Scott Myers

Spec Script Sale: “Untitled Paul Sloan Project”

Millennium Films acquires untitled supernatural action project from writer Paul Sloan. From THR: The untitled supernatural action script is described as having been inspired by pulp heroes Doc Savage and Tarzan, and centers on a team of mercenaries whose search for a missing person in the jungles of Cambodia becomes

Rod Serling: Are writers born or made?

GITS reader David A sent me a link to an amazing set of videos, a sit-down conversation with TV and screenwriter Rod Serling. Most well-known for the long-running TV anthology series “The Twilight Zone” (148 episodes, 1959–1964), has over 70 writing credits including the screenplays for

Script To Screen: “Se7en”

The final moments of the climactic scene in the movie Se7en (1995), written by Andrew Kevin Walker, one of the most powerful cinematic moments in recent memory. Setup: Detectives Mills (Brad Pitt) and Somerset (Morgan Freeman) have been led to a remote location by serial killer John Doe (Kevin Spacey)

The Persistent Writers’ Hall of Fame: Kathryn Stocketts (“The Help”)

Way back on August 28, 2008, I wrote up this post in which I inaugurated The Persistent Writers’ Hall of Fame, a tongue in cheek way of acknowledging how the road to success is often fraught with many twists, turns and rejections. In the case of some writers, a lot

Rod Serling: On the value of “know thyself”

GITS reader David A sent me a link to an amazing set of videos, a sit-down conversation with TV and screenwriter Rod Serling. Most well-known for the long-running TV anthology series “The Twilight Zone” (148 episodes, 1959–1964), has over 70 writing credits including the screenplays for

Screenwriting 101: Seth Grahame-Smith

“Writing a novel and writing a screenplay have nothing to do with each other, other than the spelling of the words. The first thing you find out is where all the fat is because it’s gone. Instantly. The second thing you find out is that you need to tell

Daily Dialogue — August 23, 2011

“I heard a joke once: Man goes to doctor. Says he’s depressed. Says life is harsh and cruel. Says he feels all alone in a threatening world. Doctor says, ‘Treatment is simple. The great clown Pagliacci is in town tonight. Go see him. That should pick you up.’ Man

Reader Question: Does a story hook (1st ten pages) have to be suspenseful?

Open forum question from The_High_Dweller: In regard to hooking the reader in first 10 pages… Would you say that a “hook” consists of something shocking, mesmerizing, tantalizing, OR can a hook also be something that simply sets the stage for things to come in an interesting manner? In

Spec Script Sale: “In the Event of a Moon Disaster”

Film Nation acquires sci-fi thriller spec “In the Event of a Moon Disaster” from writer Mike Jones. Per Deadline: …script that re-imagines the first moon mission. In this version, disaster strikes and the astronauts find themselves up against insurmountable odds. Interesting. A human being hasn’t set foot

“30 Amazing Stanley Kubrick Cinemagraphs”

FilmmakerIQ surfaced something very cool: 30 “cinemagraphs” from Stanley Kubrick films. Here are 4 of them: What is a cinemagraph? From the FilmmakerIQ post: Cinemagraphs are still photographs in which a minor and repeated movement action occurs. The term “cinemagraph” was coined by U.S. photographers Kevin Burg and Jamie

Dispatches from the Front Line: Matthew O-B’s story

The other day I posted this update on Mr. Justin Samuels, aspiring screenwriter who has sued CAA and WME for $8M he feels he’s owed for the scripts he’s written that haven’t, up to this point, gotten him represented, let alone sold. That spawned quite a few

Rod Serling: Do you outline or just take off and write?

GITS reader David A sent me a link to an amazing set of videos, a sit-down conversation with TV and screenwriter Rod Serling. Most well-known for the long-running TV anthology series “The Twilight Zone” (148 episodes, 1959–1964), has over 70 writing credits including the screenplays for

Popcorn Fiction: “Sundowning” by Craig Ugoretz

A new short story from Popcorn Fiction hosted by novelist-screenwriter Derek Haas: Three-time Popcorn Fiction writer Craig Ugoretz is back with a tale that reminded me of some of those great Twilight Zone episodes. “Sundowning” centers on a couple of orderlies at a retirement home who find out

On Writing

“I admire anybody who has the guts to write anything at all.”  — E. B. White  HT to @Quotes4Writers

Daily Dialogue theme for the week: Jokes!

The theme for next week is characters telling jokes, suggested by Francisco Madaragog. I was hesitant about jumping on this band wagon as I could only come up with a few examples. But then Teddy P weighed in with some and I remembered a few more, so I think we’

“What scares the masters of horror?”

Nifty feature for you horror fans: The NYT asked several filmmakers who have been involved in the production of projects in the genre what movies most scared them. A few examples: TI WEST, director of “The House of the Devil” and “The Innkeepers”: The image of those two oddball little

Video: “50/50”

Tragedy / Comedy. Six years ago, Will got cancer in his back. Obviously, that sucked. But he and his best friend, Seth, coped with the tragic situation by finding the humor in it. After he got better, Will decided to write a comedy inspired by what happened, called 50/50. Seth

“How the F-word became common in PG-13 movies”

I get asked this question routinely: How many F-words are you allowed to have a PG-13 movie. An article from Time magazine takes on the subject: At least three summer movies have taken advantage of what might be considered lax standards by slipping in a bunch of naughty

Video Interview: Rod Serling

In the spirit of our daily Rod Serling reprise, I stumbled on these amazing video clips: An early 1960s interview with Serling conducted by Mike Wallace. The video quality is poor, but it’s over 50 years old, no complaints. There’s a special treat at the end of Part

Daily Dialogue theme for next week???

As we wind down this week filled with movie references [thanks to Todd Wallinger for the suggestion], it’s time for another Daily Dialogue theme. Here is the current roster of possibilities as suggested by GITS readers: Embarrassing [(Doug)] People at a loss for words [(Doug)] Arnold quotes [The Unknown

Two new Pixar movies announced

Disney has this event called D23, their version of Comic-Con and there they just announced two new Pixar movies. From THR: The Untitled Pixar Movie about Dinosaurs will be directed by Pixar veteran Bob Peterson and produced by John Walker.The movie is aiming for a holiday 2013 release.

Futuristic Movie Timeline

Via the always interesting FilmmakerIQ site, number 6 in a series of pop culture charts created by Dan Meth:

“Disney Exec Says Tentpole Movies are About Spectacle, Not Story. Is He Right?”

Here we go again: Hollywood’s recurring assault on the importance — or not — of story. From Slashfilm: Think back to the last movie you paid to watch in theaters. What inspired you to shell out your hard-earned cash for two hours’ entertainment when you could’ve easily saved money

Written Interview: Brad Bird

Today’s written interview is with writer-director Brad Bird whose screenwriting credits include * batteries not included, The Incredibles and Ratatouille. The interview is with Geoff Boucher from the always excellent movie blog “Hero Complex” (LAT). Some excerpts: GB: Pixar has become the gold standard among popcorn films as far

Reader Question: What do I do when my Protagonist and the plot aren’t in sync?

A question from Robert: Hi Scott, I’ve been struggling with an issue I was hoping you may have some experience with. I essentially have a plot with “a lot of cool shit” happening along with a twist that should really surprise the reader. I also have a protag with