Scott Myers

Reader Question: Is it true that only 2% of independent films get distribution?

Background on the ever-changing indie film landscape… and is that HOPE on the horizon? A question from Lembit: Is this true that only 2% of independent films get any form of distribution? I got this information from an article written by William C. Martell. “According to the Los Angeles

Scene Description Spotlight: “Up”

Pixar filmmakers are masters at setups and payoffs as in the script for Up. The ‘Carl and Ellie married life sequence’ is often lauded for its efficiency, entertainment, and emotional impact. But it also traffics heavily in terms of setups and payoffs. Let’s break it down. INT. CHURCH — DAY

Daily Dialogue — May 27, 2010

Donnie Darko (2001), written and directed by Richard Kelly The Daily Dialogue theme for the week is extended scenes with no dialogue, suggested by Désirée and Viewers Like You, a reminder that movies are primarily a visual medium — and that sometimes, the best dialogue is no dialogue. Donnie Darko suggested

Reader Question: Tips for writing a ‘big’ story ending?

An open forum question from Darren: Hey Scott, one of my biggest struggles in writing is finding my ending. I usually know what the end result must be (A must be happy, B must have been foiled, etc), but determining how to do it stumps me. I’ll usually go

“Fox 2000 Options Revisionist Jack London Tale In Latest Genre-Bending Movie Pact”

And this genre-bending trend continues. Per Deadline.com: EXCLUSIVE: Fox 2000 has acquired movie rights to The Secret Journeys of Jack London: The Wild, the first installment of a young adult supernatural adventure series by Christopher Golden and Tim Lebbon. Harper Collins just acquired the series and will publish

Spec Script Sale: “Fun Size”

Per THR, Paramount lays down low- to mid-six figures for comedy spec “Fun Size” from writer “The Colbert Report” writer Max Werner: Loglines are being kept under wraps, but “Fun” is described as a cross between “Superbad” and “Adventures in Babysitting” that is set on Halloween. — — “ ‘Fun Size’ is

Pitch Sale: “The Fight Before Christimas”

Per Variety, Fox buys comedy pitch “The Fight Before Christmas from writer Adam Sztkiel: Fox made the preemptive purchase late last week. Other than disclosing that “Fight” is a family-centered comedy, studio’s keeping the logline under wraps.  — —  Sztykiel is also re-writing dating comedy “The Game,” set up

“Need an awesome movie title? Just try some Warren Zevon lyrics”

Michael Stark with an inspired post: I’ve been listening to Excitable Boy over and over the past few days and it’s a bountiful bonanza of bitchin’ movie titles. If you’re hard pressed finding the perfect moniker for your screenplay, try a few of these on for size:

Screenwriting 101 — Robert Towne

“The single most important question, I think, that one must ask one’s self about a character is what are they really afraid of? What are they really afraid of? And if you ask that question, it’s probably for me the single best way of getting into a character.

Daily Dialogue — May 26, 2010

Dangerous Liasons (1988), screenplay by Christopher Hampton, play by Christopher Hampton, based on a novel by Choderlos de Laclos The Daily Dialogue theme for the week is extended scenes with no dialogue, suggested by Désirée and Viewers Like You, a reminder that movies are primarily a visual medium — and that

Pitch Sale: “Lightspeed”

Per Cinematical, Disney buys space adventure pitch “Lightspeed” from writers Terry Rossio and Bill Marsilii. Jerry Bruckheimer Films, in (usual) conjunction with the Disney Movie Machine, has dropped about $3.5 million on a new screenplay by Terry Rossio and Bill Marsilii. The property is called Lightspeed, and according to

Reader Question: What legal issues should one be aware of when writing a parody?

An open forum question from Tony: What legal stuff should a person be aware of when writing a parody? For example, do you have to change characters’ names or not? Are there any legal hoops a person must jump through before including a parody-version of a popular copyrighted song

“Script Coverage: A Few Awful Truths”

For those of you who may get tired of hearing me go on and on about Hollywood’s “similar but different” mentality, and how important it is to work with a great story concept when writing a spec script, and how critical script readers are in the script submission and

“The Top Ten Questions ‘Lost’ Never Answered”

Per Geekscape, “The Top Ten Questions ‘Lost’ Never Answered”. Here are five of them: 1. NO SERIOUSLY, WHAT WAS UP WITH THE NUMBERS? 2. NO SERIOUSLY, WHAT WAS UP WITH WALT? 3. NO SERIOUSLY, WHAT WAS UP WITH AARON? 4. NO SERIOUSLY, WHAT WAS UP WITH THE CABIN? 5. NO

GITS Script Recommendation Compilation

Nate Winslow, who writes a guest column on GITS about his attempts to produce a $1M indie feature, has also kindly undertaken the task of creating a master list of all the recent GITS Script Recommendations with links where you can download PDFs of the scripts. Yes, a lot of

Hollywood Tales

“We Americans have always considered Hollywood, at best, a sinkhole of depraved venality. And, of course, it is. It is not a Protective Monastery of Aesthetic Truth. It is a place where everything is incredibly expensive.”  — David Mamet Comment Archive

Daily Dialogue — May 25, 2010

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), screenplay by Stanley Kubrick & Arthur C. Clarke The Daily Dialogue theme for the week is extended scenes with no dialogue, suggested by Désirée and Viewers Like You, a reminder that movies are primarily a visual medium — and that sometimes, the best dialogue is no

Pitch Sale: “Grudge”

Warner Bros. buys comedy-drama pitch “Grudge” from writer Tim Kelleher: “Grudge,” which seeks to evoke the tone of the 2000 Warners movie “Space Cowboys,” revolves around retired boxers Billy “The Kid” McGuigan and Henry “Razor” Sharp, lifelong bitter rivals who are coaxed out of retirement and into the ring

Reader Question: How to manage time and writing?

Reader question from Nick: What is your writing routine like? You must be busy with the blog, your development job, teaching, etc. How much time do you dedicate to screenwriting? Okay, time management. Here are three tips that I swear by: #1: “Do the other stuff first.” I begin each

“Lost”… with cats

For those “Lost” fans in mourning: UPDATE: By the way, all you fans of “Lost” certainly know that the series was created by J.J. Abrams and Damon Lindelof, and that Lindelof basically ran the show with Carlton Cuse. But do you know the story about Jeffrey Lieber, who also

trackingb.com

I hear this lament all the time: “I’m an aspiring screenwriter, but I’m stuck in [fill-in-the-blank nowhere near L.A. location]. How can I possibly get access to the information and contacts I need to break into the business?” Fortunately there are some excellent online

The Bechdel Test: Women in Movies

I received this email from GITS reader Martha Early: Hi Scott, I’m a female screenwriter and I love your blog. I thought you might be interested in the following video about the Bechdel test, a well-known questionnaire of sorts that helps to gauge the presence of women in

On Writing

“It is impossible to discourage the real writers — they don’t give a damn what you say, they’re going to write.”  — Sinclair Lewis

Daily Dialogue — May 24, 2010

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), screenplay by Stanley Kubrick & Arthur C. Clarke The Daily Dialogue theme for the week is extended scenes with no dialogue, suggested by Désirée and Viewers Like You, a reminder that movies are primarily a visual medium — and that sometimes, the best dialogue is no

Reader Question: Does a “story by” credit get any financial compensation?

An open forum question from Brian: Do “Story by:” people get any financial compensation? A friend and I hashed out a story and he’s done 90% of the writing with just some tweeks for me. Funny thing is about 90% of the story was my idea. Does only the