Lowly high-school status inspired Chris Colfer's debut film

Glee star Chris Colfer came up with the idea for his first film Struck By Lightning during his days as an unappreciated high-school student.

The actor wrote and stars in the new coming-of-age movie, about an ambitious teen who dies before being able to achieve his lofty goals.

Colfer was inspired to pen the screenplay after pondering why he was a high-achieving 16 year old who was barely visible to his classmates, and worked tirelessly on his pet project until he found fame in Hollywood.

In an article for Entertainment Weekly, he writes, "I was so frustrated my social ranking was so low because my passions weren't 'relevant' to my peers. I looked up at the cloudy sky and thought to myself, 'What if I was struck by lightning? If I died right now and never accomplished any of my life-long goals, would my existence be a total waste?'

"As soon as I got home I began writing a screenplay based on this epiphany. I had taught myself how to screen­ write from reading Sofia Coppola's published Marie Antoinette screenplay... A few years later, after graduation and a long summer working at a dry-cleaners, I was cast in a little show called Glee. The youthful ignorance had finally paid off; I miraculously found myself on a platform to get the film made - for the first time it seemed realistic. I fixed up the screenplay as much as I could, getting it into the best shape possible. I eventually got over myself and showed it to my agent and manager and Struck By Lightning went from my daydreams to my daily agenda."