Hooty Hoo Productions, the Georgia-based production company behind comedian Eddie Pence’s recent hit comedy special, have optioned feature film Lodged from screenwriter Scott Sala.

This story of recovery is based on Sala’s own experiences at an alcohol rehabilitation facility. The film tells the story of a recovering alcoholic, Ryan, who enrolls in a treatment center, The Lodge, in hopes of beating his addiction. But, his efforts to overcome his personal struggles are furthered complicated as fellow residents at the facility begin dying off.

“I didn’t know I was suicidal until I realized, as an alcoholic, I was absolutely killing myself, just slowly,” Sala said. “Lodged, although fictionalized, accurately portrays an addicts painful, sometimes darkly humorous journey away from self-hatred. And there’s a serial killer in the story, too.”

Hooty Hoo Productions rarely takes on fully scripted projects. However, the owners of the company, Dustin Jacobs and Charles Thomas, considered this story to be one that doesn’t come around often and decided to take Lodged on as their first optioned feature script. “Scott and I met at Warner Bros and this has been a story Scott has wanted to tell for some time,” Jacobs said, “so clearly I’m honored to have helped develop it and now option it for Hooty Hoo Productions.”

“As a screenwriter, it’s been fulfilling to help a first-time writer develop his idea,” Thomas said, who is also on the board of non-profit Film Impact Georgia. “Scott was very open to new ideas and notes which made the process smooth. As a result, we have a script ready to surprise and shock people.”