Roberto Bentivegna’s original screenplay “The Eel” landed the writer on the 2012 Black List. Combining elements of noir and dark humor, the script offers an entertaining tale featuring compelling characters in the quirky subculture of a town on the border of Texas and Mexico.

Here are links to all six installments of the entire interview:

Part 1: “So for me it was always about building my writing and really getting to a point where I knew what I was doing or at least I was fooling myself into thinking that I knew what I was doing, and then translating that into images.”

Part 2: “I just find almost everything funny, especially desperation… if humor comes out of character you can get away with anything.”

Part 3: “I think you assimilate as much as you can. Then see what sticks, what moves you, what makes you want to watch the movie you’d be writing. That’s a big one, right? What movie would you watch? What movie would you totally love to see?”

Part 4: “I love treatments. I don’t know a lot of people that love writing treatments, but for me it’s where things really come out because I’m telling the story.”

Part 5: “I think it’s very dangerous when you get bogged down in rules, because that’s when movies get boring. Rules should not be limitations. You’re hanging things on a skeleton, but you don’t want the skeleton to be all there is. Otherwise, it’s like, well…it’s nothing. It’s dead. Literally.”

Part 6: “Always remember the movies that you grew up on, that you obsessed about, that you watched over and over again… Because the people who made those movies were in your shoes at one point.”

Roberto is repped by CAA and Madhouse Entertainment.

Thanks, Roberto, for the interview. We look forward to tracking the progress of your unfolding screenwriting career!