for the recipient. By accepting this material, you agree not to distribute, disclose, or share any part of its contents without prior written consent.

**Handle accordingly.**