Posted on July 22, 2008 in Screenplay Format | No Comments
Some great advice and free PDF on screenplay formating from the Nicholl Fellowships and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Suggest by member: Lila
…There is no absolute “standard” format used by all professional screenwriters working in the American film industry. Slight variations abound in scripts written by professionals. That said, professional scripts [...]
Posted on July 22, 2008 in Story | No Comments
by Martha Alderson, M.A.
Most writers have a preference for one style of writing over another. Some writers are more adept at developing complex, interesting, and quirky characters. Others excel at page-turning action. The lucky ones are writers who are good at creating both the Character Emotional Development plotline and the Dramatic Action plotline. Become aware [...]
Posted on July 22, 2008 in Selling Your Script | 1 Comment
by Skip Press
I wrote ‘The Writer’s Guide to Producers, Directors and Screenwriters’ Agents’ somewhat by accident. I quit Hollywood in disgust after two feature screenplays were purchased, but not filmed, this after years of options and some TV work, but no feature credit. I went back to writing articles and books for a living. One [...]
Posted on July 20, 2008 in General Screenwriting | No Comments
Celtx is 100% Open Source and Free to download and use. It combines screenplay formatting with script break-down tools, research and production scheduling functions.
Built around Celtx, Motion Sketches is an online video series that explores contemporary approaches to media production development. From the big screen to the mobile screen, from live-action to the virtual camera [...]
Posted on July 20, 2008 in General Screenwriting | 1 Comment
Screenwriter and author Joe Eszterhas discusses the writing process, and offers some advice for aspiring screenwriters.
Joe Eszterhas, best-selling author and legendary bad-boy screenwriter discusses his new book “The Devil’s Guide to Hollywood: The Screenwriter as God!.”
Mike Ovitz told him his Wilshire Blvd. “foot soldiers” would hunt him down. He’s antagonized almost everyone at the top [...]
Posted on July 19, 2008 in General Screenwriting | 2 Comments
by Brad Schreiber
Having been the director of development for TV/film director Jonathan Kaplan (Unlawful Entry, The Accused, NBC’s E.R.), I had the unique and special opportunity to read screenplays, as well as fiction and non-fiction books and articles, to see if there was anything which might interest him as a directorial assignment.
Anyway, it’s funny (funny-pathetic, [...]
Posted on July 19, 2008 in Screenplay Format | No Comments
Scriptologist.com offers a great series of articles covering the basics to the more advanced areas of screenplay formating.
How to Format a Screenplay
You’ve plotted your story, developed your characters, and written a scene-by-scene outline of your story. Now you’re ready to write it in professional screenplay format. Read more…
How to Format a Screenplay: Part II
This is [...]
Posted on July 17, 2008 in Story | 1 Comment
by Dennis Palumbo
If you saw the season-ending episode of Monk, do you remember the clue that helped catch the killer?
Me, neither.
In the recent thriller Fractured, what was the mistake Anthony Hopkins made that proved he killed his wife?
You got me.
My point, and I do have one, is that often writers think the most important aspect [...]
Posted on July 16, 2008 in General Screenwriting | 1 Comment
by Michael Lent
This morning I received an Industry email with a headline reading “Get it together. Start fresh!”
I don’t want a fresh start.
Despite all of the spiked eggnog-fueled New Year’s Eve resolutions we make, the winter months can end up as creatively fallow as the Siege of Leningrad for writers not on assignment or under [...]
Posted on July 15, 2008 in General Screenwriting | No Comments
by Bruce Holland Rogers
Claude Lévi-Strauss, the social anthropologist, believed that all myths are true and all versions of a myth are the true version. There’s a reason that people tell conflicting stories about the volcano god — did he marry the sea goddess, or did he marry the rain goddess? Both versions were told and [...]
Posted on July 15, 2008 in Selling Your Script | No Comments
By Stephanie Palmer
You’ve worked for months (years!) on your project and a buyer is interested. The meeting is set and there’s a lot at stake. You’re going to get one chance to effectively communicate the value and uniqueness of your project. Many people get nervous at this point. The best of the best, however, follow [...]
Posted on July 15, 2008 in Legal & Copyright | No Comments
Entertainment Attorney Mark Litwak helps writers navigate the tricky legal issues involved when portraying real life stories with this educational FAQ.
…Question: What are the legal issues pertaining to writing a screenplay based on someone’s life story? What rights need to be secured, etc.? Is it advisable to engage an attorney prior to any discussion [...]
Posted on July 14, 2008 in Selling Your Script | 1 Comment
Writing advice I’d give my best friend. A plan of attack once you have your basic idea. The Disney animated feature approach. Much, perhaps even most, of the work happens before you write FADE IN.
…Here it is, as we discussed, 23 simple steps to your first feature film sale. Shouldn’t take more than a year [...]
Posted on July 14, 2008 in General Screenwriting | No Comments
It’s an age-old question: What makes a movie a domestic box-office draw?
…There is one common denominator in movies that draw crowds and earn big bucks domestically: Motivated characters. Many of the characters have strong motivation, even some who appear in only one scene. The characters in Saw have a strong motivation to escape, or identify [...]
Posted on July 14, 2008 in General Screenwriting | No Comments
by D.B. Gilles
I know over five hundred screenwriters – maybe more – ranging in age from 18 to 76, at all levels, from those just starting out to a bunch that’ve gotten deals, sold scripts and had movies made. They include friends, former students, colleagues, pen pals, clients and acquaintances. Some have good writing habits, [...]
