Johnny Rosselli: Gangster Al Capone

Based on true events the series centers on the life of mobster, Johnny Rosselli and his association with notorious gangster Al Capone.

BRIEF SYNOPSIS
It’s 1922 Boston and FILIPPO SACCO (aka Johnny, 17) lives with his mother, MARIA SACCO, his siblings, and abusive LIBERATO CIANCIULLI (56). Filippo delivers milk. His life changes when SARRO VACCARRO (23) a gangster, hires Filippo to deliver “medicine”. Detectives watch him. The detectives want supplier Vaccarro. A junkie, FISHER, snitches them out. Vaccarro kills Fisher in front of Filippo. They aren’t aware that there’s a witness who sees them leaving the murder scene.
Vaccarro tells Filippo they need to leave Boston. Filippo is conflicted. It means leaving his mother, but he has no choice.
Johnny and Vaccarro hook up with mobster, FRANKIE YALE. Frankie likes Johnny and decides to send him to Chicago to work with the notorious mobster, AL CAPONE. His life will never be the same.

STORY COMMENTS
THE JOHNNY ROSSELLI STORY is a proposed one-hour dramatic, crime TV pilot. It’s based on a real-life character. The pilot’s tone is dramatic and the structure is divided into several acts. The series centers on the world of mobsters and organized crime.
Given the success of shows like THE SOPRANOS, THE UNTOUCHABLES, and INSIDE THE AMERICAN MOB, along with classic mobster films there’s always room for another successful series. The main hook is that mobster works with Al Capone.
The series is considered an open-ended or continuous series, in which the storylines continue from week to week. The pilot presents with intriguing characters that feel castable.
The setting feels authentic.
The story opens with a teaser when Johnny is an elderly man. Unfortunately, this isn’t the most engaging of openings. It doesn’t immediately hook the audience. Consider an opening that really stands out, and sets the tone. The objective is to hook the audience and prevent them from changing the
Consider the end of an act as if it’s a commercial break, so again, the objective is to end an act on tension or suspense to entice the audience to stay with the show.
The ending is also very mild and doesn’t have a powerful punch that it needs.
Re-examine the tone. Overall, the pilot can present with a gritty and more violent tone and pitch. Establish this early.
The pilot outlines Johnny’s rise in the criminal world and eventually ends with him joining Al Capone. While the current series of events are well written, the main concern about the structure is that the most interesting element of the pilot is the idea of Johnny joining Capone. Thus, consider enhancing the pace and restructuring the pilot to get to the hook much sooner. The audience is more interested in him working wit Capone. Show the producers what the series is really going to look like.
So, the opening could be with Johnny killing someone, which is his motivation for leaving town.
Also, consider the idea of creating more of a goal in the pilot. Like transporting a shipment etc. This will give the pilot more focus. Remember to escalate the tension as the structure