Scott Myers

Daily Dialogue — January 29, 2012

“Allow me to introduce our American visitors. I must ask you to forgive their somewhat lackadaisical manners as I have conditioned them, or brainwashed them which I understand is the new American word. They believe they are waiting out a storm in the lobby of a small hotel in New

Trailer Studies: “The Sixth Sense”

Our week-long analysis of the script for The Sixth Sense flowed over into the current Screenwriting Master Class course I’m leading, and one of the participants Mike Montgomery did something really interesting: He did a shot by shot breakdown of the movie’s trailer: Here is Mike’s

Every Doctor Who Story 1963 to Now

On YouTube from someone named BabelColour: An updated and expanded version of my 2008 video, detailing every Doctor Who adventure from ‘An Unearthly Child’ in 1963 right up to ‘The Doctor, The Widow and the Wardrobe’ Christmas Special. But remember, there are still 106 episodes missing from the BBC archives.

Daily Dialogue theme for next week: Break-ups

After a week of flashbacks [suggested by Alexander Gorelik], this week the theme is break-ups, a suggestion courtesy of Teddy Pasternak. Of course, there are romantic break-ups, but don’t forget family and friend splits. Lots of noteworthy break-up scenes leap to mind, however I’ll let

Saturday Hot Links

Time for another round of Saturday Hot Links. Today: The “World According to K-Tel” Edition First the “K-Tel Kitchen Magician”: A bunch of Oscar news! 16 nominations. That’s at the top of the company list and it’s The Weinstein Company beating out Sony / Columbia and Paramount

Written Interview: Billy Wilder [The Paris Review]

Pure gold in this James Linville interview with my favorite writer-director Billy Wilder in the Paris Review (Spring 1996). Excerpts on collaborating as a screenwriter: After Sunset Boulevard, [Charles] Brackett and I parted friends. Twelve years together, but the split had been coming. It’s like a box of

Daily Dialogue — January 28, 2012

Forrest: I don’t recall what I got for my first Christmas, I don’t know when I went on my first outdoor picnic. But I do remember the first time I heard the sweetest voice in the wide world. [Flashback to school bus] Jenny [O.S.]: You can sit

“‘Man on a Ledge’ Screenwriter Takes a Long, Winding Road to Success”

The story of a 58 year-old ‘tyro scribe’ Pablo Fenjves, “who once played a key role in the O.J. Simpson murder trial, endured a 10-year fight to get his script made.” From THR: The opening of Man on a Ledge today marks the end of an odd

The Sundance Project 2012: California Solo

@ItsontheGrid interview with Sundance 2012 movie “California Solo” writer and director Marshall Lewy who wrote the script in 16 days: You write 7 pages a day for 16 days, you have a first draft.

2012 Sundance Film Festival, Day 8

Day 8 links! Deadline: Bingham Ray Remembered By Oscar-Nominated ‘Moneyball’ Producer Rachael Horovitz IndieWire: Naomi Wolf Causes a Stir at Activist Media Panel IndieWire: ‘Shadow Dancer’ Star Andrea Riseborough on the Power of Silence [Interview] IndieWire: The New Paradigm for the Sundance Breakout? When Audiences Walk Out. IndieWire: “1/

The Katzenberg Memo, Part 15

In January 1991, Jeffrey Katzenberg, then the head of Disney’s motion picture divisions, wrote a memo that ended up being circulated throughout Hollywood. Even though it is 21 years old, it is remarkably relevant to the current movie business. For example, the United States was in a recession as

GITS Script Reading and Analysis Series: “The Sixth Sense” — Dialogue

This week we are analyzing the screenplay for the 1999 movie The Sixth Sense written by M. Night Shyamalan. You can access the September 12, 1997 draft of the script through myPDFscripts here. Today we discuss the script’s dialogue: * What do you consider to be the most memorable lines,

Great Character: Frank Booth (“Blue Velvet”)

One of the creepiest Nemesis characters in American film history is Frank Booth from Blue Velvet: Played with demented intensity by the late Dennis Hopper, Booth is a psychopath of the first order. Here is the IMDB plot summary: A man returns to his home town after being away and

Daily Dialogue — January 27, 2012

“And that droopy thing over there, that’s my brother, Mike. We call him Joe College.” — Sonny (James Caan), The Godfather: Part II, screenplay by Francis Ford Coppola and Mario Puzo, based on Puzo’s novel The Daily Dialogue theme for the week is flashbacks, suggested by Alexander Gorelik. Trivia:

“10 Tips: Write an Unsellable Screenplay”

HT to @UnkScreenwriter for finding this link, a good reminder of some basic things not to do when writing a spec script: 1. DO NOT use 12 pt. Courier font. 2. DO NOT have lots of white space on the page. 3. MAKE IT LONG. 4. HAVE NO IDEA where

2012 Sundance Film Festival: Day 7

Day 7 links! Deadline: IFC Acquires Josh Radnor’s ‘Liberal Arts: Sundance Deadline: IFC Acquires ‘The Pact’ IndieWire: Entertainment One Acquires ‘Wish You Were Here’ IndieWire: Review of “V/H/S” LAT: Gina Rodriguez of ‘Filly Brown’ is the newest ‘It’ girl LAT: Documentary on Paul Simon’s ‘Graceland’ screens

The Katzenberg Memo, Part 14

In January 1991, Jeffrey Katzenberg, then the head of Disney’s motion picture divisions, wrote a memo that ended up being circulated throughout Hollywood. Even though it is 21 years old, it is remarkably relevant to the current movie business. For example, the United States was in a recession as

GITS Script Reading & Analysis: “The Sixth Sense” — Theme

This week we are analyzing the screenplay for the 1999 movie The Sixth Sense written by M. Night Shyamalan. You can access the September 12, 1997 draft of the script through myPDFscripts here. Today we discuss the script’s themes. There are several of them. Which ones do you see

The Business of Screenwriting: There are three groups of people in Hollywood

There are three groups of people in Hollywood: Group 1: People who know nothing or next to nothing about story. Group 2: People who can tell you what’s wrong with a story, but don’t know how to solve its problems. Group 3: People who not only can determine

Daily Dialogue — January 26, 2012

“Keep your loving brother happy.” — Frank (Henry Fonda), Once Upon a Time in the West (1968), screenplay by Sergio Leone & Sergio Donati, story by Dario Argento & Bernardo Bertolucci & Sergio Leone The Daily Dialogue theme for the week is flashbacks, suggested by Alexander Gorelik. Today’s suggestion by

“Placing Too Much Importance on Passion”

In two recent interviews I did with Academy Award winning screenwriters, I was struck by the fact both of them said one of the most critical factors in writing a good story is for the writer to be passionate about the project. Then today I read this from writer and

Short Film: “Gift of Life”

Reminiscent of Toy Story and Up, a short film by A/F Benaza, story by Joey David Tiempo and Ali Silao, sponsored by Energizer batteries: Thanks to Jeff Kirschner for sending me that link who adds these comments about the film: * A feel-good love story * An example of visual

2012 Sundance Film Festival: Day 6

Day 6 links! IndieWire: Box Office Be Damned: For Buyers, Optimism Rules at Sundance 2012 IndieWire: ‘Beasts of the Southern Wild’ Star Quvenzhané Wallis is a Pint-Size Breakout IndieWire: Review of “For a Good Time Call…” IndieWire: Review of “Safety Not Guaranteed” IndieWire: Review of “The Imposter” SlashFilm: ‘The

The Katzenberg Memo, Part 13

In January 1991, Jeffrey Katzenberg, then the head of Disney’s motion picture divisions, wrote a memo that ended up being circulated throughout Hollywood. Even though it is 21 years old, it is remarkably relevant to the current movie business. For example, the United States was in a recession as

GITS Script Reading & Analysis: “The Sixth Sense” — Characters

This week we are analyzing the screenplay for the 1999 movie The Sixth Sense written by M. Night Shyamalan. You can access the September 12, 1997 draft of the script through myPDFscripts here. Today we discuss the script’s characters. Here is a list of the most prominent ones: Malcolm